What is it about these direct-to-DVD sequels that so many people get a kick out of? Disney's made a habit of making these off some kind of processing line, and most of the time, the sequels fail to make any kind of dent into the wonder and beauty of the originals they're based upon I mostly avoid these movies just because the last thing you want to do is try and tamper with the magic you made the first time. Aladdin II? Bah, who needs it?

However, THQ's taken it one level above and actually made a game that's a spin-off of a popular movie brand, and it actually isn't half bad. The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer follows up on the events that concluded the film, with the tunneling villain Underminer rising from the ashes and promising to wreak havoc. This puts Mr. Incredible into action, along with his ice-producing buddy Frozone, who make their way through Underminer's robotic army in an attempt to stop his plans from rotating the Earth and putting it into chaos.

Why Underminer wants to do this, it's not really explained, and why Mr. Incredible's family doesn't really get involved isn't explained either. The game follows a basic formula of letting you choose either Mr. Incredible or Frozone and then basically beating the holy hell out of the robotic army. Each character packs different abilities that will come in handy during the quest. For instance, Incredible's girth will come in handy for bashing multiple enemies, while Frozone's freezing powers allow for the creation of ice bridges and the freezing of obstacles and certain enemies that would otherwise be a pain.

But at the end of the day, the gameplay is reminiscent of other beat-em-up titles on the market, and that's eventually an Achilles heel for the title. Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer can be beaten in a matter of hours between two players, with only the occasional boss challenge coming into play to mix things up. I think it would've been nice to see a bit of variety, kinda like we saw in the first Incredibles game. Sure, it was flawed, but at least it kept things lively and didn't fall into a pattern you could see a mile away.

The presentation's pretty good. The graphics bring to life an all new world in the Incredibles universe, complete with a torn-apart city above ground and tunnels underground that go as far as the eye can see. The game represents a lot of old-school challenges galore, including collapsing bridges, obstacles to get out of your way before a giant sphere runs you over, and more, so the design runs the gamut. The animation looks pretty good, if a bit stale over time, and the sequences in-between the stages are acceptable- although you can clearly see what's taken from the movie and what isn't.

Sound is a different matter. The soundtrack tries to emulate the interesting jazz grooves from the first film, but gets repetitive in a matter of minutes. The sound effects are run-of-the-mill, with nothing sticking out. If anything works here, it's the voice acting. Craig T. Nelson and Samuel Jackson don't provide the voices for their characters, but their sound-alikes still do a moderately good job. But it's John Ratzenberger who makes the game as Underminer, spouting ridiculous commands and taunts most of the game, even during the menu.

The game is thoroughly enjoyable, especially in the two-player co-op mode, where the destruction comes in enjoyable doses. But once it's over, that's about it. The power-up system that Heavy Iron's included doesn't really serve much purpose over prolonged play, and there's not too many extras to dig through, aside from story sequences and a higher score attempt. Kudos to THQ for getting Disney trailers for your viewing pleasure, though. Cars looks like it might be loads of fun.

As a purchase, The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer is only recommended to kids and fans of the film. But as a rental, it comes with a full thumbs-up. It's moderately enjoyable and plays a bit smoother than the first game, even if the gameplay gets monotonous too quickly for its own good. It also has some quality in its presentation, and can be a fun time if you're up for super-hero deeds. This game should definitely not be underminded.