RATING 4.5/5
GAME INFO
Action-Adventure
Batman: Arkham City
Price Rs 2,599 (Xbox 360, PS3), Rs 999 (PC)
Publisher Warner Bros
Developer Rocksteady Studios
Distributor E-Xpress Interactive
PHONE 022 29661017
E-Mail info@expressgames.in
I
admit, I’m not a huge Batman fan. But I do appreciate a good licensed
game because it’s such a rarity. 2009’s Batman: Arkham Asylum showed us
that games based on comic book superheroes can be uber-awesome, and
developer Rocksteady was nothing but passionate as they packed in a
well-rounded, highly polished experience that allowed gamers to explore
the psyche of the Dark Knight, something no game had done before. In
doing so, they not only won over the affections of gamers, but of
die-hard Batman fans as well. With Arkham City, they’ve taken fan
service to the next level, expanding upon what was already a very
kickass action game.
The
action has moved out of the confines of the Asylum and into Arkham
City, a super prison of sorts that’s now a breeding ground for Gotham’s
scum. Dr. Hugo Strange is now in charge of this place and it’s up to
Batman to find out what his end game is. At the same time, his arch
nemesis - The Joker, has a few tricks up his sleeve. Along the way,
Batman will encounter a ton of bad dudes from the Batman universe, some
of which will probably only be familiar to hardcore fans. Thankfully,
the story unfolds in a manner that can be enjoyed by those who don’t
know the difference between Cobblepot and Solomon Grundy.
With
the move to Arkham City, gamers definitely have more freedom than
before. This isn’t an open-world game like GTA IV, but there is a
stupendous amount of content to play through. Besides the story itself,
you have a ton of side quests scattered all over the map. Some could be
as simple as rescuing an unfortunate soul from a beating, to teaming up
with a certain recurring villain to destroy an ‘X’ amount of Titan
containers all over the city. Side quests don’t feel like they’re thrown
in forcibly to increase the game’s length as they tie in to the Batman
lore in some way or another, introducing quite a few surprises along the
way. You also have The Riddler making his return with way more puzzles,
some of which are actually quite deadly. Finally, you have the
Challenge Rooms that will test your skill at both stealth and combat.
Based on various maps inspired by the campaign itself, Challenge Rooms
will push your skills to the limit as you take on waves of enemies to
attain high scores or knock out a roomful of enemies silently in a
stipulated amount of time.
While
I appreciate the change in scenery, I had a minor gripe with the
navigation system. Now that the game’s far bigger in scope, I found
myself circling an objective for minutes before I found an entry point.
Keeping the quasi open-world structure in mind, a mini map would have
really helped. Another aspect of gameplay I didn’t particularly care for
was the unlock system. In Arkham Asylum, you revisited parts of the
island with newer gadgets and improved abilities so you could access
areas you previously couldn’t. This aspect is significantly reduced
here, as you begin the game with pretty much all your abilities, making
the unlock system pretty redundant.
Besides
these two minor niggles, Arkham City delivers the perfect Batman
experience. If you’ve played Arkham Asylum, you’ll be right at home,
since gameplay mechanics largely remain unchanged. Both stealth and
combat return as the two core pillars of gameplay and are more refined
than before. The fluid and responsive FreeFlow combat system is back
with the addition of newer moves and counter attacks that make going
through a group of enemies feel like violent poetry in motion. Another
part of the combat that always gets to me is its raw physicality driven
home by stellar sound effects and wicked camera angles.
No
matter how badass Batman is, he still is very much human so a shot to
the face can, well, kill him. Sure, you can now go up against these guys
as you have the ability to deploy smoke bombs to disorient them, but
it’s way more satisfying to outwit and outflank them, picking them off
one by one. Crawl through vents, climb up on the gargoyle statues, or
just sneak up behind an enemy and take him down. It’s familiar territory
for those who played the first game, and it feels awesome.
Arkham
Asylum was a gorgeous game and its successor is no different. Built on
the same Unreal 3 engine, Rocksteady has managed to churn out some
mighty fine visuals both indoors and outdoors. As you set foot in Arkham
City for the first time, the staggering scope of the city hits you as
you gaze upon the skyline ripe for exploration. The city itself is
packed with so much detail that it will take you a few minutes just to
soak it all in. Batman’s animations have also been heavily worked upon
and the act of jumping or gliding from building to building looks
extremely fluid and natural. Character design, as always, is top notch
and everyone from Batman himself to the villains and their grunts are
very well designed. This is one game that screams of high production
values and immaculate attention to detail.
If
you’re still reading this review and haven’t made a beeline for your
store to pick up a copy yet, it’s a given that this is a must-buy action
game. Minor issues aside, Arkham City delivers the perfect Batman
experience. It looks good, plays well, and offers a stupendous amount of
content that will keep you within Arkham City for days. It is a shining
example of licensing done right and I really hope other developers sit
up and take notice. 
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