X-Men 2: Clone Wars

X-Men 2: Clone Wars is the title of a video game released in 1995 by Sega of America for its Mega Drive/Genesis. The game is a sequel to its 1992 side-scrolling video game titled X-Men. The game was given a KA (Kids to Adults) rating by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board. It garnered some attention when it introduced the X-Men enemy Magneto as a playable character.

Storyline
The technorganic alien race known as the Phalanx return and are seeking to take control of Earth by assimlating all of its inhabitants. They've also captured and cloned several mutants for experimentation. Only a select group of X-men (Beast, Gambit, Nightcrawler, Psylocke, Wolverine, Cyclops) have avoided capture and, temporarily united with their oldest foe, Magneto, they must defeat the Phalanx before all of humanity is assimilated. Along the way, they will travel through familiar landscapes including the Savage Land and Avalon, and battle powerful adversaries such as Apocalypse, the Sentinels, Exodus, Deathbird and more.

Gameplay
This game was innovative in that the player was immediately thrust into the game; the first level begins as soon as the game loads with a random character. The first level comprised of only one stage, allowing players to switch out characters after the opening stage. The title screen and credits roll only after completing the first level.

Level 1: Siberia
The first level in the game is Siberia. It consists of only one stage covered in snow and infested with anti-mutant robots and Hand Ninjas. You do not get to pick your character for this level, as it starts immediately upon booting up the game. The character you start with is randomly chosen by the game itself.

Level 2: Sentinel Complex
The second level in the game is the Sentinel Complex. It consists of four stages. The first stage is the lower level of the complex, the second is the upper level, the third is the Sentinel Core (where you face the first boss), and the fourth is running the second stage backwards (with explosions) to escape the building.

Level 3: Asteroid M/Avalon
The third level in the game is Magneto's Asteroid M. The first stage is the Asteroid Surface, the second is inside the actual Avalon (where you face a gun-toting boss, Fabian Cortez), the third is the elevator shaft where you face Exodus, and the fourth is Magneto's quarters, where you face him as a boss. After defeating him, he joins you.

Level 4: Apocalypse's Lair
The fourth level of the game is Apocalypse's lair. The first stage is The Climb, where you face a boss named Tusk. The second is inside the fortress, where you face multiple Tusks. The third is the Computer Room, where you will face off with Apocalypse.

Level 5: The Savage Land
The Savage Land is the fifth level in the game. It consists of five stages. The first stage is the outter Savage Land, the second is the inner Savage Land, the third is the Tower Floor (part I), the fourth is the Tower Floor (part II), and the fifth is Master Brain's quarters, where you will face Brainchild, the boss of the level.

Level 6: Phalanx Ship
The last level in the game is the Phalanx Ship. The Phalanx have apparently teamed up with the Brood. The first stage consists of maneuvering the ship where you will fight Cameron Hodge, the second is another elevator shaft where Deathbird awaits, the third is a lab, the fourth is a maze, and the fifth is the Final Battle. The final battle consists of taking on the Brood Queen, following which you have to face off with each of the clones of the X-Men. The Queen and the clones are very difficult, but each has a specific pattern and weakness that you can exploit.

Characters
The character lineup for the game includes Beast, Gambit, Cyclops, Wolverine, Psylocke, and Nightcrawler. Upon defeating the third level, Magneto becomes a playable character.

Each character has a "mutant power" which can be used in fighting. Some of these can be charged to a greater effect by holding down the power button, and all of them are incresed in power when the character has nine or ten bars of health. In addition to these powers, some characters are capable of climbing the walls and ceiling, or grabbing onto the wall. These powers can be used to reach hidden health (which is in the shape of a double helix) or as a shortcut. Also, some characters had attacks that propelled them forward, enabling them to jump further. Finally, some characters had double jumps, useful for shortcuts.


 * Beast pounds the ground, damaging anyone near him. This attack cannot be charged, but when his health is at its peak, two shockwaves are shot away from him along the ground. He can also grab onto walls, but not climb them. He is generally regarded as the worst character because of his slowness. However, he defeats bosses easily, because of his strong attacks. He can also leap forwards, but this attack is mostly pointless, as it does no damage.


 * Gambit has the power to throw explosive cards. He can use his kick to propell himself forward. When his attack is charged, or his health is full, he throw two separate cards. When his health is full and he is fully charged, he throws three cards. He is one of two characters who can attack from a distance.


 * Cyclops is the other distance attacker. He shoots a red optic blast as an attack. He, like Gambit, uses his kick to propell himself forward. When he is fully charged or has full health, his attack is stronger and slightly thicker. When he is fully charged and at full health, his attack is very strong and about three times as thick as his standard blast.


 * Psylocke uses a telepathic knife as a special. This is very damaging, but slow to pull off, and it only works on humanoid enemies. She carries a sword, which is much faster, has a further reach, and hurts all enemies. She uses her special to propell herself forward. When her health is full, the knife becomes longer and stronger. She can grab walls, but not climb them, and has a double jump. She also has a mostly pointless slide attack, added in an attempt to make her even with the other players. However, she is still not as good as the others.


 * Nightcrawler's special is teleportation. He disappears and reappears in a cloud of smoke, damaging all enemies surrounding him. Unlike the first game, he cannot actually teleport through walls. His kick can propell him forwards, he has a double jump, and he can climb walls and ceilings. When he has full health, his teleporting does more damage, and charging it makes him go further. He is very fast, and well-liked among most people. However, his attacks are all very weak, making him worse against bosses.


 * Wolverine is regarded as the best character in this game, by far. His special propells him forward, a forward swipe with his claws. Unlike the first game, his claws are always out, and he deals a lot of damage with every attack. He climbs walls and ceilings by sticking his claws into them, and he has a double jump. When his health is full, his attack does more damage, and the trail left by his claws in the air becomes more jagged looking. This alone would probably make him the most powerful person in the game, but also, when he has only one or two bars of health, he heals after a certain amount of time.


 * Magneto's regular attack is long range. He jumps higher than the others, and moves slowly through the air. He has two specials, depending on if he is in the air or not. If his power is used when he is in the air, he stops falling and floats there until his special is used again. When he is on the ground, he makes a magnetic orb that floats in front of him and explodes. The explosion has a very small radius, unless he has full health, in which case it covers the screen. To make for these powers, though, he is very slow, and therefore bad in many levels.

Trivia
The Phalanx appeared in the X-men animated series during its final season.

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