Batman: Arkham City - first impressions

[JRD]

YEEAAHH!! Finally!

I've downloaded the game as soon as it was available on STEAM (November 22nd) but only managed to get a taste of it today (friday!!!)!
My first thought is: WOW... The game is amazing!!!!!!

To begin with - OPEN WORLD... but let's do first things first!

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You start playing as... Catwoman (what a character, what a character  ) in a very short sequence. You then play a very short tutorial as Bruce Wayne, emprisioned in Arkham City and escaping from the Tiger Guards. The usual, how-to-run, how-to-climb-, how-to-punch routine. Soon enoughh you leave the boring billionaire life behind to become the Bat and as soon as you do that you are free to roam! I must say that right from start Batman's moves feels far better than in Arkham Asylum. He is faster, more agile and full of new moves  >:D

It really feels like a sequel... Fighting is much more fluid and chaining punches, kicks and throws together seems easier. Batman now can face more opponents at a time and you are even thrown on large groups of enemies - 10 or 15 - right from start!!! Getting them down is also more rewarding as you see more diversity in B-man's stunts... a henchman threw a chair at me and with a single click I grabbed it in mid air and threw it back on him while facing six other guys. The knock outs also feels far more powerful! You can dive bomb on enemies very easily either from a ledge or while gliding and once you get him, he's history!!  8) You can also skip fighting and just navigate gliding, grappling and running through rooftops as you please!

As soon as I got the freedom to choose how to get to my next objective - free Catwoman at the Court House - I went to the opposite side to see how open world it is. Batman can navigate smoothly through rooftops, glide using his cape and grapple to almost every ledge and at greater distances... thre's no restrictions to where you want to go and how to get there... well, maybe some spots are not available but I felt pretty free to go wherever I felt like going so far!!

Opening the map didn't impressed me though  :-( ... I was expecting Assassins Creed-like maps when thinking in area... Arkham City doesn't feel like 5 time bigger than Arkham Asylum... but still not a small place at all and I don't know how much of the map will be revealed to me next, so I might be wrong here.

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The menus are pretty much like Arkham Asylum. Wayne Tech screen to upgrade gadgets, Profiles of all character unlocked available with nice details of thei bio and first appearance in the original comic books, 3d trophies etc... as good as always - I already met the Penguin at the very start and his british accent is very nice!!

Well... I'll go back to Arkham now and bring more screenies and impressions in a minute!  >:D

[PZ]

Open world sure sounds good!  Looking forward to further impressions.  ;)

[Art Blade]

Open blouse world, too, eh?  :-()

[JRD]

I've now played a bit further into the story and also some challenges too, with both Batman and Catwoman.  8)

The story goes as Batman tries to find out why Dr. Hugo Strange is in Arkham City and what Catwoman has to do with it... to be honest, the underlying story is a bit blury to me. I'm a guy who likes to play a game with a good plot but I'm more concerned with action and graphics and all that stuff so the fact that the plot is not too bright or, at least, not too clear yet, is not a problem at all!!!!  ;)

I reached a point where I meet Harley Quinn (Joker's sexy sidekick) after saving Selina Kyle's (Catwoman) life twice... sort of... she's the kind of girl who knows how to take care of herself. During the first few missions I also got sidetracked doing some training missions where I have to glide and plunge over some bat-markers , kind of a checkpoint race, in order to unlock upgrades. They are spread over the area available so far and I can choose which trainning mission I want to do and in which order to do it so it's not mandatory but rather a bonus to get extras. They are pretty cool and the ones I finished took place in a kind of port area with cranes and a freaky abandoned amusement park sort of place... very cool and open wide! Upon completion I got a few upgrades points I could choose how to spend.

After getting the upgrades that allows me to build combos faster (so my moves deliver more and more damage as I build more and more combo points) I got a wicked upgrade... it allows me to summon a whole bunch of bats during a fight to stun all henchmen around me for a while... the look of it is pretty cool and quite helpful during fightsl!!!  >:D

On roaming around I found some political prisioners lying around with whom I could interact... just a phrase or two but something to help building up the story I guess... nothing too important so far. Also I found some public phones ringing and by picking one up I had Mr. Szasz over talking.. err.. threatening me... don't know what those phone calls do but whatever, leave a message!  ;D

The challenges... Binnatics, that's for you... the challenges are there just like in Arkham Asylum... I finished one with Batman and one with Catwoman as I only have one challenge unlocked to play with. They are the same as always... four rounds of enemies increasing in number and difficulty. Free flow, combos, perfect bonus... al the same... and I think there are far more challnges to play this time around, mate!! Catwoman fighting is a complete different story. You can do basic moves with the same basic controls but as far as I can tell you're gonna have to learn to play as her in order to get a perfect score! 8)

Anyway... more to come tomorrow!!!

[PZ]

Sounds like you're having a great time, JRD!   ;)

[JRD]

I am  :)

Let's see how the rest of the game plays... hopefully more freedom to play and extras to collect...  I read enemies do respawn so you won't end up on a desert place like in B:AA!!

[PZ]

There is something to be said for respawn - it keeps things interesting if not on too fast a cycle.

[Fiach]

I've heard its a great game, but that you accumulate so many combos/actions that it can get confusing sometimes as to which controller buttons to press.

Apparently there are catwoman missions that are only available if you buy the game "new" (dlc I think) with a code in the box. Its to prevent piracy/second hand sales, things like this put me off games that incorporate it, I tend to wait until they are in the bargain bin, but it seems to be a pretty cool game from what you are saying so far JRD, maybe Santa will do the right thing, 'cos I've been such a good boy....honest  >:D

[JRD]

You upgrade not only gadgets but also combos to be used during fights so yes, it might get a bit confusing at times. But you can always get to a challenge map and practice your moves against four waves of henchmen. I also saw a "start tutorial" button in the upgrades area so I think you can get the basics on how to use it once you upgrade.

As for DLC it was pretty frustrating not to be able to play as Joker in B:AA, it was a PS3 exclusive. You can play the maps with Batman though but this is not the same. In B:AC there are a variety of extras and DLC but I really don't want to go much into it. You can choose different outfits to use like the one used in the movies, the one in the classic TV show from the 60's (Bman is not as chubby as Adam West though  8-X ) etc... I don't know what I got by pre ordering my copy at STEAM... will check in a minute! :-()

If you like 3rd person adventure / fighting games where you must learn the controls instead of just smashing the buttons then you are in for a treat with B:AC!!!  >:D

[JRD]

This is the map of Arkham City

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It is an area of Gotham City transformed into an open air prison so this is not supposed to be a big city anyway. The area in the middle is restricted so far so I'm guessing something will happen there towards the end.

I'm about 4% complete only but found my first boss...

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Missing an arm but his other hand make up for it with this hammer of his. Not too hard to put down though, just like in other bosses, he has a group of henchmen with him... get rid of them keeping distance from the big bad guy and then deal with him alone. I got a gadged that fires electrical charges so I could stun him from a safe distance and then get closer and personal!

After finishing him, a cutscene and now I'm playing as Catwoman.

Spoiler

Batman is made prisioner by the Joker after this mini boss and Catwoman will free him somehow! Very cool... you get to play different characters to get the story going.  8)

Oh, and Harley Quinn 

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[PZ]

Cool - looks like an AC map  :-X

[JRD]

Well, almost 10hrs of gameplay so far (8 today) and I have e good feel of the game... it is not true open world but much more enjoyable than the first game. The story is pretty linear and you do missions one by one in the right sequence. Outdoor is where you do small missions like disable signal jammers so you can hack security doors, investigate crime scenes and gather clues that will lead you to some kind of building/facility to face main characters like Joker, Penguin, Mr. Freeze etc. Indoors is pretty much like B:AA... either punch a whole lot of henchmen outnumbered 15 to 1 or, if they are armed, sneak in and take them out one by one.

Once indoor there's not much to choose from, it's a linear, corridor adventure game with great fights. Outdoor is where the game presents a huge difference. The whole mechanics is different... how you tackle your objectives is very different and you have a few kinds of side missions:
- find out Titan containers and destroy them
- Help political prisioners being attacked by Black Gate prisioners / Arkham inmates
- Investigate crime scenes to lead to a serial killer at loose
- Augumented Reality trainings (gliding)
- Riddler's trophies
I can say it will last for a good ammount of time and I'm having a great time so far... up to expectations!!  8)

[JRD]

Play as catwoman is amazing... just like Batman, she can navigate smoothly through Gotham but with her own style. She uses a whip to swing around and her feline claws to grab the walls and climb up. She can also walk upside down on some roofs being deadly to approach enemies from behind. Also she can lock on to an unsuspecting enemy when on a ledge and fall over him with her claws like Batman does with his glide kick!!

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On her part of the story she goes after Poison Ivy to convince her to help her in doing something we are not aware yet! Her part is quite small but very nice to play... very different fighting makes her an outstanding character.

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BAck on the Batman side... gliding through Gotham is as amazing as it is pleasant... his gliding is very nicely designed so you are not just gliding around but can dive to get speed and gain more altitude, grapple to other ledges and use the momentum to launch yourself higher and faster...  >:D

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I've now reached my first serious boss...Solomon Grundy (born on a monday)... fighting bosses is far more forgiving than in B:AA both because they made them a bit easier and also because I'm well used to the controls as I finished Arkham Asylum not long ago... it makes for less frustration and more fun. I'm playing on normal difficulty so if it doesn't present a challenge to me I can always start a new game on hard. I also read on the official forum that once you finish the game on normal you get a "New game plus" meaning you can start a new game with all your gadgets und upgrades and the enemies will be a bit harder and some features will be tuned off (like the animation on an enemie's head showing he is about to attack)! I will certainly have another playthrough or maybe two at least... nice replay value here.  8)

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[Art Blade]

Apart from the batman stuff which I don't like, the graphics look great.  :-X

[Fiach]

Apart from the batman stuff which I don't like, the graphics look great.  :-X

I was looking at the specs, something like an 18gig install....ouch. But you can see why.

[PZ]

Indeed - fantastic graphics!

[Art Blade]

@ ID's Rage & non-repetitive 64meg-graphics: Eat your heart out.  >:D

[spaceboy]

glad you're enjoying it JRD - I really like Arkham City.  I do need to get back to it myself, though I've seen most of what I haven't played by watching my son play.  Very fun game.

[JRD]

Soon AC:R will be available to play at STEAM - they even let me download it so I can start playing immediately... but NOT BEFORE... how sweet  :D >:(( - and I'll have Brotherhood to finish, JC2 to finish, B:AC to finish and AC:R to start and finish... playing as little as I'm playing lately, it should keep me busy for the whole 2012!!  ????

Oh wait... there's FC3 coming too..........  ???

[Fiach]

From what I can gather, devs are looking more at Steam as a way to stop piracy, insofar as, even if you buy a game disc in a shop, you essentially have to unlock it via Steam, I was annoyed when it was only Valve games (HL2), that that sounds really annoying.

I think (dunno if I misunderstood) that the game unlocks when connected to steam and you d/l the game from steam as opposed to it being on the disc. Maybe I wasnt paying attention as I tend to get games on consoles, (unless its something like Skyrim, where mods will be released), so I just glanced through the PC article.

[JRD]

Went on after dealing with Solomon Grundy... big, dumb and easy, not really a troublesome boss...  8) .

After having a word with Grundy and the Penguin Batman goes after Mr. Freeze who has a cure for a venon the Joker injected on him. Tuirns out he hasn't it...  :D but somehow knows the enzime behind the venon so Batman can try and find a way to get a sample of that enzime to fix a cure... the man carrying the enzime on his very blood is an old friend of the Bat... Râ's Al Ghul... a man who knows Bruce wayne is the Bat and whose daughter - Thalia - has a major crush on Batman.

Here's Thalia (man... what's with all those hot girls on Batman!!!  )

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The scenario fighting Thalia's father, Râ's.... so much for an in law!  ::)

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And Batman, Thalia and Râ's - with the sword about to slice his throat - having a family meeting

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Dealing with Râ's wasn't also hard... I had to go three or four times against him to figure out what I had to do and actually do it, but it wasn't frustrating at all... bosses are way more fun to deal with this time around  8)

So far (I'm on 14% of the game) Arkham City is top notch... great action, balanced with open worldness, side quests, nice atmosphere, good attention to details (you can go then Crime Alley, where Thomas and Martha Wayne were murdered in front of young Bruce, and find a chalk mark on the floor with roses close to it. By pressing a button Batman will pay tribute to the palce where his parents were killed  :-X ). Regular enemies are pretty diverse and more challenging than Arkham Asylum which adds for great fun while playing.... the respawning and side quests are also increasing the lifespan of this game!!!!

I can have some fun if I'm not on a mood to go on with the main story and  Gotham is a very nice place, at least the Arkham part, of course, very well planned and with loads of things to do... great game!  :-X

[Fiach]

I was tempted to buy it second hand today for 360, but its only on one disc (6 gigs), think I'll wait for the PC version to drop in price, at 18 gigs, it probably looks much better.

[Art Blade]

For the PC those  18 gigs are comprised of 6 gigs gfx, 12 gigs game loader. And by the time you get it, it will come with an additional 10 gigs patches.  :-D

[Fiach]

LOL, you're probably right :)

[JRD]

After facing Ra's Al Ghul I had to go back to the GC Police Dept to deliver Mr. Freeze a sample of Ra's blood so he can create a serum that will neutralize the effects of the toxin the Joker injected on my blood.

Mr. Freeze, obviously, is not willing to just help me so I now have to persuade him to do so. It is a very nice boss... he learns all your tactics once you hit him so you cannot attack twice the same way!!!

Man, this is going to give me some trouble!  8)

The game is delivering a great experience... specially if compared to the previous game... much more freedom, much more challenging. Not only bosses are more sophisticated but also regular enemies. To get into the GCPD building I had to put down six of the Joker's henchmen and they put up a real fight this time. I can face 15 regular henchmen at once and not be hit by a sigle punch, but not those six! One of them is like a "special" henchman you have to stun with a special move before hitting, two others are using makeshift shields that block most of my attack as well as provide a strong weapon in their hands... and with three other regular henchmen those guys were a tough fight!! Soon there will be regular guys plus special guys plus shielded guys plus knives guys plus rifle guys plus whatever they come up with :-X