The presentation for Arkham City is amazing to say the least, Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamil seem to be the two destined actors to live out the epic struggle between the dark knight and the clown prince of crime, and yet again they do an astounding job along with the rest of the returning crew from Arkham Asylum on Arkham City's amazing story full of twists and amazing turns. In Arkham City the environment itself seems to be alive, teeming with side missions and activities happening alongside the main storyline to keep you busy, trophies to collect and crimes to solve, assaults and brutal beatings happening all over the city. A phone booth killer and a mysterious figure watching the dark knight are just a few of the events that will keep the Arkham City disc spinning in your disc tray.
Unfortunately all this content can be a double edged sword, while it is great to have so much to do in Arkham City it can at times dilute the main storyline with all the random happenings around the city that seem to all be urgent when they occur. There are also a plethora of villains in this game, almost to the point where some A-list villains like two-face or Poison ivy end up playing second fiddle to the main opponents. While some would call this a strike against the game I will call it even because rocksteady has been dedicated to one goal and one goal only giving us gamers a true Batman experience and this is part of that experience, giving you the feeling the while, yes you are Batman you still are only one man in a city that is screaming out for savior and full of deadly opponents.
The first thing you will notice in Arkham City are the similarities and the differences from Asylum. The one button combat system has returned and been built up and expanded on, now Batman can takedown multiple enemies while countering and combat is smoother in AC making Batman a more polished and lethal combatant. The bulk of the caped crusaders gadgets have also returned along with new tech to keep Batman armed to the teeth, and as well as the basic functions most of the gadgets have combat capability’s and have a hot button setting so they can be effectively used during battle. These improvements empower players and truly give them the feeling of being the Batman and wielding all of his technology, suddenly walking into a room full of opponents is not such a daunting task because u have the equipment needed to succeed.
Improvements have also been made to the dark knight's aerial tactics as well. Dive bombs, flying kicks and swooping down on enemies adds new dimensions to Batman in traversing the city and in combat. Batman can dive through the air to pick up momentum and then continue to glide and soar through the snowy skies of Gotham, or in combat use the new dive-bomb attacks allowing him to come screaming out of the skyline and take out enemies. These new skills and abilities transform Batman's image from a physically dominating land master into a truly dangerous aerial predator, able to take out enemies from the ground or air with equally lethal tactics.
Another element that makes this game a great experience is the inclusion of Catwoman as a secondary main character. Those who buy the game new, or used and download the Catwoman content will get to have Selina Kyle and Mr. Wayne alternate between having the main role in the story, also Catwoman gives an interesting and very different perspective on the happenings in Gotham than the caped crusader with different morals, goals and gameplay. Where Batman is a big, powerful, extremely physical fighter and a dark brooding character; Catwoman is a smaller, sleek, more agile combatant with a very sultry attitude and her change of pace and four levels in the main storyline are a must have to get the full Arkham City experience.
Overall this game is amazing, developers rocksteady have once again given us a truly awe inspiring Batman experience. The balance between protector, detective and predator truly make you feel as if you are the dark knight and rocksteady has taken that core that is Batman and put it into an amazing storytelling experience with Arkham City. While tasks and opponents may be daunting no matter what difficulty you play on you are given the feeling that you are Batman and you can rise to the occasion through tactics, use of your tools and mental as well as physical execution, the skills that make this hero without superpowers arguably the greatest of them all. Batman is a fictional character in the DC comics’ universe, but if the dark knight were real, with that ever-present scowl on his face; Arkham City would be at least one thing for the caped crusader to smile about. Needles to say any and all Batman fans and gamers looking for a great action adventure experience should pick up a copy of Batman Arkham City.
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