The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction

[Silver Nemesis]

Are there any other fans of this game on the site? I recently dusted off my old GameCube copy and have begun playing through the story mode again. Back when it first came out in 2005 it was hailed by some critics as the greatest superhero game ever. I personally wouldn't rank it quite as high as the best Spider-Man or Batman games, but it's not far off and is worth getting if you can find a copy.

Ultimate Destruction uses a free-roaming sandbox setting similar to the Spider-Man 2 game, only here it's divided into several large areas rather than just one massive city. And unlike the Spider-Man games, you can destroy vehicles and buildings with reckless abandon. There's a main story mode written by Paul Jenkins, plus countless mini games and side missions similar to those you'd find in a Spider-Man game. There are also lots of unlockable combat moves you can purchase, as well as comic book covers hidden throughout the world.

The game boasts some impressive cut scenes and a voice cast that includes Neal McDonough, reprising his role as Banner from the nineties Hulk cartoon show, along with Ron Perlman and Richard Moll.

I remember enjoying this game a lot when it first came out, and it still holds up nicely in 2020. It should have been the beginning of a Hulk gaming franchise, similar to the Arkham series, but instead the developer ended up reusing many of the gameplay elements as the basis for the Prototype series. As it stands, it's the best Hulk game to date. Does anyone else remember it?

[The Joker]

Oh, yeah. If I had to pick my absolute top 3 PS2 games of all time, I would have to go with Spider-Man 2, Incredible Hulk Ultimate Destruction, and Smackdown Here Comes the Pain.

I have some pretty good memories of playing the hell out of this back in either late 2007, or early 2008. If memory serves, I believe I finished the game prior to the release of the Ed Norton Hulk film. Very fun game. However, I know I was a bit late in playing it, as the version I picked up was already under the PS2 "Greatest Hits" banner. Never got around to playing the HULk game based off the 2003 film, but man, Ultimate Destruction, was a lot of fun. For my money, it's definitely right up there with Spider-Man 2.

[Silver Nemesis]

I'd also add the Ultimate Spider-Man (2005) game to the list, which came out during the same era. It's maybe not as good as the Spider-Man 2 game, but the web-swinging mechanics were superior IMO, and you got to play as Venom. Unfortunately my copy has a laser burn so it doesn't work anymore, but I'm tempted to buy a second-hand copy off the internet. Anyone who likes the Spider-Man 2 game will enjoy Ultimate Spider-Man.

I never played Smackdown Here Comes the Pain, but I did own a couple of the Wrestlemania games, including Wrestlemania XIX. The highlight of that game was the create-a-wrestler feature that let you design your own characters. I made Darth Vader, Spider-Man, Superman, Daredevil, the Hulk and numerous versions of Batman. I've heard they limited the CAW options in later games due to potential copyright infringement, but in Wrestlemania XIX you could create practically anyone. Since we were teenage boys at the time, my brother and I also made numerous scantily clad female characters with highly impractical and absurdly disproportionate physical attributes. Good times.

Here's a nice little retrospective on Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, just in case anyone who hasn't played it is considering tracking down a copy.

I'd rank this game alongside the 1977-1982 Bill Bixby TV show, Greg Pak's run on the comics and The Incredible Hulk (2008) as one of my favourite Hulk stories ever. Considering the positive reception of the PS4 Spider-Man game, someone in the industry should think hard about making a modern Hulk game in a similar style.

[The Joker]

I'd also add the Ultimate Spider-Man (2005) game to the list, which came out during the same era. It's maybe not as good as the Spider-Man 2 game, but the web-swinging mechanics were superior IMO, and you got to play as Venom. Unfortunately my copy has a laser burn so it doesn't work anymore, but I'm tempted to buy a second-hand copy off the internet. Anyone who likes the Spider-Man 2 game will enjoy Ultimate Spider-Man.

I missed out on that one unfortunately. Not sure what happened there, especially with being able to play as my boy, Venom.

I never played Smackdown Here Comes the Pain, but I did own a couple of the Wrestlemania games, including Wrestlemania XIX. The highlight of that game was the create-a-wrestler feature that let you design your own characters. I made Darth Vader, Spider-Man, Superman, Daredevil, the Hulk and numerous versions of Batman. I've heard they limited the CAW options in later games due to potential copyright infringement, by in Wrestlemania XIX you could create practically anyone.

Yes! I was pretty pleased with my CAW Andre the Giant and Bret Hart. Think I also created Scott Hall since He wasn't included in the game (unlike Hogan and Nash), but I wasn't super impressed with the results.

Since we were teenage boys at the time, my brother and I also made numerous scantily clad female characters with highly impractical and absurdly disproportionate physical attributes. Good times.

Haha. Yeah,  I had little choice but to give in to the temptation in making CAWs of my favorite busty model pinups. Especially so when there wasn't any restrictions on proportions back then. 😁

Here's a nice little retrospective on Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, just in case anyone who hasn't played it is considering tracking down a copy.

I'd rank this game alongside the 1977-1982 Bill Bixby TV show, Greg Pak's run on the comics and The Incredible Hulk (2008) as one of my favourite Hulk stories ever. Considering the positive reception of the PS4 Spider-Man game, someone in the industry should think hard about making a modern Hulk game in a similar style.

I would guess Ultimate Destruction is still considered the overall best Incredible Hulk game to this day. As far as the story itself goes, I liked it for the most part. About the only thing I wasn't big on, was the game's version of Mercy. As I much preferred Peter David's "angelic entity of merciful death" version of Mercy rather than what the game offered. However, Mercy's debut during David's run with Mcfarlane was, I believe, the very first Hulk comic I was exposed to. And at a very young age, BTW. So yeah, she's always stuck out to me because of that initial impression.