After last spring's disappointing Spider-Man 3 comes Friend or Foe, a game that suffers from too many problems to make it an enjoyable experience. This action brawler simply does not have enough strength to keep players engaged.

The premise is simple but exciting: beat up the series' villains and then get them to fight alongside you. Spider-Man can team up with one villain at a time, controlled by the artificial intelligence or a friend via ad-hoc. With that said, the inability to play co-op over a wireless network stings, as it would have made a great addition.

Artificially controlled characters aimlessly wander behind you and hit whatever gets in their way. This kills some of the excitement and makes battles feel less frenzied and clumsy. It's possible to pull off combos while fighting, but this isn't exactly easy or worth the effort. Level design is rather generic, which further dampens the mood. Good lighting and particle effects help to spice things up, but the drab and repetitive environments further kill the game's momentum . Most levels have Spider-Man and his villain of choice fighting the same enemy types over and over again, further adding to the tedium.

The game features some cool cut-scenes, with above average voice acting (better than in Spider-Man 3, anyway), but the in-game visuals don't fare as well. The camera pulls back a little too far, and character models needed more work. Sound effects are generally crisp and easy on the ears, and the music ranges from slightly annoying to cinematic.

Despite a cool concept, Friend or Foe failed to excite us. Spider-Man fans may get something out of it, but even they will ultimately come away disappointed, if not tired, by this repetitive and boring game.