A Game Review by Hank:
Two
kinds of gamers play Batman: one that just loves the character and wants to
experience a Batman story first-hand…and another that wants to become the
ultimate Dark Knight and 100% the game and challenges. While the former gamer should be content with
the Arkham Knight story, the latter gamer might find the video game lacking in
several areas. But one thing is for
certain, as of this moment, this is Rocksteady Studios’ last hurrah in the
Batman universe and they didn't hold back in terms of size or story.
"When I asked you to surprise Barbara on her birthday, leaving the Joker bound and gagged
in her closet was not what I had in mind."
"Sorry, Jim, but that was the only thing I had on hand that could be wrapped in such short notice."
STORY:
All
is well in the city of Gotham until the Scarecrow decides he wants to unleash a
humongous bomb filled with his latest batch of fear toxin on the entire
city. This brings about mass hysteria as
every last citizen attempts to depart the city, leaving behind only the GCPD,
every villain, and Bats. What follows is
the Batman trying to clean up every square inch of Gotham in one very long
night.
If
you're looking to play Batman: Arkham Knight for the story, then you're in good
hands. Rocksteady didn't pull any
punches throughout. You'll get twists,
excitement, drama, tie-ins to comic book stories, action, and if you like the
Joker…a truck load of humor. Without all
the side quests and mini games and riddles thrown about the gigantic Gotham,
the main story will take around 12 hours to complete. And it picks up after the events of Arkham
City, so if you haven't finished that game, it's highly recommended you do so
before diving into this one. The main
protagonist in Batman: Arkham Knight is the Scarecrow, but there's also another
main villain thrown in for kicks, and that's the Arkham Knight. The Knight is like Batman in a lot of ways,
except he doesn't care about taking a life.
You may think the reveal of the character is the highlight of game, but
the sad thing is it's a letdown when you finally do find out who it is. And that's a shame. But the build-up until that point is
excellent, so just try to enjoy the ride before it ends.
Now
if you're wondering if that hurts the story, don't worry, there are still
plenty of thrills and twists to be had while pounding baddies into the
ground. And the one thing Arkham Knight
can be commended for is the balance of emotion.
You'll be sad one moment and the next be laughing like a hyena. So be prepared to be tossed all over the
place. And the story is much darker than
the previous titles because it dives into the mind of Batman. His loves.
His fears. And everything in
between. So even if you're not looking
to 100% the game, you'll still get your money's worth in just the story alone.
"When I say take it back, you take it back."
"Ow. Ow. Okay. Okay. I'm sorry for calling you Nightwing."
"I'm mean how hard is it to distinguish us? He doesn't have bat ears. I have the bat ears. Sheesh."
VOICE OVER AND
DIALOGUE:
The
Rocksteady Batman titles wouldn't be as great as they are without all the
fantastic villains that show up to bother the Dark Knight. But those villains wouldn't be half as much fun
if it wasn't for the talent behind the voices.
Obviously, reclaiming the throne as the Batman is the unbelievable Kevin
Conroy. If you don't know who that is…shame
on you. (Take a week and watch Batman: The Animated Series and you'll
understand.) Is his dialogue perfect
throughout? No. There are a lot of cheesy lines in the
story. But that doesn't mean his voice
acting is terrible. He's one of the best
Batmen out there. So sit back and enjoy
the greatness. On top of that, the most
famous Jedi, Mark Hamill, returns to lend his voice to the Joker once
more. If there's anyone that steals the
show, it's him. He is the highlight
throughout the story and when he doesn't show up you'll actually miss his
ridiculousness. And the Joker has one of
the biggest moments of the game where his vocals come into play and it is
glorious. Besides the two big names, the
rest of the voice acting is excellent also.
John Noble as the sinister Scarecrow and Tara Strong as the hilarious
Harley Quinn both give standout performances in their respected roles. While the rest of cast, Troy Baker included,
help support the magnificence happening everywhere else.
GRAPHICS AND
DESIGN:
There
is no doubt about it, Arkham Knight, is one slick looking game. From the city streets to the sewers to the
interior of buildings, Rocksteady knows the Batman universe and has represented
it stupendously. And with the humongous
size of Gotham, you'd think there'd be some loading screens as you traveled
around the city from one island to the next.
Nope. Driving couldn't be smoother,
while gliding through the air and taking in the beautiful sights is more fun
than it should be. And character designs
are unbelievable looking. Batman's suit,
once again, is one of the best looking designs for the character you'll ever
see. The sexy women of the DC universe
are gorgeous and when it comes down to creepy, the design of the Scarecrow is
frigging horrendously perfect. No one
has been able to capture DC like Rocksteady's design department and just the aesthetics
alone are enough to make you want to play the game.
UPGRADES GALORE:
Upgrades
to Wayne Technology have returned in a big way.
If you liked upgrading the Batman in the previous titles than you'll
love Arkham Knight, because there's so much to upgrade in this game you might
actually get lost in the menus. You can
upgrade the suit, combat, the way the car handles tank mode, the way the car
handles driving, the grappling hook, or even the ability to use gadgets as you
fly into your enemies. Are all the
upgrades necessary? No. The main story can be beaten without worrying
too much about upgrades, but if you want 100% completion and the true ending,
then upgrades should be selected cautiously.
At times it can feel overwhelming with every menu available, but an
overdose of upgrades is better than no upgrades at all. So if you’re looking to build your ultimate
Dark Knight, then fear not, all the customizing is at your fingertips.
"Batman, hold my hand."
"Seriously, Dick? I thought you outgrew that?"
"I bet you still hold Robin's hand when he asks."
"Still playing favorites? This is why I broke up with you."
"What? I broke up with--"
"Enough! Give me your hand."
GAMEPLAY AND
COMBAT:
Everything
you remember from Arkham City, the tremendous group fights, brain-hurting
Riddler puzzles, grappling hooks, gadgets, stealth takedowns, and even detective
mode...is brought back in Arkham Knight, with some parts even grander than you
remember. The button configurations are
balanced and the Dark Knight reacts to your movements smoothly 99% of the
time. Occasionally you will have Bats
accidentally fall off a wall or get trapped behind a trash can, but it’s a huge
game and silliness from time to time will happen. But no Batman game would be complete without
hordes of foes to slap around. This time
you’ll have the ogre types which require stomach pounding, medics that’ll
revive fallen baddies, ninjas that’ll cut you up and even grunts with shock
sticks. Each new foe helps ramp up the
combat and make it required that you actually pay attention to what you're
doing when facing thirty men at the same time.
If not, it is lights out for Bats and you’ll be starting all over
again. Now, are there parts where Bats will
occasionally punch the wrong guy, wiping your multiplier? Yep.
Is it frustrating? Yep. Is it enough to make you quit the game? No. In
fact, with a little patience and probably a couple of do-overs, you'll move
through the main story without throwing the controller or pulling out all your
hair.
Adding
to the fun of kicking everyone's ass are duel combat sequences. Bats will team up with Robin, Nightwing, or
Catwoman to bring down waves of enemies.
The sequences aren't a major part of the game, but they do help freshen
up the combat and make it a tad gentler on your multiplier. You can even switch effortlessly between the
two characters during these battles which allows you to get a feel for
different fighting styles.
The
only thing that might be a downer for some is the disappearance of boss battles
in the game. Sure you’ll kind of face
off against the Arkham Knight, but nothing compares to the one on one boss
battles of Arkham City and Asylum. Does this
hurt the narrative? No. Because most of the face-offs are done in cut
scenes and the story will just play out.
So if you're one of the gamers that loved boss battles from the previous
titles, then you might be heavily disappointed.
But that’s alright, because filling that gap is Gotham's most wanted: a
series of side missions for your Batjoyment.
"Ivy, I just want you to know that--"
"You've always loved me, Batman?"
"--I analyzed that rash you have on 70% of your body. 9/10 dermatologists recommend
Calamine lotion and some type of steroid."
SIDE MISSIONS
& CHALLENGE MAPS:
It’s
true…Batman: Arkham Knight is riddled with side missions. They are everywhere. You get to choose from
taking down the Riddler by driving along his many Batmobile courses or solving
his brain-crushing riddles, to stopping bank robberies, fighting the Man-Bat,
blowing up the Penguin's money, saving firefighters, bomb disposal, to even
finding a serial killer and more. So
there are numerous activities in Gotham that will keep any gamer busy. And to get the true ending of game (the one after the main story is over)
you have to 100% it. This could take a
very long time considering how much help you receive along the way. On the plus side these missions are fun and
go along with the narrative of the story being told. The downside is they can't be played through
in one whole arc. Instead, you're teased
with a side mission and then you’ll have to wait until you complete more of the
main mission to finish it. But the real
question is…why? Why, in 2015 are gamers
still subject to parts of a map that aren't accessible? Within Gotham, you basically can't go
everywhere with the Batmobile until unlocking all the bridges. And the only way to do that is by playing the
main story. So what happens is you get
excited about a side mission, but then get literally road blocked from
continuing it. You might even go onto
the main story and forget all about that side mission you obtained an hour
ago. This is the only part of the game
that ruins pacing. If a gamer decides he
wants to play through a side mission before going on to anything else, why
doesn’t he have that choice? Why does he
have to play the main story to unlock certain areas? Aren’t we in a time of gaming where you
should be able to tell your own Dark Knight story and weave your own path? Oh well…at least there are plenty of side
missions to be had, even if you have to wait till the end to do them.
If
it feels like the game is weighted down by side missions, then it’ll feel
lightened in the challenge map department.
There are only a few different maps among the challenges and after a
while they become slightly repetitive.
It seems the meat of the content was sunk into side missions. Does this hurt Arkham Knight? Only if challenge maps were a big part of the
Batman games for you. If you respond
more toward the story, then this shouldn’t bother you in the least. If you’re looking for more content once the
main story and side missions are over, then you’ll probably take to the
internet for some raging with fellow challenge map lovers.
THE BATMOBILE:
In
almost every mission of the game the Batmobile is needed. Now, the inclusion of the vehicle is
unbelievably awesome. Spinning donuts or
ramming into brick walls and watching them crumble is fantastic. But having the need for the car in basically
the entire story might be a sore spot for gamers that loved the previous
Rocksteady titles. If you're not
familiar with the gameplay, the Batmobile can turn into a tank like vehicle and
blow the crap out of air and ground drones throughout the game. It's also used to access inaccessible areas
of Gotham by using a wench and maneuvering the vehicle over obstacles. In other words, the car becomes the other
playable character in Arkham Knight. And
that wouldn't be so bad if you had a choice to use it or not. But the problem lies in being forced to use
it throughout the game. It's needed
almost everywhere. So if you like the
Batmobile, then you'll love this game.
If you see it somewhat as a nuisance…then you might have a humongous
problem with Arkham Knight. Either way,
you're stuck with it throughout and have to make the best of it. So in between chasing down foes and blowing
up drones, take the time to enjoy the car by smashing into everything you can
and spinning a few donuts in the GCPD’s parking lot for laughs.
"Fellow officers, there's only one man that could make this suicide run and bring back what we need."
"Oracle, send me the location of the closest Dunkin Donuts."
CONCLUSION:
Batman:
Arkham Knight is a fantastic end to a great Batman run by Rocksteady. They brought graphics, increased the gameplay,
upgraded the map, added a vehicle, and even kept the proper voice talent
throughout. With only a few minor gripes
on side missions, challenge maps, and the continuous use of the Batmobile,
Arkham Knight still brings the goods in terms of story and overall twists and
turns. This puts Batman: Arkham Knight easily
in the running for P&P’s 2015 game of the year. So if you enjoyed the previous Rocksteady
outings of Batman, then don’t think twice about picking this up.
4 out of 5 Stars (minus a star for stunted side missions, a forced Batmobile, and the Arkham
Knight reveal)
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