Hallo there.
Recently, I bought that Batman game from 2009. You know the one that everyone raved over? Yeah. I picked it up for 15 quid. A steal and a half. So, what did I think of it?
Upsides!
You Beaut! : The game is stunning. It's gritty, yet a feel of the old Animated Series feel to it. It's over the top, but to a degree of reason, and it's also very detailed. The landscape changes as the game goes on, the Batman model begins to show blood, cuts, and tears on his suit as the game progresses. I noticed in one section of the game, Batman leaps and skids into the dirt, and from the on, his knee caps stayed a little bit muddy. It's fine touches like these that make a game so great. The other character also look incredibly detailed. The Joker is nimbly and prances around as he should, Harley Quinn was given a make over - which thankfully they acknowledged - and even the supporting character that might only last five to ten minutes on screen, are also immensely fleshed out. The detective mode is also really cool to look through.
Voice Acting : Oh. Good. Lord. Best voice acting in any game to date. With the ORIGINAL CAST from the animated series, (my favourite interpretation of Batman to date,) doing most of the voices, it just brings the characters, game and experience to another level. It's fantastic to hear Mark Hamill laugh and taunt you as you progress, and some of the dialogue written for the Joker is fantastic. Genuinely funny too. The banter between Batman and many of the characters is superb too, and it feels very well put together.
I know you! : The interview tapes and cameos from many of the characters from the Batman series are either subtle, or very in your face. With Clayface, Riddler, and a very subtle hint to Mr Freeze all locked up in the game, it is just brilliant to see them all. The interview tapes are nicely done, and add to the fiction of the universe if you aren't a massive BatNerd like me.
Stealth Done Well : I'm not a huge stealth fan, and will usually go in guns-a-blazing. I do enjoy a spot of Metal Gear and also enjoyed the Splinter Cell Conviction Demo they just released, (any other Splinter Cell games I hated with a passion.) But, this game does it in it's own way. You still have the sneaking element and the hiding away bits if you screw up, but in this game, you are Batman. So you have a whole range of tactics that Snake and Sam Fisher can't even dream of.
You have these gargoyles that hang from the ceiling which you can use to climb up to and dangle villains from and very quickly grapple to another and watch the havoc ensue. You also have, "detective" vision, (which Sam seems to have nicked from Batman...) In this mode, you can see everything and everyone with a super x-ray vision. Using this to your advantage, you can silently take someone out, and still keep an eye on someone across the room in case they notice you breaking someone's neck like a tooth pick. Batman is also very easy to control, with buttons on the controller doing one thing at a time, meaning you aren't clogged up with crap while trying to avoid being turned to Bat cheese from the gun fire.
'Realism' : You are Batman. A man. Nothing more. Nothing less. Apart from the whole detective and master at the art of fighting, stealth and a whole different range of things, you are still a man. And a man can die very quickly from bullets. Even if you are in a suit, with fully upgraded health. This is very welcomed into the stealth genre. Snake seems to be a machine, sucking in bullets and stuffing his face with stolen food to heal himself, and Sam Fisher just has to hide behind a corner now, and he is fine. Where as Batman appears to die on Normal after 5 or 6 hits, and on hard mode, after 2 or 3. It's brutal, and incredibly fun.
Eat Boot! : Combat in this game is almost perfect. All combos are literally linked to the face buttons, and tie in seamlessly with each other. Start a fight with the X button, (and you can complete most fights with just the X button,) activate the counter after the little flash appears above a goons' head, leap over to the back of someone and knock them out cheaply with A, and press B to swing your cape to stun. You can also tie in some of your Batarangs and other equipment as you go along, which can help in great length. As you go along, the bad guys end up equipped with knives and stun batons, but in general they are very similar, but all good fun to fight. You feel like you have accomplished something when you take down 20 henchmen and watch Batman flip and slide all around the room with just a button press. It's simple, but incredibly complex at the same time. You can also unlock more moves as you go along, such as throws, but they aren't required and I found myself hardly using them.
Metroidvania Man : The game has a RIDICULOUS amount of unlockables, secret areas, upgrades and puzzles. Early on, you will only have the Batarang, but as you unlock more equipment, - such as explosive gel, zip lines, bat claws, and a sonic device to unlock security gates - more of the areas inaccessible to you in the beginning, open up, allowing you to delve deeper into the island. The Riddler's appearance isn't in person, but in the form of puzzles and trophies littered around the island for Batman to collect. The upgrades range from more combos, to remote controlled Batarangs and even an Ultra Bat Claw, which you can use to destroy breakable walls which the explosive gel can't reach. It is a huge game, and can take hours after finishing it off, to 100%.
A Challenge, I LIKE IT! : The challenge rooms are the only part of the game linked to online play, and even then it is just a leader board. Fair enough, this game isn't made for multiplayer, but I'm sure a mode such as Bat vs Man would suffice. These challenge rooms test your skills to a degree of impossibility. They lengthen the game quite a bit if you are after a 100% completion, and add replayability value to the game to try and rack up a higher score.
DOWNSIDES?!
How much does a wood chuck if a chuck wood wood chuck wood sdifingbpomav : The Riddler's riddles are supposed to be hard. But, I'm having such a massive ordeal trying to find them all. The scanner given to you is almost useless, with zero hints coming up to how close or how cold you are from the subject needed to complete the riddle.
Darn : The difficulty is always on a slow uprise through the whole game. That is fine by me. But, some sections are so infuriatingly hard that I had to set the controller down to cool off.
TITAN : God damn. Not only are they the most ridiculous enemies in the game, but also the most annoying. They aren't hard, oh no. But when they appear, there is either 2 of them or a whole gang to take on as well. They deal stupid damage, stupidly designed to defeat and get boring quick. They also reuse the method on Bane, and you encounter them up to 5 times. Daft, stupid, and just a pest.
Shoddy management: The downside to this game is that it hypes up the boss fights. And executes them poorly. Bane was a boring fight, (at this moment, my head is in my hands trying to figure out who I fought in the game,) Killer Croc was a mess, Harley Quinn wasn't even involved with the player, just through cut scenes, The Titans I've already discussed, and Joker? What is wrong with an old fashioned fist fight? Like in the comics? Disappointing last boss. The only decent boss encounters were the Scarecrow sections and the Poison Ivy. Scarecrow was just messed up, and they made a whole new style of play. A 2D/3D platformer/stealth. Most fun.
On the whole, the game was really enjoyable with a few minor complaints. I look forward to seeing what they make in the next one.
Lime.
