Eight years might not seem like a lot of time, but a lot can change in that time. What was once hot can quickly become cold, what fresh becomes stale, hip becomes passé, et cetera. In 2003, showing how far the world had come in the last eight years since the first Spawn game was released, a new game lived up to what the character was trying to lay down, in Spawn: Armageddon.

Following the early years of Spawn, Armageddon sees Simmons still bound by his contract to walking unlife and is taking the fight between heaven and hell to the streets. Complicating matters is the appearance of characters like The Redeemer and a possible secret project to tip the fight in heaven’s favour. With the balance of power in Spawn’s hands, what will be the fate of the universe?

A lot has changed in the almost decade since the first Spawn game, the film came and went, the cartoon forever solidified the character to the voice of Spawn, 3.D. graphics have come a long way since the prototypes a few years prior, and gameplay has made similar strides too. Armageddon is a third-person affair; you explore the streets and various other locales that feel lifted from the comics. Jumping on platforms and ledges, beating up enemies and the like. You have Simmons’ cloak transforming itself into an axe, familiar stuff if you’ve read the comics before. While it might sound intimidating, a lot of this will feel like second nature if you’ve played other games on the platform, or ones similar too. So it is nice that the core remains familiar, even when applied to the creatively rich Spawn franchise.

Like a couple of other Sixth Generation games based on comic properties that I’ve covered, Spawn Armageddon comes with an in-game encyclopedia and a comic cover collection that rewards vigilance and the like. There are also a couple of animated cutscenes, too, evoking a similar Shadow the Hedgehog in technology and tone. As alluded to earlier, games have come a long way, and this project managed to attract some recognisable names, even if Keith David couldn’t be here. From John DiMaggio, Steve Blum, and even Kevin M Richardson voicing the titular character.

Spawn Armageddon feels closer to the spirit that the other games tried to capture; it almost feels like the quintessential depiction of the character. Now, in a fully computerised adventure, following in the footsteps of other comic book games that made it to the sixth generation, Armageddon makes for a serviceable action platformer. It has quite a lot to offer returning fans, and those who’ve followed the franchise since the 90s can get a sense of how much progress has come in just a few short years. Spawn is now an unlockable fighter for Mortal Kombat or a party member, and the concept of him or his comics carrying their games now seems more like a distant memory. But for a few years, it felt like the future belonged to Spawn.

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