Batman: Arkham City - Reviews - Post #882

[KartoffelKopf]

After having my life pretty much consumed by Batman for the last three weeks I think I am going to have to bail out of the Riddler challenge rooms. The predator challenges are pretty cool but the insane combat challenges are just too brutal for me.

After getting royally stuffed only about 5 challenges in I realise I just don't have the skill to pull off the shit required to get all the medals as Batman let alone Catwoman and Nightwing.

Watching YouTube videos of the techniques required and I literally have no idea how they are doing some of the amazing stuff on there without even taking a single hit. I'm in awe of the combat system that Rocksteady have put together, it really is peerless but my fingers (and brain) just don't work like that. Shame really, so much work has gone into it all

Look forward to a new game + though when I have worked my way through Asylum again.

Really big Batman-shaped hole in my life after tonight I'm sure but absolutely GOTY and possibly this gen. Maybe only Mass Effect 3 will trump it.

[Clipper]

I am trying to avoid spoilers.. I have lots to play and no time so I am holding back on buying/starting this.

But I cant hurt myself with one vague spoiler...

Are there any vaguely fucked-up superb genre breaking sections like the Scarecrow sections from AA? Not identical but you know what I mean, headfuck bits?

[SaintM]

I can't recall anything as grandiose as the scarecrow bits from AA to be honest.

[Clipper]

I can't recall anything as grandiose as the scarecrow bits from AA to be honest.

Ah well. given the gushing I guessing there is plenty to make up for those avant garde headfuck sections...

Tooo many games

[mindgames]

I am trying to avoid spoilers.. I have lots to play and no time so I am holding back on buying/starting this.

But I cant hurt myself with one vague spoiler...

Are there any vaguely fucked-up superb genre breaking sections like the Scarecrow sections from AA? Not identical but you know what I mean, headfuck bits?

I won't spoil anything but you won't be disapointed if you get this game hoping for something fairly similar.

[Dudley]

I am trying to avoid spoilers.. I have lots to play and no time so I am holding back on buying/starting this.

But I cant hurt myself with one vague spoiler...

Are there any vaguely fucked-up superb genre breaking sections like the Scarecrow sections from AA? Not identical but you know what I mean, headfuck bits?

There is nothing quite that strange but it certainly isn't shy of occasionally going.... other worldly.

[Stig]

I've been hammering this last 2 days. Just finished the catwoman bit where

you rob the vault and have a choice to leave or stay. I opted to leave and the game credits came up and I was all WTF they must be planning a third. Then the game rewound and you have to chose to stay and help batman

[TheSlugFormerlyKnownAsNap]

I don't find the challenge rooms and the like very enjoyable. Without the story to propel the whole thing forward it feels a bit hollow. I absolutely loved the story and have some sidequests left, but I don't feel too motivated now that I've seen the credits roll. Amazing game, but I might flog it as I don't really see myself going back to it anytime soon.

[Stig]

Just completed the main story, absolutely loved it.

Cant believe they killed the Joker but I guess it was the perfect way to end Hamills voice acting for him. I wonder if they are planning of doing a third game based on what Azrael said in the side mission. I knew it would be Ras behind Hugo Strange too, mainly cause I couldn't think of who else it could be.

I felt the bosses were a bit easier in the game though which was a shame, but it was still fun.

Also Joker song in the credits

Time to collected me some riddler trophies.

[Vemsie]

Am stll doing Riddler trophies, as it's more fun to take your time doing them. I love how Metroidvania some of them are. Not just in the way some demand souped up gadgets and new abilities, but some of the Catwoman ones can only be done when you have destroyed certain bits of scenery with Bats. Very clever.

Still GotY for me so far.

[Klaark]

...some of the Catwoman ones can only be done when you have destroyed certain bits of scenery with Bats. Very clever.

To me stuff like this feels like padded-out donkey work. Some of the riddler trophies are fun to do (the multiple pad efforts where you can't touch the floor, for example), but the process you have to go through to discover the trophies you mention (scan area, find destructible scenery, destroy said scenery, traipse back to character exchange point, and then retrace your steps to pick up the trophy) aren't all that enjoyable. I certainly wouldn't laud it as clever game design.

[TheSlugFormerlyKnownAsNap]

I think I would have preferred a structure where the content-heavy sidequests would have been interwoven with the main story more. It's so easy to miss stuff if you don't go follow up every single lead.

[Vemsie]

To me stuff like this feels like padded-out donkey work. Some of the riddler trophies are a lot of fun to do (the multiple pad efforts where you can't touch the floor, for example), but the process you have to go through to discover the trophies you mention (scan area, find destructible scenery, destroy said scenery, traipse back to character exchange point, and then retrace your steps to pick up the trophy) aren't much fun at all. I certainly wouldn't laud it as clever game design.

Horses for courses, l guess. I quite like that you need both characters to get certain trophies. I know some feel there are too many Riddler secrets, but to me they are a massive improvement over AA. You really need to make use of all the skills Bats has. From gliding, to dive bombing, batarang steering, grapnel boosting and using the electro gun. Best of all are the hostage rooms. Superbly deigned and the tapes you unlock are great as well. Same with the Arkham City stories. Just found the

Scarecrow

one. Cool beans.

[zy]

For anyone who feels like giving up after completing the main storyline, it's worth messing around for a while just to hear more entertaining thug chat, and revisiting some of the story buildings is worth doing too. The humour in the script isn't given enough credit in my opinion, it's often pretty funny and smart. I love bits like the Lost references and when the thugs are constantly questioning their masters behind their back.

I'd say Arkham Asylum had a more solid plot, but Arkham City had a better-rounded gameplay experience.

I made a comment in the Asylum thread about Paul Dini's script being perfunctory in parts. In comparison, I'd actually agree that Asylum has the stronger story and better plotting, and not just by retreading Batman's origin backstory yet again. Partly, the structure of the game allowed it to build towards a showdown in a more conventional narrative that knew when it could accommodate some genuine surprises. I never really got excited about Protocol Ten and there were no revelatory twists. But the dialogue is much stronger and more confident in City, especially for the main characters, even if the thugs steal the best lines overall.

Other parts are a mixed bag: their reinterpretation of Penguin seems twistedly inspired by the glassing in The Long Good Friday, but The Mysterious Watcher looks like a Mortal Kombat reject. I do miss the slightly crueller edge of Asylum, and was somewhat taken aback when I discovered that I could never kick a hoodlum off the top of a building.

I think the open-world boast of City has fooled a few people into thinking it's a much bigger game. Asylum has just as much freedom to roam between and within districts, and the much larger interiors could be far clevererer and more intricate in their level design. City's cleverness rests in the design of its Riddler Puzzles, so you'd really miss out if you didn't pursue them. The few interiors are tiny and straightforward when compared to Asylum. But I really enjoy flying around and I'm supportive that they actually tried hard to do things differently. I even suspect there was a "no more batarang / rope puzzles!" feedback to the designers, among other directives...

[Dudley]

Just completed the main story, absolutely loved it.

Cant believe they killed the Joker but I guess it was the perfect way to end Hamills voice acting for him. I wonder if they are planning of doing a third game based on what Azrael said in the side mission. I knew it would be Ras behind Hugo Strange too, mainly cause I couldn't think of who else it could be.

I felt the bosses were a bit easier in the game though which was a shame, but it was still fun.

Also Joker song in the credits

Time to collected me some riddler trophies.

It's a comic, dead means marginally less than "Is off having lunch"

[Jarik]

It's a comic, dead means marginally less than "Is off having lunch"

True, just refer to

this & this

if you're not convinced but I think its possible that for this particular interpretation of Batman they may want to let

Joker's death

stand so they have more room to maneauver plot-wise & give other characters some time in the spotlight.

[Uncle Mike]

Finished the story last weekend, and have spent this week alternating between some of the side missions, Riddler puzzles and New Game Plus.

Can't help feeling like there's a few too many Riddler trophies to get - I've been ploughing away, and there's still loads on my map.

I think I'd have that sort of feedback about the whole game: there's a little too much of everything, I think: a few too many moves, a few too many super-villains, a few too many Riddler trohpies.

Having said that, it's still fucking awesome, obviously. And the flying/swooping/gliding mechanic is loads of fun, and a great addition - I'm having fun just getting from A to B that I've only had, off the top of my head, from Just Cause 2 and Spiderman 2. And the core fighting and stealth stuff is still really solid.

And the variety in boss fights is much better, even if still a little lame. My favourite, I think, is the Joker fight.

Not sure why they went to all the trouble of implementing a bad guy with nightvision goggles to spot you on vantage points only to also give you a powerup to always defeat their gaze.

[Lag]

Overall I like this game a lot.

A few moans only because I really like it, if I didn't like it I wouldn't bother:

While fighting, the camera sometimes wanders where I'd rather it didn't;

Protracted, dull boss fights I'd rather skip (there's a "figure out how to beat him" aspect, which is fine, and a "beat him again and again and again" aspect, which isn't fun imo);

Riddler trophies seem like padding (or donkey work as Klaark said earlier);

Batman is the world's greatest detective but doesn't do much detective work in the game (relatively speaking)...

[SaintM]

Can I get a little help with a side mission please?

The face removing killer guy. I've found a body, followed the blood trail to the witness who says it was bruce. What next? I can't see any obvious signposted 'go here' bit

[Lag]

Can I get a little help with a side mission please?

The face removing killer guy. I've found a body, followed the blood trail to the witness who says it was bruce. What next? I can't see any obvious signposted 'go here' bit

Look for more bodies.

[Vemsie]

Can I get a little help with a side mission please?

The face removing killer guy. I've found a body, followed the blood trail to the witness who says it was bruce. What next? I can't see any obvious signposted 'go here' bit

.

You don't get any clues. If you don't want to search every nook and cranny of the city, I advise you to look in the vicinity of

Ace Chemicals

.

Look for really tiny gaps between buildings.

[Pochacco]

You mean alleyways right?

[zy]

Can I get a little help with a side mission please?

Yeah, this is where the game forgets a few basic tenets in signposting. Generally, you're not able to solve any of the side-missions outright as soon as they appear. It can take another action or advancement of the plot to provide another lead that will advance your side-mission progress, so you can easily waste your time trying to close a case that the game deliberately keeps open. And conversely, even if you miss something you could follow up right away, it'll still be there later. Or that's how I found it.

So the advice is: if you think you've gone as far as possible in solving a side-mission, leave it and see what turns up later. If the game starts giving you pointers and hints again, there is something left to do.

[SaintM]

Cheers guys. I've done most of the other side missions and the main story.. just mopping up and that one was pretty much still at the start.

[Don Rosco]

Having said that, it's still fucking awesome, obviously. And the flying/swooping/gliding mechanic is loads of fun, and a great addition - I'm having fun just getting from A to B that I've only had, off the top of my head, from Just Cause 2 and Spiderman 2.

Yeah, it's totally brilliant. It's good enough that I only gave Catwoman about 15 minutes in roaming mode, it's just too tedious moving around without the grapnel etc. I did enjoy her solo missions, but I hardly collected any of her trophies. Managed to get the 400 needed for Riddler with Batman. Amazing game, but i'm gonna trade it in tomorrow for AC as i've done all the side missions now, and i've no interest in the challenge rooms. Just need to listen to all the tapes tonight for my last fix. Can't wait to see what Rocksteady do next.

[Retroid]

Oh man, playing as the Catwoman when the shit hits the fan:

Did anyone else choose not to help Batman, take the loot and run? Fucking hell it brought a smile to my face, the credits, the "Everyones dead, Jokers won!" on the radio.

After it rewinds I did it again and it wouldn't let me open the door!

[redballoon]

Protracted, dull boss fights I'd rather skip (there's a "figure out how to beat him" aspect, which is fine, and a "beat him again and again and again" aspect, which isn't fun imo);

Yeah, I'm not a big fan of "Boss fights" in general, only really enjoying RE4, pretty much the Zelda ones and some of the Metroid ones, but the only downside I have for this game (and it's prequel) was the boss fights. Granted, I find the boss fights slightly easier in this one, but if there is one thing to make me stop playing a game, especially if you are playing through again in Hard or NG+ and you found the boss fights a nosebleed in Normal!

[Stig]

If I start NG+ does that reset all the Ridler challenges/trophies?

[Alan Stock]

No, it tells you that when you finish the first time around.

[Stig]

No, it tells you that when you finish the first time around.

Well I knew that it didn't reset any of your upgrades and what not just couldn't remember about the riddler stuff.