Mutant Achievements

Xbox Live® means different things to different people. For some, it is a perpetually raging battlefield where the world's toughest cyber-soldiers test their reflexes in tournaments, matches, and events ranging from real-world sports games to war simulations to fantasy escapes.

For others, Xbox Live Marketplace is where it's at for music, video, and game demo downloads.

Regardless of your leanings, there is one facet of the premiere online gaming service that can be used and enjoyed by all. That feature is the achievements system.

Iceman takes a nighttime stroll through the city.

Every title published for Xbox 360™ has its own unique set of achievements laid out by the game's creators. Depending on the type of game, you can bump your gamerscore by up to 1000 points through various feats of mastery. These accomplishments can vary greatly between genres.

Some of the more common ways to unlock an achievement are:

• Finish the single-player story mode.
• Complete the game on the hardest difficulty level.
• Play X amount of games, online or off.
• Perform feats of mastery (three-pointers in basketball, headshots in first-person shooters, etc.).
• Find every collectible or secret.
• Finish every optional side mission or quest.

Ultimately, it's up to the developer to break down the total number of gamerscore points and assign them to different achievements for that game. As you pass each in-game milestone and accrue more points, you may unlock secret achievements that are only revealed to you when a required action is performed.

This element of mystery rewards players of a persistent and adventurous nature and encourages them to explore every nook and cranny laid out before them.

Join us as we take a look at some spoiler-free in-game achievements and explore the many gameplay possibilities ahead of you.

Follow the Story

X-Men: The Official Game for Xbox 360 has a rich, narrative story written for it by Chris Claremont and Zak Penn. You move through the missions, taking the roles of three different characters. Wolverine, Nightcrawler, and Iceman each play an important part in stopping the evil masterminds who wish to dominate the innocent masses of the world, and of course, destroy the X-Men.

The game's achievements tie in with the storyline. You earn them as you successfully avert disaster. Each character has both similar and different tasks to successfully undertake. For this reason, many of the achievements are replicated for each of the characters.

Nightcrawler has an unconventional fighting style.

Personal Growth

If you succeed with Wolverine, you can succeed at the same with both Nightcrawler and Iceman. For example, one of the early achievements requires that you do what it takes to get Iceman accepted as a student at the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. You earn another if you get Nightcrawler accepted, and still another when Wolverine enrolls.

Part of your goal is to evolve the characters by acquiring upgrading mutations for them. You earn an achievement when Iceman has been upgraded with all available mutations. The same goes for both Nightcrawler and Wolverine.

Item Acquisition

Sometimes, the achievements reflect items that you collect. Throughout the game, you find items that your mutant picks up. If, for example, Nightcrawler manages to collect all Sentinal Tech, then you earn an achievement. Wolverine and Iceman do the same, and you receive two more achievements, one for each. All three also have the opportunity to collect all Weapon X Files and earn you three separate achievements for complete success.

Wolverine, on his way to anger management class.

Danger Room Challenge

Not all the achievements relate specifically to one character's success, however. Some rely instead on completing portions of the game. For example, you unlock Iceman's personal Danger Room Challenge, coveted by so many X-Men fans, when you complete Act 1 of the game. Complete Act 2 and unlock the Danger Room Challenge for Nightcrawler. A successfully completed Act 3 earns you access to Wolverine's Danger Room Challenge, and we all know that it will be the best, most satisfying one of all.

If you, as a player, earn 1000 points, then you get an achievement. This type of achievement has nothing to do with which character you were using to smash bad guys, but is based instead on your player profile's points total. In the end, you walk away feeling like you've been part of a team. Iceman, Nightcrawler, Wolverine and you—the team did their part to win your achievements. Isn't that what the X-Men is really all about?

Article by Angel Leigh McCoy