Every now and then, there's a game that's only a pseudosequel in the pipe, that gamers nonetheless want to enjoy. A spinoff from a celebrated game, or a game in the same line from the same programming team.

Activision had a lot going for Ultimate Spider-Man leading up to its release. Marvel's Ultimate line have been, for the most part, warmly received by comic readers. The art style is friendly and enjoyable to watch, and the initial screens were holding up to the appearance. With the gameplay that developer Treyarch had created in the last game, it was shaping up to be a real winner.

What we got isn't a winner, though. While the game's still relatively solid, it feels like leftovers - like someone took the most fun things from the last one, removed them, and we got what was left.