X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse is not set in any particular Marvel Comics universe. The game takes place some time after the events of X-Men Legends. The mutant supervillainApocalypse, having witnessed the X-Men's defeat of Magneto remotely, declares that the Age of Apocalypse is nigh. Prior to the game's campaign he kidnaps Professor X and Polaris for unknown purposes. Locations include a military prison in Greenland, the fictional mutant sanctuary of Genosha, the Savage Land and Egypt..X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse features a central hub that players return to between missions. It is a designated area free from enemies, and its setting changes to coincide with the current act of the game. Here players can view loading screen art, cinematics, and comic book covers acquired during gameplay. Biographies of the X-Men and their enemies can be accessed here. Players can also participate in an X-Men trivia game which awards experience points for correct answers. Additionally, players can access the a virtual combat environment known as the Danger Room to play additional missions unlocked during gameplay.X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse is an
action role-playing game developed primarily by
Raven Software and published by
Activision. It is the follow up to 2004's
X-Men Legends. It was first released in September 2005 for the
GameCube,
Microsoft Windows,
N-Gage,
PlayStation 2,
PlayStation Portable and
Xboxvideo game platforms. It is set after the events of
X-Men Legends and features the mutant supervillain
Apocalypse as the primary antagonist.
X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse was announced on October 21, 2004, exactly one month after the release of X-Men Legends. The developers intended the game to have a greater sense of scale than its predecessor, and writers created a story the villains known as the
Brotherhood of Mutants, would need to ally themselves with the heroic
X-Men to defeat a greater threat. High quality cinematics were created by
Blur Studio. Online multiplayer was also added.
SuperVillain Studios was brought on to the project to focus on the online component of the game.Beenox ported X-Men Legends II to Microsoft Windows.The game was well received by gaming critics on all platforms. Critics felt that the inclusion of online play, additional mutant powers, and a larger cast made the game an improvement over its predecessor. Some reviewers were critical of the game's voice acting and felt that the gameplay was repetitive. It sold enough copies to be added to the budget line known as PlayStation 2's Greatest Hits.X-Men Legends II is anaction role-playing game. It unites twoMarvel Comics superhero teams, the heroic X-Menand the villainous Brotherhood of Mutants as they together face the mutant supervillain Apocalypse and his minions.X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypsereceived generally favorable reviews. All platforms hold aggregate scores in the 80–85% range at aggregate review websitesGameRankings and Metacritic. Reported scores at Metacritic ranged from 59% to 100% approval. According to the NPD Group, Rise of Apocalypse sold over 63,000 units on the Xbox during the month of its release.Reviewers have high marks on the game's cast of characters, but were divided in their opinions of the choice of voice actors. GameTrailers's reviewer disliked that several famous X-Men and Brotherhood characters were not playable, but appeared only as side characters. They also cited issues with voice acting and a convoluted story.