I've never liked Batman or the whole super hero comic book thing in general because when I was younger it was for geeks. However recent films like Spiderman and Batman have come along and turned that on it's head and it's acceptable to like these things today. This Batman isn't like the comics I've seen or the films but seems to be a blend of the two and I must say I prefer it to anything that I've seen. I mean the Joker in Batman: AA I find to be mroe fun and crazy and better played than the one in the Dark Knight and that goes for Batman himself too because he actually talks normally.
What amazes me about Batman is the game has so much polish and if theres ever been a game that is perfect then this is it. I couldn't fault one thing with the game and it just does everything amazingly well. It's crazy to think that Resident Evil 5 came out around the same time and really does play like the 2005 Resident Evil 4 and It's like Batman shows that the Third Person camera over the shoulder genre has evolved. Gears of War really pushed it forward and Batman obviously takes alot from that but I think it also takes alot from a Bioshock with the voice recordings dotted about the place and how the level design is non linear because it's an island and you can revisit everywhere you've been.
The actual start of the game reminds me of a Half-Life where you have the great intro of you walking the Joker to his cell. It immerses you so well into the game and I wish more games did this. Also what I found to be kool was they do a little play on this later on and I wont ruin the story for you. Speaking of the story it is fantastic and well written with some great voice acting and I really liked the twists and insight to the characters with the interview voice recordings placed about the place. These are like a mini game to collect them and theres lots of Riddler Mini games which get you XP and achievements. It's just great to have lots of stuff to do in the game other than the main story and it's fun, not frustrating collecting these. The XP goes towards points to unlock new abilities and upgrades for Batman which is really kool.
I loved the combat in Batman and at first you think it's very simple but the game does a great job building that up. You'll gain lots of new combat abilities throughtout the game to keep it interesting. The main thing about the combat though and to why it's so good is it actually feels like you're hitting your enemy. I mean I'm getting all my frustration of the day out on this game and it feels good to punch and kick these guys. It's like in FPS when you want a certain feel from you guns and the combat has to feel right or you don't like it. Well Batman nails the melee combat amazingly well and I'd have to say it's the best out of any game I've played with the melee stuff.
On top of the combat though theres a stealth component to the game with your gadgets which help you take down vents to crawl in and grapple up to high places and glide around the terrain. It's really amazing to grapple onto a roof and then glide down and kick the enemy and then pull a takedown to knock the enemy out. Must also be noted that you don't ever kill anyone in this game but you just knock everyone out and they obviously get locked back up. I also love grappling onto a gargoyle and doing an inverted takedown and then hanging the enemy upside down with rope on the gorgoyle to attract their mates. Then when they come you fire your batarang at the rope and the guy falls on his mates knocking them out. Theres also challenge modes which is more content away from the Single Player that you unlock throughout the game as a bonus and they're really fun and amazingly fun because of the combat.
There are two weaker points about the game but I personally didn't find them to be a problem and they actually enhanced my gameplay experience and made it more fun. However I say weaker points because they coulda been done abit better. Boss Fights I don't really like in games because they're really annoying and you keep dying. However Batman does it really well where they're quite Short and easy. However there have been complaints about this but myself I never cared for them so Batman got them just right for me. Also the detective mode which you use as a tool to see what to do next in the level. It's like a view that colours everything a bluey colour and points of interest will be highlighted. This was obviously put in to help people out and keep the pace of the game. I found myself using it alot and it did enhance my gameplay because it keeps the game flowing intest of being stuck on a puzzle. However you'll be using it so much that you'll miss all the pretty graphics of the game and thats a shame.
Speaking bout the graphics they are fantastic and it looks like Unreal Engine 3 so thats no suprise. The animations are all really good and it runs well even on low end systems. I had no crashes and loading times were instant and theres even a windowed mode option which I really love to see as thats how I play all my games. The sound is also spot on with great music and voice acting with great sound effects too.
Theres not one thing I could really fault the game on it's so well polished and such a fun experience that for me I don't care what else comes out this year, it's easily Game of the Year. I can't say enough good things about Batman: AA and I just hope they don't now try to milk it with a game every year because that would be a shame. Take your time on the next product and make sure it lives upto this game.
