While I'm finding the game overall to be much better than AC (in turn, much much better than AA) in terms of story and level/mission design, the combat, while more challenging, feels a lot less polished than before. I'm noticing odd animation blending and experiencing moments where Batman's movement is unpredictable. An example: I'm performing a beat down on an enemy, counter another enemy near wall, do a counter attack that smashes second enemy into wall, yet end up inside/behind first enemy which throws off the beat down because I'm pressing in the wrong direction. Enemies' thrown items seem to involve more finicky counter timing now too.
The enemies attack with greater frequency like in AC's Joker's Carnival challenge map. I don't see how this encourages switching things up and using other moves/gadgets. If players are constantly bombarded with attacks that can be countered, then they're more likely to just rely on countering instead of using the Just Cause hookshot (which afaik has no quickfire command). While I'm sure the obnoxious upgrade system has contributed to me using more diversity in combat, I'm more often than not feeling forced to counter rather than just having it as an option. Even if this encouraged player's to switch up their tactics, I'd still prefer AC's formula since it allowed the player more breathing room to take on enemies as they saw fit; I could play around during combat, but still had to prioritize certain enemies, or keep track of where everyone else was.
It's understandable why this approach was taken considering a common critique of the Arkham series' combat was that it was too easy. However, I never saw the combat as something that needs to be outright difficult in the game, especially with low-level thugs. You're playing as Batman after all; not getting hit at all and preserving Batman's image should be more of a concern than just surviving a given encounter. Having every fight feature a rapid stream of attacks makes the boss fights against assassins seem less intense. I just fought a boss that had me somewhat on edge, but I was countering as much as any other fight with no-name crooks.
Some of the encounters later on in AC were decently challenging if you were still getting used to the various enemy types. I liked that that's where the challenge came from. It'd still be better and make more sense if the enemies with better training would attack with more frequency than common criminals, but it still worked in AC.
Aesthetically, the AO fights suffer from a problem AA and AC had. No one is afraid of the bat. It's especially egregious here considering this is only year two of Batman when people still believed he was a myth. It seems the "enemy reaction time" slider was turned up without adjusting anything else; there have been times where I've done the badass "divebomb straight at the ground near enemies, three-point landing w/death stare" move yet some asshole runs up and smacks me before that landing animation is finished despite having landed a fair distance away. This is unacceptable. Enemies got spooked by that for longer in AC and by that point in the canon, people had a better understanding of how Batman operated. It puts a dent in the illusion you're controlling the Batman which is a big part of the game.
The worst offense of AO's combat is undoubtedly the loss of the thunder roll upon every knockout blow. It's amazing how much a difference that makes. They wanted this Batman to feel younger and less powerful by making combat more difficult? fine. Have him use weaker, more rudimentary gadgets to show he's still learning? All right. But remove the KO sound effect that encapsulated the very essence of Batman: a sound effect that let you know beyond any doubt the person on the receiving end of the blow was swiftly and soundly knocked unconscious. If that gunshot Max Payne describes in the first Max Payne game was an exclamation point, this Arkham sound was a period/full stop. There's no question as to where the evildoers criminal activities stop for the night. You knew you could let out a breath of true satisfaction upon hearing that noise because the threat was so completely nullified. A pithy, booming final note of the symphony you just played on the criminals' bodies.
the wimpish stock sounds used in Origins always makes me shake my head in disappointment. Completely undercuts what exists of the combat's quality.
![2RQFT8f.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/2RQFT8f.jpg])
