Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The first hour understands the assignment. Hal’s ring turns combat into a toy box: a laser sword supplies quick, forceful combo strings, drill attacks add a different kind of pressure, and the claw grab lets you seize enemies and throw them across the arena. Blocking and evading incoming hits keeps fights from becoming entirely mindless, and the basic act of bowling through Manhunters has the right superhero heft.

What keeps the action moving is the construct system. New constructs hit harder and draw from a separate green-energy meter, so they feel like resources to spend rather than yet another move folded into an endless combo. You can equip up to eight at once and swap the loadout from the menu whenever a situation calls for it. That flexibility is welcome, especially once you have enough choices that a single setup no longer feels like the obvious answer. Collecting green meteorites to extend the energy meter gives exploration a modest but useful reward, while dropped orbs and breakable objects feed experience and health back into the loop.

The limitation is that the campaign repeatedly funnels you into enclosed combat sections and asks you to erase every opponent before the path opens. When the enemy encounters are lively, that structure is fine. When they run long, you start noticing how little the objective changes. The ten missions at least try to interrupt the march with boss battles and flight stages, but the bosses lean on quick-time events, which can make their big moments feel more prescribed than earned.

The flight sequences are a welcome change of pace, not a reason to buy the game. They send Hal forward in a Space Harrier-style route through open space and giant ships, with obstacles to dodge and enemies to shoot. Co-op is the stronger diversion: a second person can join as Sinestro, and cooperative-only attacks give both players a reason to stay engaged rather than merely fighting side by side.

Graphics

The game uses 3D visuals for its third-person battles, putting Hal amid Manhunter forces on the ground and against spacecraft-scale surroundings in the flight missions. Green ring energy has a naturally prominent role as swords, drills, claws, and guns take shape around him, giving the action a clear comic-book hook.

It also supports TriOviz Inficolor 3D glasses on standard TVs and stereoscopic 3D on compatible 3DTVs. That is a neat fit for a game built around glowing energy constructs and airborne action, though the core combat remains readable without making 3D the point.

Story

This is a movie tie-in that heads into a conflict with more room for robot-smashing than the film’s basic setup. Cocky test pilot Hal Jordan inherits Abin Sur’s ring after the Green Lantern is attacked by Parallax, then gets pulled from Earth to Oa to meet the Corps, Kilowog, and Sinestro. It is familiar origin-story material, but it gets you to the powers quickly, which is exactly what this kind of action game needs.

The Manhunters make a sensible enemy for the format. They are an android force with a grievance against the Guardians of the Universe, having once served as the original intergalactic police before being dissolved for growing too power-hungry. Their attempt to reclaim that role and destroy the Guardians gives the campaign a clean, escalating reason to move from one battle to the next.

Do not expect the plot to carry the game on its own. Its job is mainly to place Hal in front of the next hostile force, and it works best when it uses the Green Lantern mythology—Oa, the Corps, Sinestro, and the Manhunters—to make those fights feel like more than generic sci-fi clean-up. If you enjoy this corner of DC, that context adds flavor; if not, the action has to do most of the persuading.

Overall Experience

Rise of the Manhunters is easy to enjoy in short bursts because it rarely hides what it is: a linear action game with a superhero power set that is more playful than the usual punch-and-kick routine. The sword, grab, projectile, and construct options give you enough ways to attack that Hal feels appropriately armed, even when the encounter structure stays basic.

Its frustrations are just as clear. Repeated clear-the-room progression can flatten the momentum, quick-time-event boss finishes reduce some climactic fights to prompts, and the flight sections feel like breaks between the better ground encounters rather than a second pillar of the game. None of that ruins it, but it caps how exciting the full campaign can become.

Co-op is the deciding factor for many people. Bring someone along as Sinestro and the game becomes a more worthwhile evening: you can experiment with the team attacks and laugh through the rougher stretches together. Solo, it is a serviceable choice for a Green Lantern fan who wants to put the ring through its paces. For further game-specific background and release details, see this Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters overview.

Retro Replay Score

6.3/10