In the first Marvel Ultimate Alliance game, just about every hero in the Marvel Comics universe has showed up to fight again Doctor Doom and a very impressive lineup of villains. It was, by far, one of the best RPG-styled action games set in the Marvel universe. Now, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 finds the superhero community divided in a major clash that has friends going up against each another and it’s all on your Nintendo DS.

The story is lifted straight from the “Civil War” Marvel Comics crossover storyline where S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury executes a secret invasion (with the help of a few heroes) to Doctor Doom’s homeland, Latveria, only to make an enemy of Doom successor, Lucia von Bardas. Little do the heroes know that von Bardas is still alive and takes her revenge on American soil. The result of her attack on New York City as well as civilian deaths in another superhero-related tragedy, forces the government to pass the Superhuman Registration Act that requires all superheroes to reveal their identities.

Of course, Captain America does not agree with the Act and stands against it with a group of other heroes that believe the Act is unconstitutional. Unfortunately, his good friend and fellow Avenger, Tony Stark (AKA Iron Man) is for it and takes up the cause to put a stop to Captain America and his followers by any means necessary. Yeah, this is what you call a civil war.

The game follows the invasion of Latveria with Iron Man, Captain America, Spider-Man and Wolverine as the startup team but the level later allows you to switch the characters so you can swap Spidey with Ms. Marvel or Iron Man with The Thing. The DS also allows you to select the characters by tapping the touch screen that displays the character’s portraits as well as their special abilities and powers.

Like the first Ultimate Alliance game, you can create your own dream team from the 15 playable characters but unlike the first game the available characters will depend whether you decide to take Captain America or Iron Man’s side. The roster includes members of various Marvel teams from members of the Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four and even heroes who work solo like Luke Cage. Seeing as the Act also affects villains, those who were once foes - like Venom - join the fight. In a DS exclusive, the game also adds Sentry and She-Hulk to the lineup.

The action flows smoothly enough as you take on the missions that are given to you depending on the side you choose. If you decide to help Captain America fight against Iron Man you will find yourself going up against S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives now known as “cape killers” and if you side with Iron Man you find yourself in the Baxter Building with all the resources that a wealthy man like Tony Stark can provide. This also means that you will find yourself going up against a number of familiar faces you normally wouldn’t expect to be your enemy in a boss battle such as Avengers’ own Henry Pym.

Interestingly enough, all four of your chosen characters on your team can combine their powers with a chosen ally to unleash a massive attack. For example, Ms. Marvel can shoot her photon blast at Wolverine who deflects said blast with his claws to create a destructive prism blast. The problem, however, is that the option doesn’t pop up when you need it because your computer-controlled allies tend to unleash their powers uncontrollably. Don’t expect much help from your allies, unless you play the game with three other friends via wireless multiplayer mode.

Then there are the few glitches in the game that have your AI-controlled allies getting stuck so you have to go back and get them. There are also many instances where the lack of a targeting system means you’ll be swinging away at nothing. These problems actually don’t take away from the fact that the levels offer a diverse number of objectives and challenging boss fights. Even the touch screen actions are actually quite responsive.

Visually, Ultimate Avengers 2 isn’t the prettiest Nintendo DS game and even though the cut scenes aren’t outstanding you will immediately recognize all the characters that pop up on the screen. While the backgrounds aren’t the best, at least the characters pull off their powers and abilities beautifully enough that the visual effects surprisingly brighten up the screen. There isn’t any voice acting to be found but at least there are some tolerable sound effects and the music is just outstanding.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 for the Nintendo DS manages to be a fun portable action game that does have its few bumps along the way but the path to superhero glory is here if you loved the first game in this series. We would have loved more heroes in this game but the collection here is enough to thrill all you True Believers out there.

Gameplay: 7.0
An unauthorized mission to Doctor Doom’s homeland places two members of the Avengers on the path of an explosive civil war that pits heroes against heroes. As the lines are drawn, you pick your side in a short story with plenty of big fights. The action flows nicely and there are plenty of characters to use in the game but there are a few glitches along the way.

Graphics: 7.5
Visually, the game isn’t so bad to look at and you can easily identify every character on the screen without any introduction. The portraits for each character could have been handled better, though, considering Marvel Comics has numerous master artists on hand that Activision could have hired.

Sound: 6.5
The game’s soundtrack is very dramatic and works wonderfully throughout the game to make up for the lack of voice acting in the game. There are some decent sound effects but nothing that really stands out or makes you believe you’re playing as Iron Man or even Wolverine.

Difficulty: Medium
Never mind the henchmen and armed soldiers; the real action comes from fighting against the likes of Captain America’s followers or Iron Man’s clan of justice seeking heroes. With heroes fighting heroes, things have just become more interesting.

Concept: 7.0
There are 15 playable heroes and villains so if you ever wanted to see a team that includes Wolverine and Venom in the same roster you are in luck. The DS version gets Sentry and She-Hulk as exclusives. There’s also multiplayer co-op for four players in total.

Multiplayer: 7.5
This game is far better playing with up to three friends as the supporting role characters in the game’s story mode and there are more than enough Marvel characters to use so everyone could be happy. It definitely makes up for the poor AI controls while playing solo.

Overall: 7.0
While adding more than enough super powered friends and foes to keep Marvel fans happy, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 for the DS is a surprisingly entertaining handheld action game. Sure, it has its share of problems but the action flows smoothly enough to make this civil war between heroes a decent portable port.