Batman Arkham Knight(multi format) review

[Yakumo]

That's the problem. When you work from 8:20 to 19:00 every day, the last thing you want to do is use your brain

[JazzFunk]

Oh my god, this looks *stunning*. Might have to get a PS4 now. Played through then sold the MD version of Batman on eBay the other week, kinda weird seeing vids of this put up against that, pretty mindblowing what a 25yr gap has done for gaming (at least visually!)

[Yakumo]

It is a beautiful game but the world map could be bigger. Coming from the Witcher 3 make Batman seem very small.

[JazzFunk]

Such beauty though man. I get shocked at how good stuff looks these days. Like my brain cannot compute.

[Yakumo]

The amount of detail in Batman is amazing. The first thing I though was, man this looks beautiful! Then I thought, the controls are **** I did get in to it after a while though. I still prefer the controls on the 360 games however.

[danholo]

I just got this yesterday as a treat for getting paid. I've only tried Arkham Asylum/City without getting hooked so I kind of bought this on a whim. Started on Hard, a very lovely looking game from the start. I guess the darkness gives the console an easier time to really make the actual details shine? So far it's quite interesting actually and I really like the Batmobile Tank Mode.

[Golgo]

Started playing this about a week ago, and it really excels in the visuals and atmos. Everything else - apart from the overall scale and the addition of the Batmobile - is exactly the same as previous games. I like how they're narratively justifying Batman's shift to a more

->Open Spoiler<-

psychotic, violent approach in this game, and the use of Joker to accompany you throughout to reinforce this 'degeneration' is terrific

. Not enjoying the overall story and writing too much, though, and the new main villain - a petulant and seemingly very incompetent merc with a line in cheesy smacktalk - is awful and utterly lacking in the delirious charisma you expect from Batman villains. I think this character must have got lost on his way to Black Ops III. I don't have a problem with the scaled-up nature of the adventure - as some did - but I can guarantee I'm not chasing down 243 mostly brainless Riddler trophies. I'm enjoying the game but I can already tell it won't be my favourite game of the trilogy.

[Golgo]

On this third outing I've realized I don't get on with the combat of these games anymore. There is little correlation between what you press and the actions that happen on screen, so little in fact that it's a bit of a charade being required to remember what button does what. It would be simpler and more honest if they just turned combat into a Simon Says/QTE and had done with it.

My theory below on how the plot was concocted.

Take four lines:

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Scarecrow: "The thing you fear most is causing the deaths of those closest to you, heh-heh-heh!"
Arkham Knight: "You'll never be as tough as me I'll beat you next time, grrrr!"
Riddler: "You'll never be as clever as me I'll outsmart you next time, grrrr!"
Joker: "You're as crazy as me Bats let's kiss, WOOO!"

Then task your scriptwriters to find slightly different ways to repeats these lines over a 15+ hour campaign.

Result: plot.

[Golgo]

I have now finished this gorgeous-looking but bloated and implausible (implausible even for the comic superhero genre) game. Didn't enjoy it half as much as previous Rocksteady Batman games. Far too much tank combat and repetition of everything.

[QualityChimp]

I've kind of enjoyed reading your posts like the breakdown of a relationship, [MENTION=3687]Golgo[/MENTION].

It's like you started dating a girl for her looks but you got to realise that looks aren't everything and she's not as fun as your exes!

[Golgo]

^ Hehe! That encapsulates the experience perfectly, actually!