Batman Arkham City Review Thread

Second said:
So, I'm the only one in here who isn't a Batman fan, but just liked the game? (In this case AA)

I don't even like the Batman movies, animation series or comics. But the game that Rocksteady delivered is hard to hate on...

im a huge Batman fan, but i can totally see how that could happen. Game stands on its own.
 
LOCK said:
Oh man the reviews is causing my hype meter to reach dangerous levels.
I liked Arkham Asylum, pre-ordered Arkham City, and followed the game through development, but this still surprises me slightly.

I kinda expected this to be Rocksteady's "difficult second album", bigger, bolder, yet somehow missing the spark of the original. As it stands, my fears have been completely unfounded. I'm still miffed that I have to wait a few weeks longer (PC) to play, but I am now confident that I'm in for a real treat.

Well Done Rocksteady, you've proven yourselves as one of the devs of the generation. Yey for talented UK developers!

Second said:
So, I'm the only one in here who isn't a Batman fan, but just liked the game? (In this case AA)

I don't even like the Batman movies, animation series or comics. But the game that Rocksteady delivered is hard to hate on...
While I liked Batman Begins/The Dark Knight, I'm no Batman fanboy. I enjoyed Arkham Asylum immensely as a game, rather than just a franchise game.
 
Anxiously awaiting for the first site to give it below a 9, but it seems like most of the respectable review outlets already got their scores out. Man… too hyped for this game.
 
Hopefully this game sells batshit crazy (pun intended) and convince the publishers out there that you don't have to force multi-player into a game for it to sell and be relevant to the public.
 
Marty Chinn said:
Any info on which platform to get for multi console owners?

No.

But many will say it will be about the same, though I disagree. 360 of AA was better than PS3. Small it may be, it had the edge.
 
Second said:
I present you ladies and gentlemen - Jim Sterling:

Jim Sterling said:
It's just confusing to have so many buttons doing so many things, and so many enemies that require so many different ways of dispatching. It's certainly great to have options and variety, but there's an information overload that can drown even the most focused of brains. This is an issue that doesn't just affect combat -- with so many gadgets, it's tough to keep track of which items perform which tasks, and when they're needed against certain obstacles. I was stuck at one point because I forgot that, among everything else he can do, Batman can slide to get under low barriers. It totally slipped my mind among all the things I needed to remember. This ties into the earlier criticism of Batman's grappling hook -- there are so many things to latch onto that the game itself gets confused.

Insert joke about journalists being bad at video games.

Also please don't click on the link. Destructoid is drivel and doesn't deserve the hits.
 
I just hope people understand that most of us don't hate Jim Sterling because of that score.. In fact I don't even know where to begin with my problems with him. I just try to ignore everything he does lately but for some reason I had to read that quote..
 
TheFLYINGManga_Ka said:
Thanks. Longer than the first for sure.

Yeah, I remember starting Asylum up on a Saturday afternoon and had it beat by Sunday morning. Granted, it was one of those marathon type sessions where I really only stopped for food and sleep, but I'm excited to sink many hours into this one. Especially with New Game +, there's a built in reason to go back and play through it.
 
TheFLYINGManga_Ka said:
Thanks. Longer than the first for sure.
And don't forget the reviews mentioning that New Game + is even more enjoyable than the first run through of the campaign :D

Plus perfecting all of the challenge rooms, going through the game with all the alternate costumes, playing whatever other DLC Rocksteady releases... this game will DEFINITELY hold me over until Zelda (even though the alternate skins pack and Robin DLC are being released after Zelda :( )
 
I get home from work, open this thread, get smashed over the head with 10's and 9's.

Basically I have to preorder it at this point... right?
 
InsertNameHere said:
I get home from work, open this thread, get smashed over the head with 10's and 9's.

Basically I have to preorder it at this point... right?


Yes. Also Amazon is offering $10 credit with a preorder. Do it!
 
SalsaShark said:
are people seriously complaining about an 8.5 score?
No, that accusation is degrading to the discussion. It's clearly pointed out in earlier posts that the complain lies with the person who wrote the review and the content of the text, not the number slapped on it.
 
meh, he had issues with the game and still gave it an 8.5, id get the usual LOL STERLING thing if he gave it a 6 or something.
 
SalsaShark said:
are people seriously complaining about an 8.5 score?

Jim could give this game a 10 for all I care and my stance would be the same. The guy is a horrible writer and just blatantly trolls for hits.
 
SalsaShark said:
meh, he had issues with the game and still gave it an 8.5, id get the usual LOL STERLING thing if he gave it a 6 or something.
The man isn't a credible source. And his complaints for this particular game are retarded.

Don't make me dig out the countless crazy Jim Sterling reviews...
 
SalsaShark said:
meh, he had issues with the game and still gave it an 8.5, id get the usual LOL STERLING thing if he gave it a 6 or something.
The text of his 8.5 review is even more egregious than a 6.0 score would have been.
 
DaBuddaDa said:
You're making a big deal out of nothing. We're just poking fun of his terrible review, not gnashing our teeth at a perceived injustice of review-dom.

lol im not making a big deal? just saying, all sites want is hits, and like it or not the review's getting traffic, the Jim Sterling thing got old quick, everytime he posts a review gaf comes together to hate and click on it and read it.
 
Sterling's complaints about the control scheme are ridiculous. First of all, they're shortcuts...they are never needed; you can access the tool submenu through the D-Pad, same as always. Second, they make sense: it's just the left-trigger plus the face button that corresponds to the direction of that gadget's placement on the tool submenu.

And for what it's worth, I thought the plot was great. The game may feature ten trillion of Batman's worst enemies, but almost literally half of them are relegated off to optional content, where you would never even see them did you not specifically seek them out.
 
Feep said:
Sterling's complaints about the control scheme are ridiculous. First of all, they're shortcuts...they are never needed; you can access the tool submenu through the D-Pad, same as always. Second, they make sense: it's just the left-trigger plus the face button that corresponds to the direction of that gadget's placement on the tool submenu.

And for what it's worth, I thought the plot was great. The game may feature ten trillion of Batman's worst enemies, but almost literally half of them are relegated off to optional content, where you would never even see them did you not specifically seek them out.
I played the Batman AA after so many good comments about it and did quite enjoy it. Not a big superhero fan but the one I always like best is Batman due to him having no real superpower but just brains and gadgets.

So after all these good reviews here I pre-ordered now... a shame that the PC version was delayed but it will be worth the wait.

On a side note: Since Batman AC is a GFWL it supports Xbox360 controllers on PC, right?
 
Feep said:
Sterling's complaints about the control scheme are ridiculous. First of all, they're shortcuts...they are never needed; you can access the tool submenu through the D-Pad, same as always. Second, they make sense: it's just the left-trigger plus the face button that corresponds to the direction of that gadget's placement on the tool submenu.

And for what it's worth, I thought the plot was great. The game may feature ten trillion of Batman's worst enemies, but almost literally half of them are relegated off to optional content, where you would never even see them did you not specifically seek them out.
Thanks Feep for the clarifications. Keep up the good work as always...
 
Derrick01 said:
Where's the extra $10 going? Everywhere it's on sale for it's been $50. I'm a little worried it hasn't gone up on Steam yet though.

Oh. I just assumed it would be $60 because this is the type of game where PC gamers probably won't complain about the extra $10. Bonus! I think we'll see it on Steam, just maybe a little closer to release.
 
I'm kinda bummed that the story and dialogue are weak. And the boss fights sound like they're still pretty bad or maybe a little better than AA (making them average at best). Joystiq review (they have pretty good reviews now):

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/14/batman-arkham-city-review/

The story seems like a series of excuses for you to encounter (and, perplexingly, do chores for) a lengthy parade of supervillains. Worse still, each leg of the journey culminates in a boss fight which, save for one clever encounter halfway through the game, tasks you with punching holes in the foe's repeating attack pattern.
With rare exception, Batman and friends' dialogue bashes the listener with leaden cliches -- a problem which plagued Arkham Asylum, as well.
The motives of Arkham City's assemblage of villainous, would-be kingpins -- not to mention the motives of the Dark Knight himself -- never quite come together to form a compelling narrative.
 
ThingontheFloor said:
Yeah, I remember starting Asylum up on a Saturday afternoon and had it beat by Sunday morning. Granted, it was one of those marathon type sessions where I really only stopped for food and sleep, but I'm excited to sink many hours into this one. Especially with New Game +, there's a built in reason to go back and play through it.
Mr. Paer said:
And don't forget the reviews mentioning that New Game + is even more enjoyable than the first run through of the campaign :D

Plus perfecting all of the challenge rooms, going through the game with all the alternate costumes, playing whatever other DLC Rocksteady releases... this game will DEFINITELY hold me over until Zelda (even though the alternate skins pack and Robin DLC are being released after Zelda :( )
Also, I wonder how many reviewers played with the Catwoman sections. I know IGN said that they played the first playthrough without it and than played it with New Game+. They recommend playing with the Catwoman section the first time for the best experience.

It's supposed to be 10% of the game so that should at a few hours there.

And I think there could be some more single player content with Robin/Nightwing, right? Looking forward to see what the content will be.
 
TheFLYINGManga_Ka said:
And I think there could be some more single player content with Robin/Nightwing, right? Looking forward to see what the content will be.
Robin/Nightwing are only available in the challenge mode.
 
Liquidsnake said:
Can you guys believe I never played the first one, and I love Batman. :(
Should I Asylum too?
I think so, it's one of the best games of the gen, and the asylum was such a fantastic and atmospheric place to roam around.
 
TheFLYINGManga_Ka said:
For now I know it is. But I hope Rocksteady does something more than just challenges.

There was a mention of downloadable story episodes. It was mentioned by Kevin Conroy in a interview.
 
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