Hello everyone.
Welcome to another review.
Let me address the elephant in the room. This game has many mixed reviews. Some say this game is a great addition to the Arkham series, some however do not like it and think it's a stain on the otherwise polished design of the Arkham series.
I love this series to death. However, the Arkham fan that I am will be kept at bay. I will knock this game down a few pegs.
Story
It's Christmas Eve in Gotham City. Black Mask has decided to start an operation in order to kill The Batman. He calls in 8 assassins from across the globe to see which one will take down The Bat first. Batman decides to take it upon himself to stop Black Mask and all 8 assassins, so that no innocents are harmed in the process of hunting Batman.
It's a good story for an Arkham game. It takes it's sweet time building up twists and foreshadowing character reveals. However, do not let that 'Origins' title of the game confuse you. The story is not an origins story of Arkham Asylum nor is it an origin story of Batman. At the time we come into the story, Batman has been around in Gotham for two years.
Although, you could argue that the story is an origins story between the most iconic rivalry between a hero and villain in comic book history.
Presentation
The graphical presentation of Arkham Origins is good. It's not exactly the greatest design I've seen in a video game. The environments you explore are mostly decorated with Christmas lights and decorum. They don't pop out of the mostly gray environment.
There's nothing about the graphic design that is spectacular but you won't care because Arkham games has been all about the gameplay.
Gameplay
Arkham Origins brings what made everything good about City into the game. There are some aspects of the game that have been tweaked, but not to many to make a significant difference.
You're still pulling off the same melee combos, you're still gliding through the city the same way you did in Arkham City and you're still silently picking off henchman the same way you did in City. The only difference being the gadgets you have at your disposal to take out the baddies you come across in the game.
There are subtle differences in the game but not enough that will make Origins stand out from City in terms of gameplay design. Detective Mode is not only used to identify enemies or scan crime scenes. Detective Mode is used to reconstruct crime scenes so you can rewind and fast forward through digital reconstructions of crime scenes to get a better idea of what happened at the scene and who was at the scene of the crime.
Side missions return in Arkham Origins. Like the side quests in City you can complete these missions to unlock new gadgets or gadget upgrades, as well as concept art.Certain side quests in the game you don't only unlock challenge maps for Brawling and Silent Predator challenges you can also unlock equipment for multiplayer.
Multiplayer
I would advise you avoid this aspect of Arkham Origins.
The Verdict
Arkham Origins is comprised of everything that made Arkham City good.
However, it doesn't make many changes or differences into the Arkham formula that will make the game stand out from the other two games.
You're roaming throughout Gotham picking up side missions taking on super villains and goons as you did in City.
For Arkham fans, the game is still more Batman. If you loved the first two games you will love Arkham Origins.
Just like how Bioshock 2 was more Bioshock.
I give Arkham Origins a 7 out of 10.
Welcome to another review.
Let me address the elephant in the room. This game has many mixed reviews. Some say this game is a great addition to the Arkham series, some however do not like it and think it's a stain on the otherwise polished design of the Arkham series.
I love this series to death. However, the Arkham fan that I am will be kept at bay. I will knock this game down a few pegs.
Story
It's Christmas Eve in Gotham City. Black Mask has decided to start an operation in order to kill The Batman. He calls in 8 assassins from across the globe to see which one will take down The Bat first. Batman decides to take it upon himself to stop Black Mask and all 8 assassins, so that no innocents are harmed in the process of hunting Batman.
It's a good story for an Arkham game. It takes it's sweet time building up twists and foreshadowing character reveals. However, do not let that 'Origins' title of the game confuse you. The story is not an origins story of Arkham Asylum nor is it an origin story of Batman. At the time we come into the story, Batman has been around in Gotham for two years.
Although, you could argue that the story is an origins story between the most iconic rivalry between a hero and villain in comic book history.
Presentation
The graphical presentation of Arkham Origins is good. It's not exactly the greatest design I've seen in a video game. The environments you explore are mostly decorated with Christmas lights and decorum. They don't pop out of the mostly gray environment.
There's nothing about the graphic design that is spectacular but you won't care because Arkham games has been all about the gameplay.
Gameplay
Arkham Origins brings what made everything good about City into the game. There are some aspects of the game that have been tweaked, but not to many to make a significant difference.
You're still pulling off the same melee combos, you're still gliding through the city the same way you did in Arkham City and you're still silently picking off henchman the same way you did in City. The only difference being the gadgets you have at your disposal to take out the baddies you come across in the game.
There are subtle differences in the game but not enough that will make Origins stand out from City in terms of gameplay design. Detective Mode is not only used to identify enemies or scan crime scenes. Detective Mode is used to reconstruct crime scenes so you can rewind and fast forward through digital reconstructions of crime scenes to get a better idea of what happened at the scene and who was at the scene of the crime.
Side missions return in Arkham Origins. Like the side quests in City you can complete these missions to unlock new gadgets or gadget upgrades, as well as concept art.Certain side quests in the game you don't only unlock challenge maps for Brawling and Silent Predator challenges you can also unlock equipment for multiplayer.
Multiplayer
I would advise you avoid this aspect of Arkham Origins.
The Verdict
Arkham Origins is comprised of everything that made Arkham City good.
However, it doesn't make many changes or differences into the Arkham formula that will make the game stand out from the other two games.
You're roaming throughout Gotham picking up side missions taking on super villains and goons as you did in City.
For Arkham fans, the game is still more Batman. If you loved the first two games you will love Arkham Origins.
Just like how Bioshock 2 was more Bioshock.
I give Arkham Origins a 7 out of 10.
Comments
Post a Comment