dev. Radical

Now available for Xbox, Gamecube, and Playstation 2.

Hulk strongest there is, as every self-respecting Marvel geek knows. But the Jade Giant has gotten short shrift in the A.F. (After Ferrigno) era, with a long period of weak-sister scorn capped off by Ang Lee's overly Zen dud of a film. And as for the quality of the tie-in video game? Well, you spend half of the game sneaking around as Bruce Banner. Puny Banner.

Thankfully, the new Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction more than lives up to the carnage promised by the title. And how. It begins with all the exterior trappings: The story (by comic vet Paul Jenkins) is pulpily intriguing, the vocal performances aren't just phoned in, and the epic boss battles tread the fine line between honestly challenging and control-flingingly cheap. The polish of the gameplay matches the story, with all of the character's trademark moves, including the ability to bunny hop for miles and create thunderous handclap shockwaves, replicated via reasonably simple button combos. The main selling point, though, and what elevates this to the top tier of superhero adaptations, has to be the ability to turn pretty much every part of the game's environment into a weapon. Use a flattened tank as a shield/surfboard, shove a telephone pole through a mile-high helicopter, bowl a giant hamburger statue down Main Street, use a Ford Pinto as impromptu boxing gloves—it's all possible, to a degree that would make both Stan Lee and MacGyver weep.

For an engine, the game takes its free-roaming, crammed full of mini-games inspiration from last year's Spider-Man 2. But while Spidey's saga was limited by a lack of variety in the sidequest category (rescue armored car, jump through hoops, rescue... another armored car), Hulk delivers a much more well-rounded, genuinely fun assortment of party games. Whether using a broken-off oil derrick to launch a giant golf ball through crowded streets, smashing every damned spotlight in the city, or (a personal fave) playing baseball using hapless soldiers as the ball, there's enough here to, à la Cronenberg, bio-weld a player's hands to the controller.

A few minor flaws do become apparent over time: The story mode is a little brief, some of the fetch missions get tedious, and while the sheer number of purchasable moves and hidden perks is an inspired addition, the unlockable skins generally fail to match the effort in finding them. (This is not to discount the awesome ability to deck out the character in Union Jack boxers, however.) Still, with all said and done, this feels like the most purely enjoyable game in what seems like eons. As far as stress-reliving experiences go, bringing down an entire building with a single well-placed headbutt beats the living hell out of meditation.