The cast of the X-Men has taken a leap into the third dimension in much the same way as your favorite Street Fighters. Although not actually created by Capcom, it does share some of the same characteristics of the 2D Vs. series. Next Dimension is combo intensive and can also be closely associated with the Bloody Roar line up. Outside of some lethargic controls, there is definitely some fun to be had with this brawler.

X-Men: Next Dimension lays its foundation with a great selection of characters. From Wolverine to Havok and Magneto to Mystique, the good, bad, and ugly are mostly accounted for from the series. Granted, the fighting genre may be getting a little stale as of late, but I'm still a big fan. The story mode offered in X-Men is a welcome addition, and it's at least a step in the right direction for getting the field back on track. In the story mode, you play as a variety of characters, each battle marking some significant event all strung together by FMV cut-scenes. Sometimes you get to choose the participant from a small group, and other times you are forced to play as a particular character in order to fulfill the story's progression. It's modes like this, Tekken Force, and Soul Calibur's Mission Battle that at least kept the genre above water (It's been long enough, someone please take off on Tobal 2's RPG mode!!!!!).

The gameplay is really off-putting at first. The control is horribly sluggish, and there doesn't seem to be much to do in battle. I wouldn't be surprised if people threw it down in disgust before the first hour was up, but if you stick with it and get to know the fighting engine, there is a fun and playable game underneath. I don't know what it is about the control, maybe lack of buffering moves, but if you aren't careful with the key inputs, you'll be frustrated by the lack of response from the game. This also affects special moves, which often come in the form of fireball sweeping motions.

Once you've become accustomed to how the controls will respond, you can begin digging into the combo system that represents the meat of the game. There isn't a whole lot of technical merit in the battles, but there is definitely fun to be had with the combinations possible with each character. Next Dimension is as close as you'll currently get to a 3D Marvel vs. Capcom game. All the key elements are here from launchers to air raves to multi-hit super moves that can be strung into the combo. If you're like me, then you'll be able to find enjoyment in just trying to discover all the possibilities combinations and trying to pull them off in a fight. Of course, I always felt that the Versus games' practice modes were like games unto themselves, so take what I say with a grain of salt.

It's an unenviable task to try and bring popular well-known characters to life in a video game, whether it's from movies, TV, or comic books. Here's where X-Men has its ups and downs. The technical graphics on the whole are pretty weak for a PS2/Gamecube game. Low-poly characters and somewhat stiff animation are par for the course. Where the game excels, though, is in its art direction. Even if the characters were just silhouettes, they would be easily identifiable from their entrances, stances and movement. The designers really did an excellent job of capturing the spirit of the series in both the characters and the fighting locations. Especially significant is the backyard of the Mansion complete with full court basketball.

All the story sequences in the game are fully voiced over, including a special cameo by Patrick Stewart, who played Charles Xavier in the motion picture. Prof. Xavier does all of the narrating, but some scenes have fully spoken dialog, which is very well done. Some voices were added during combat, but with the wonderful effort shown from the story sequences, I was surprised that more wasn't done in battle. What you are forced to deal with is short one-liners that become repetitive after a few fights. Everyone could use a couple of more entrances and victory poses as well.

Next Dimension also suffers from a bad case of unbalanced characters and AI. There are some truly powerful individuals that far outweigh some of the others. Not to say that almost all of the characters aren't fun to use, it just may not be wise. This becomes painfully obvious if you are unlucky enough to face the computer using one of the stronger competitors late in the game. I was on the receiving end of about 25 brutal bashing in a row from one Scott Summers (Cyclops) before I got a couple of lucky victories. It seems like when the AI ramps up (it happens quickly), they just go on a rampage unleashing all possible combinations in a never-ending sequence. If you haven't become an expert at blocking, recovering or countering said combos then you are TOAST.

There's not much difference in appearance between the PS2 and Gamecube versions, but there are a couple significant reasons to choose the Nintendo route if you have the choice. Loading times are completely unacceptable on the PS2. You can wait upwards of 20 seconds for a single fight to begin. Perhaps due to poor programming in general, I expected nothing better on the Gamecube, but there is virtually no load time present on that machine. The GC version also has it all over the PS2 in mode selection. You'll be able to jump into Team Battles and Time Attacks right from the get go. The only drawback to playing on the GC is with the default controller's teeny tiny digital pad, which is a cancer for fighting games.

Overall, Next Dimension isn't going to be mentioned in the same breath with any other marquee fighting game titles, but if you're a fan of the genre, you could do a lot worse. I've managed to absorb quite a few hours of enjoyment from X-Men, and I plan on keeping it as part of my library right next to the other combo-creator Bloody Roar 3. There's plenty of unlocking to do to gain some of the characters, arenas, and other assets, so it could make for a good hold over until we receive Soul Calibur 2.