Post by Blade Runner 07 on Apr 8, 2013 12:51:42 GMT -5
Arkham City... is my number one... game.
Presentation: 10/10 How do you make a sequel to the game that did everything right, setting the bar for what a comic book games could be? Add more. More challenges, more villains, more gadgets, more options, more places to go, more things to do. This is Arkham Asylum x10! A true Batman sim and the greatest game I've played in a long time.
Gameplay: 9/10 Once you get used to the controls, gliding through the city, performing silent takedowns and taking on a dozen thugs at once is second nature and tons of fun. As for the environment, it's Gotham City. A piece of it anyway. As you have seen it in the comics, movies, and animation. It's Batman's play ground and every alleyway, overpass, and roof top feels the way it's supposed to. You are Batman.
Graphics: 9/10 Beautiful and dark in a dirty way. The city looks and feels like it's seen better days and that's a good thing. It rains and snows in places as spotlights scan the night sky and it all looks so saturated in the Unreal Engine sheen. Texture pop-in is rare but present but when everything looks as it should it's easy to forgive such little things.
All in a knights work.
Sound: 10/10 Countering a thug with his own baseball bat makes an expected crack, that's just one example that comes to mind. Sounds are never recycled and there a hundreds of them. Voice acting is some of the best in any video game and the music is moody and appropriate for Batman with obvious nods to Tim Burtons 1989 score and Hans Zimmer's latest from the Nolan films.
Value: 8/10 The side missions alone feel like there own game. If the developer was greedy they could have cut this game into 3rds. They could have sold the main story for $60 and the others as DLC and you would still be getting your moneys worth just the base game with it's collectables and challenge maps. The new game plus, upgrades, and achievements make sure that the game isn't over just because you finished the main story line. You could sink a good 15 hours in your first play through without collecting a single Riddler trophy or trying your skills in a challenge map.
I give it a 9/10.