Batman: Arkham City

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Elomin Sha
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Batman: Arkham City

Postby Elomin Sha » 22 Oct 2011, 16:16

Just completed the game. Wow. So good. Rocksteady managed to equal their previous game. The ending did make me a little sad.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Jamfalcon » 22 Oct 2011, 20:35

I'm really looking forward to playing it once its a bit cheaper. How long did it take you to beat it?
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Darkobra » 23 Oct 2011, 02:25

This is on my list too. Just either when I get a job or when it gets cheaper. Whichever happens first. LOVED the first one so glad it's on par.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Elomin Sha » 23 Oct 2011, 02:27

It took my about 20+ hours on hard. I was going through much of the side missions too. Don't buy preowned copies of the game, you won't have access to the Catwoman bonus levels.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Myrph » 23 Oct 2011, 03:05

Waiting for this to be released first, let alone price drop! Or am I just fussy for wanting it on the PC rather than console?

Looking forward to picking it up though!
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby zfubarz » 23 Oct 2011, 10:03

if you own arkam asylum on steam or lego batman you get 20% off the preorder price right now, that's pretty damn good.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Geoff_B » 23 Oct 2011, 12:01

Unless you live in the UK where we can't preorder it. This is of course nothing to do with any deal that did not take place and in which retailers like GAME were certainly not involved.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Drinnik » 23 Oct 2011, 12:58

You could have preordered it in Tescos. I got it from Game. I completed it, was impressed, then went on to play today and it had wiped my save.

I was not happy.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Matt » 23 Oct 2011, 15:21

Managed to pull off a x87 combo on a challenge map today.

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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Matt » 23 Oct 2011, 21:13

I am currently infiltrating the steel mill. Without spoiling anything, how far along in the story am I (like, percentage wise)?

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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby JackSlack » 23 Oct 2011, 21:22

OK, I'm going to cast the dissenting vote. I'm actually fairly underwhelmed with the game. It's not bad, but it's far from great and it's a clear step back from Arkham Asylum in terms of storytelling.

For starters, the game has no Act 1. There's no discussion of how Arkham City came to be, what forces were required to allow it to occur, nor any sense of what 'normal' life behind the scenes of Arkham City is until the game begins. Compared to the brilliant walk through Arkham Asylum, which did a great job building the dread and setting the mood, Arkham begins abruptly and never really settles itself.

I also think there's a touch of overload going on. Yes, Asylum also was a rogues gallery of a game, but most of them were very minor points. The focus was always on Joker, and his malevolent presence echoed through the game. Here that focus should be Hugo Strange. And don't get me wrong, the occasional announcements that [THING HERE] is only X hours away are nice. But he's too remote, too distant to make himself a convincing villain. And part of the problem is that there are at least two other villains who are crucial to the story, arguably three.

Now, some are going to point out that really, the villain is Joker again. Hugo Strange is basically a feint. In which case, well, yes, Joker remains the better villain. But it's sloppy storytelling; you open with your villain. Joker is seen in Asylum at the very beginning, in your back seat, captured. Joker doesn't appear in City until later, and he doesn't have the same resonance as a result.

So, let's talk about the ending, then.

OK, yes. It's an amazing aversion of Joker Immunity Clause, in this case literally. (As well as figuratively for Talia, Ra's al Ghul, and Hugo Strange.) And I won't complain about the Joker death; it fits the overwhelming feel of rot and decay, the theme of the game. (It's not a coincidence that Ra's al Ghul winds up the main villain of the game.) But holy crap, lack of denouement much? Joker is killed and all we get out of the ending are a few looks of shock. Yes, I know, I know, playable epilogue. It still leaves the story mode ending on a note of 'well, that just happened', and it's really sloppy storytelling. Here, Asylum wasn't great either, but the newscast ending at least allowed more of a sense of closure.

OK, gameplay. The open world design is great. Seriously, amazing stuff. That said, am I the only one who felt the whole place seemed a bit samesy? I only could ever tell if I was in two districts; the Industrial Park or the Museum. Otherwise, everything more or less blended into one another, meaning the map was the only real way to tell where I was.

I also found the gadgets a little 'busy' this time around. There was at least one I never really got around to using. I give them credit for at least trimming some of the gadgets from Asylum though, so it's not too bad, but overall I could have used fewer moves, gadgets and things to remember. It feels cluttered rather than fuller featured, at least to me.

Overall, it's a good game. But it's not as well paced or told as Asylum, which still feels like the definitive Batman tale in a videogame to me.
Last edited by JackSlack on 23 Oct 2011, 21:32, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby JackSlack » 23 Oct 2011, 21:22

Matt wrote:I am currently infiltrating the steel mill. Without spoiling anything, how far along in the story am I (like, percentage wise)?


Very close to done.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Matt » 23 Oct 2011, 21:33

Jack: I skipped your paragraph about the ending, but on every other point you're dead on. Batman: Arkham Asylum was brilliant, with moments of transcendence. Arkham City is merely "great".

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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Matt » 23 Oct 2011, 21:34

JackSlack wrote:
Matt wrote:I am currently infiltrating the steel mill. Without spoiling anything, how far along in the story am I (like, percentage wise)?


Very close to done.


My game completion % is only 35! O_o

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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby JackSlack » 23 Oct 2011, 21:39

Matt wrote:My game completion % is only 35! O_o


Don't forget that percentage counts challenges, too.

Jack: I skipped your paragraph about the ending, but on every other point you're dead on. Batman: Arkham Asylum was brilliant, with moments of transcendence. Arkham City is merely "great".


There are some really nice touches, though. Dig how you get the Riddler trophies on your map, far more clever and fun than the maps of Asylum.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Matt » 23 Oct 2011, 21:45

Yeah, but it doesn't feel as focused.

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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby the_lone_bard » 23 Oct 2011, 22:18

Matt wrote:
JackSlack wrote:
Matt wrote:I am currently infiltrating the steel mill. Without spoiling anything, how far along in the story am I (like, percentage wise)?


Very close to done.


My game completion % is only 35! O_o

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I completed arkham asylum with something like 40%...
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby RobertMc123 » 24 Oct 2011, 15:25

Okay, I tend to be unpopular when I go off on games, but let me start off by saying that to be Arkham Asylum is pretty much the best paced game that I have ever played. It had the perfect mix of doing things, it never felt forced and the story flowed so goddamn well. I loved it.

Now Arkham City, I got this last night. But first lets jump back a few days. My wife has just given birth to our son. This happened on thursday at 13.59pm. She is still in hospital now due to complications, so my routine is get up out of bed, get on the train at 11am to make it to hospital for 12.30pm, I sit in hopsital with her, look after our son, feed, change and wind him and all that good stuff, til 9pm when my inlaws give me a lift home. I am normally home at 9.45pm. Throw into account showers, making dinner, checking email and I get about an hour and a half of game time at the moment. I got Arkham City yesterday, throw it in my Xbox and get ready to enjoy this game and let it blow me away just like Arkham Asylum. And I wait, and I wait and I wait.

I am not impressed. I have already had 3 hard locks with this game. It feels so unfocussed and the plot seems a mess. NOTHING is introduced or explained in a way to ease you in. It's more "go on, play the game, we'll just stand here and watch". They just assume you played Arkham Asylum and they just assume you remember the controls. I played and completed the first game on PS3, so the control scheme isn't "exactly" the same, more of less but not exactly. The controls feel janky now. Also the big open city is a distraction, too much shit is happening for it to be a focused experience. My biggest dislike so far is the hunting sequences, in Arkham Asylum you were able to stalk your prey, in this game I have been unable to do it, the game just seems reluctant to let you actually do it properly, it seems it wants to be more scripted in it's approach to this. Maybe I need to upgrade some moves or something, but I want the "upside down from gargoyle grab the dude" move but so far no luck. Gliding over the city to me is a chore and less fun. There is a big sense of let down with this game. As you glide around you hear snatches of conversations and I not sure if I am supposed to listen or not, do they mean anything? Is it filling in backstory or opening a side mission? I don't know and the game wont tell me, it's refused to tell me anything. Wait, hang on, the game is now telling me to locate and answer a ringing phone? Really, this is the first time your telling me to do anything unrelated to the plot, maybe try doing this with other stuff, you know, just maybe.

But on the flipside, combat is awesome, love the combos and counters, I like the prevailing art style and I enjoy playing as Catwoman and her little scenes are fun. Also voice direction is top nothc, the art style magnificent and the cut scenes are great especially with the Joker.

Obviously everything I have said is wrong because the game is getting rave reviews but this game isn't clicking with me....yet. Maybe I am not playing it in the right mood, maybe I need to invest more time in it. I am not turning on it completely just yet, this game is no L.A. Noire (seriously fuck that game), I just feel really let down at this point. (Story progression so far, just entered GCPD to find Mr Freeze.)
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Matt » 24 Oct 2011, 16:16

No, you're pretty much right. AC lacks focus, and does assume you've played AA. I've made exactly those same points in conversation. None of it's problems are severe enough to really disappoint me, but there's enough such problems that I certainly don't hold it in such high regard as I do the first.

I'd have called Batman:AA a 9.5-10/10 level game. I'd rate This as an 8.5-9.

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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby JackSlack » 24 Oct 2011, 16:22

I only ever discuss a 1-5 scale, but I'm with Matt. Asylum was a 5 Star game (a few problems here or there but nothing to eliminate the sense of it being the best gaming has to offer). City is a 4 star. (Above average but not great.)
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby tanatoes » 24 Oct 2011, 18:40

I'm slowly warming to the game, but it doesn't capture me the way Asylum did. As people have said it's mostly that the game isn't focused or streamlined the way the first one was. What I was pleasantly surprised by though was that most of your gadgets are unlocked at the start of the game. I was wandering around the city looking at things and saying to myself "Oh, there's a breakable wall - must remember to come back here when I have the explosive gel" and was startled when I hit the D-Pad and saw all the tools already there. (Well except the zipline... and without power-ups like the triple batclaw and long distance hacking.)

I'm warming to the game though. I've never been a big fan of sandbox games, but this might be the first one I ever actually complete. Just wish I could get my flawless flow mojo working again - my challenge scores are pretty pants right now.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby Drinnik » 29 Oct 2011, 10:11

The credits: Mr J is fucking creepy.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby tanatoes » 30 Oct 2011, 13:44

Agreed! I finally beat the main game today (and was quite shocked by the last few minutes before the credits I will say) so now I'm in new game plus mode and mopping up all the things I didn't find before. I still don't like it as much as Asylum, but it is a nice companion to that (virtually perfect) game. Looking forward now to Robin DLC.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby LogicSword » 03 Nov 2011, 16:26

Finished it... Wow, that was disappointing. I'm just sitting here thinking "Is that really it?" There's nothing close to the brilliance of Scarecrow's bits from AA.

Bleh. Trading this in for Skyward Sword.
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Re: Batman: Arkham City

Postby iamafish » 27 Dec 2011, 10:48

Got this in the steam sale and finished it recently. (the story that is, i still am only 50% of the way through!)

I agree with most of the complaints to far - it is incredibly unfocused, the storytelling is pretty weak and it feels overburdened with stuff. They really try to pack it down with so many moves and clever gadgets and villains and side quests and all that stuff that it get terribly bogged down.

My main complain, however, is that it has not been made with PC gamers in mind at all. The controls are sloppily adapted for PC and there is an over-emphasis on using the remote-control batarang, especially for the riddler challenges, which is nigh impossible to use with a mouse. I'm going to have to drastically re-model the controls to give myself access to the quick-gadgets. locking them to the number keys makes them very difficult to get to them quickly. Likewise the only way of combating the guys with the shields is almost impossible to actually do reliably.

the predator sequences are also somewhat difficult to manage, with the bad guys very quick to spot you on the gargoyles. this is probably a good thing in terms of realism, but it does make life harder.

The story is irritating because the main thing driving the plot is that every time you almost get something done, some villain steps in and ruins things for you. It gets very predictable. I'm all for twists, but eventually you need to actually resolve part of the plot. I assumed that the thing which drove most of the plot would actually be resolved much earlier, leaving time for something much more menacing, rather than it keep going on and on forever. It started getting a bit unrealistic and slightly annoying.
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