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The Incredible Hulk

Marvel’s Joe Fixit Deserves a Game Piece

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By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.

When I devoured The Incredible Hulk comics growing up, I always liked it when the writers had Hulk take on the identity of Joe Fixit, a shadowy behind the scenes figure, working in Las Vegas on behalf of a corrupt casino owner, Michael Berengetti. Joe Fixit was a morally vague Vegas enforcer and tough guy.

Joe Fixit seems like an obvious choice for a video game. Grey Hulk in his dark suit and fedora, creating carnage across Sin City seems perfect for an Android or console game.

Joe Fixit could be assigned a task by shady casino owner, Michael Berengetti, and the game could follow Fixit throughout a night in Vegas fighting off bad guys around Vegas landmarks.

Fixit could fight a bunch of hoodlums on the Ghostbar balcony of The Palms Casino. He could do battle with some baddies in the Stratosphere Casino, Hotel & Tower. All of Vegas could be Joe Fixit’s playground in this game. The game could be a Mortal Kombat or Mafia sort of format. There could be a lot of dark alley fights, where Fixit, in the comics, would brawl with several villains. A fight in or around the Bellagio fountains pool could be a fun set piece.

Joe Fixit is a playable character in Marvel: Contest of Champions. I highly recommend a Fixit and Juggernaut battle; it’s a thrill if you’re a fan of the two characters. A Fixit game could have the sharp graphics of Contest of Champions, but its gameplay and mission could be like Nintendo’s original Double Dragon. Not exactly like a level game, but each Vegas landmark stage could be Fixit getting closer to completing his mission. What Marvel villain could be waiting for Joe Fixit at the final stage? The developers would have an enormous catalogue of villains to choose from. Kingpin or Juggernaut in a casino high-rise on The Strip?

Sometimes, I still break out my back issues of The Incredible Hulk when Joe Fixit appeared. Oh… Joe Fixit fighting a bunch of hoods dressed as pirates at Treasure Island. That could be a visual feast for gamers.

image source: Marvel Database

 

The Incredible Hulk: Smashed It On The Sega Game Gear

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By: D.C. Cutler, U.S.A.

My love for the comic book character The Incredible Hulk started with my Sega Game Gear. As a kid, when I got a Game Gear, I played The Incredible Hulk game on the console all the time. I played it on the school bus; late at night when my parents thought I was sleeping; and when I should’ve been working on homework. I couldn’t get enough of the side-scrolling action game.

The Sega Game Gear gets a bad rap, but the small console had several great games. When all of my friends had Nintendo Game Boys, I was playing my Game Gear. I always thought the graphics were sharper on the Game Gear than the Game Boy. The game play looked similar to the actual Sega Genesis game.

Playing The Incredible Hulk everyday made me a fan of the green superhero. I started collecting the comic book because of the Game Gear game. My collection began with a few comics, but as my love for the character grew, a few comics became a hundred in about a year. I’ve always been fascinated by how Dr. Bruce Banner can morph into The Hulk and his dilemma with controlling it. Is it a gift or a curse? Both Banner and The Hulk have many layers as characters. When I was a kid, I connected to both characters.

I was bullied in grade school. Perhaps a part of me wished I could change like Dr. Banner could when he got angry. I played the game before school because my Game Gear was a pleasant distraction before the sometimes harsh school day began.

The Incredible Hulk was a simple side-scrolling game, but those were my favourite games when I was young. I never used the cheat codes, because I enjoyed the challenge of progressing through every level. And I took pleasure in being The Hulk and causing as much destruction as possible.

The Hulk game and my Game Gear were a nice escape at a time when I needed it. Sega may have not sold as many Game Gears as they had hoped, but I cherished mine, and found it far superior to the Nintendo Game Boy.

image source: Game Oldies