Let me just say that the new Batman games are a breath of fresh air from the much older and stale ones. I love how it captures the true abilities of the Caped Crusader; beating up thugs, moving through the shadows and using all his cool gadgets. I mean what’s not to love about instantly propelling yourself away from danger with the awesome grapnel gun. Gliding around Gotham’s awe inspiring, very detailed city is truly a sight to see. Gripping music that completely fits the dark yet welcoming environment.
Round 1: Fight!
Fighting in Arkham City is incredible; you can link all of your combos with most of the gadgets at his disposal; for example, if you are bashing two thugs skulls together and three more are approaching from the rear, you can simply throw a couple of Batarangs to take them out. Depending on how well you do in each of these fights ultimately determines how much experience you gain for learning new techniques and combat moves. So if you are fighting ten thugs at once, on the hardest difficulty, you could have a potential combo ranging to at least 50 consecutive hits, which of course is huge!
Same Old Story…
As far as the story goes it is pretty much the same as any other Batman game out there, track down the villain and beat him up. Some of those villains include; Joker, Mr. Freeze, Two-Face, and Penguin. However in Arkham City, it is quite easy to get lost in the story because they have introduced side quests that you can do. Thankfully there are waypoints and objectives on your map so you will never forget what you were doing before you had to go save so-and-so from utter death. These side quests are quite fun and can unlock gadgets as well as introduce new characters not seen in previous games.
Looks And Sounds Awesome!
As far as the detail and sound goes, it definitely fits the dark and eerie atmosphere. It really captures the grim look for a world created in the Batman universe. All of the characters’ details are great and you actually feel like you are battling against the villainous thugs you love to hate. The only drawback to me was that the music got a little repetitive, which is understandable.
Story Completed, What To Do Now?
Once you’ve stopped the villain from carrying out his evil plan, there are different modes you can do. You can replay the entire story again using everything you obtained from the previous story such as gadgets and fighting moves. Another mode allows you to play as Catwoman; she has a decent amount of missions to do and expands the main story from her point of view. There is also challenge mode which tests your fighting ability and predator skills. Predator skills include taking out armed criminals without being seen.
Overall Judgement: Great Game!
I thought that Batman: Arkham City was a huge improvement over the previous game because of the additional gadgets, more villains, and side quests! Being an open-world game is a huge plus, given the fact I don’t like being restricted on how I can play the game. So if you are looking for a great combo fighting, gadget using, DC Comics game then check out Batman: Arkham City available on Steam.
