27.10.2013

I loved both of the previous Batman games, and Arkham City provided a significant step up in terms of both quality and variety over Arkham Asylum. Does the latest installment, Arkham Origins, keep up the pace though?First of all its a great idea for a game. Origins is set back near the beginning of Batmans career, in only his second year of crime fighting, therefore he's meeting alot of allies and enemies for the first time in this game. Corrupt Police Commissioner Loeb is still in charge of the city, Jim Gordon is a relatively young man yet to assume the mantel of authority, Batman is still a raw, inexperienced hero and is still something of an enigma around the city - many do not believe he exists,others think stories of his exploits are exagerrated, the Police do not yet trust him and some people even believe the legend of a giant bat monster stalking the streets!The storyline centres primarily around a bounty of $50 million put on Batman which has enticed some of the worlds greatest assassins to try and claim it, Deathstroke, Electrocutioner, Deadshot, Copperhead and Bane amongst them. This occurs in Gotham on Christmas Eve which is when the hit must take place. Batman, being aware that the villains will likely cause civillian casualties if he just lay low and let the day pass, decides to meet the threat head on. There are plenty of sub-plots along the way, which involve confronting other enemies such as The Riddler, Joker, Anarky and Penguin - many of whom are only just establishing their criminal careers.So whats new? Well theres some new gadgets, including shock-gauntlets which will allow you to break through the guard of pretty much any enemy, and some subtle changes to some of the older gadgets. Theres new enemies, including new 'brute' henchman types and henchmen wearing body armour. You have the batwing availible, which cannot be piloted directly but can provide quick-travel to locations you have unlocked, and you can return to and utilise the batcave (this is where training is accessed). Also, as anticipated, you can run, climb, glide and zip-line around a much larger section of Gotham City than that which was cordoned off in the last game. There is also the opportunity to assist the local Police by responding to calls for assistance, rescuing people from muggers, foiling ATM robberies, saving Police officers etc.Theres alot thats old here too. The same tried and tested 360 degree combat system that allows you to battle a dozen plus villains - striking, countering, deploying gadgets, and moving seemlessly through them as only Batman could - is still used faithfully here and never gets tiresome. Detective mode also makes a return, although with some new features that not only allow you to examine crime scenes but also reconstruct and replay them in order to discover more clues. As before there are plenty of challenge maps availible, Riddler challenges and other easter eggs that can be found around the city.So why no five star review?First of all this game wasnt produced by Rocksteady who made the two previous games and to be frank it shows - only a tiny amount, but enough to be something of an annoyance. Kevin Conroy and Mark Hammill who have provided the voice talent for Batman and Joker respectively as far back as the late 80's/early 90's animated series, as well as providing the voices in the two previous games, are not used here (I can only speculate that this was some kind of legal issue), and whilst the new talent does an almost perfect job of filling in for these two, its exactly that - *almost* perfect - and it just lacks that edge of authenticity. Its kind of like losing two familiar friends, or like when the network replaces the actor who plays your favourite TV character in a show.Then theres the city. Really Gotham City should be the star of the show, but despite the fact that you have an impressive chunk of it to navigate around, its all just kind of samey. You can only walk along so many railings, climb so many chimneys and dive off so many bridges before it all becomes a little bit boring. The city isnt interactive at all and theres literally *nothing* to do around it that makes it interesting once you get fed up of all the jumping, swooshing and zipping. Very few of the buildings can be entered, and those that can are usually dependent upon you being at a certain point of the game before you do. What I wouldnt have given for the ability to be able to walk into a local dive bar and beat up the occupants, or walk into a bank to bust up a robbery! In addition there are lots of buildings that look like they can be scaled or bypassed but cannot, and you frequently come up against invisible 'barriers' preventing you from going further with no obvious explanation. Its pretty annoying.Also, its Christmas Eve yet theres not a single soul about other than sporadically spaced gangs of thugs! The story tries to explain this away with various radio broadcasts about it being the coldest day for years and advising citizens to stay indoors, but hell, no one listens to that in real life so why would they in Gotham?I have heard many complaints of bugs in the game and have also found the game to be very glitchy. My game froze three times in the first couple of hours of playing, forcing me to turn the console off and reload. It performed a little better after installing the game and running it off the hard drive, but it still continued to freeze or crash on occasion.I feel like I'm being a little harsh to Arkham Origins, but in truth theres not enough new here, whats old is just (only just) getting a little tired and boring, and theres so much more that could have been done that wasnt. Its still a hugely entertaining game in small doses, and the story does just enough to keep you playing, but I think weve reached the end of the road with this installment and I sincerely hope for a new direction should another sequal be planned.

17.9.2015

This third installment of the popular `Arkham' trilogy of Batman games was handled by a different studio from the previous two games, but uses the same familiar template of a vast open-world environment and its brutal, combat-based fighting system. Despite being the final part of the trilogy, the game actually takes place five years before the events of Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, acting as a prequel and origin story.As with the earlier games, there is a strict reverence for the original source material with an abundance of characters, major and minor, adapted from the comic books. This particular storyline makes use of a range of third-tier Batman villains, such as Firefly, Shiva,Bird and Black Mask. However, old favourites such as Bane, The Riddler and The Penguin also return, looking remarkably younger and inexperienced.Fans of the original comics will recognise subtle references to iconic Batman stories, such as Frank Miller's Year One and Jeph Loeb's The Long Halloween. With its Christmas setting, there's even an element of Batman Returns to the atmosphere of the game. As well as remaining true to the comics, the game also helps build up the `Arkham' video-game universe, by depicting the introduction of the Joker into Batman's world.The first time we meet the Joker, there's a Heath Ledger-esque edge to him as we see a more youthful and rebellious side to his character, although he seems more focused and efficient than his later incarnations which appears throughout Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, respectively, but this could be due to his overpowering obsession with the Batman. The game manages to continue to build upon its brilliant and complex depiction of the Batman/Joker relationship, even if Mark Hamill himself isn't present as the clown prince of crime.While the game doesn't make the same advances in its single-player campaign that were made between Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, it does offer an interesting experiment in the form of a multiplayer mode, which allows players to assume the role of either Bane or the Joker's henchmen whilst being hunted by Batman or Robin. This is a really interesting blend of a standard death-match game, as well as the Invisible Predator challenges from the single-player game, and helps create a `hide and seek' atmosphere akin to Assassin's Creed and Splinter Cell's multiplayer modes.Other minor upgrades to the game's format include more expansive challenges and collectibles, as well as a flexible 'leveling up' tree, allowing players to exert a greater degree of strategy over what they upgrade, allowing them to improve the odds on either combat or predator encounters by unlocking new gadgets and techniques. One improvement which made the game easier for me was the electric shock glove upgrade midway through the game, which makes the tricky job of attaining high combo counts much easier than before.Graphics - The games remain on par with the previous games in the series, with many of the same characters and locations reappearing, although the Christmas setting allows for better weather effects and snow-covered rooftops amidst the luminous glare of Gotham's neon lights.Gameplay - The core gameplay mechanics remain unchanged, although there's still a focus on maintaining high combo counts with achievements and unlockables favoured to those dexterous button-bashers who can achieve 50x combos. While the introduction of the electric shock gloves helps to alleviate the difficulty of this particular area, it can still be tricky to engineer the desired `free flow' attacks required to unlock certain challenges.Longevity - There is plenty here for gamers to enjoy with a huge variety of content ranging from unlockables in the campaign, challenge maps (combat and predator) and a whole multiplayer section. There are also unlockables in the single-player mode which transfer over to the online multiplayer, which is a nice incentive to play through both modes.Overall, this installment in the Batman: Arkham franchise manages to keep the same razor-sharp blend of exploration, combat and adventure from the previous games in the series, with a few new tricks that accentuate the existing format. It does feel a tad short in terms of the actual core plot, but this brevity is balanced out by the hundreds of unlockables and hefty multiplayer mode. Fans of the previous games will love this, and if you've never played a Batman: Arkham game before, be prepared for a fantastic narrative experience that feels just as cinematic as Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy.

2.3.2014

You play as Batman, younger and much less refined in the world of crime fighting. It's Christmas Eve, Black Mask has put quite the bounty upon your head, attracting a number of super villains to take you down. The GCPD struggle to contain the situation and put Gotham under lockdown. The villainous assassins are running riot and it's up to the dark knight to restore order.The story is very well written, establishing a solid beginning for Batman. The relationship between Alfred and Bruce Wayne becomes the heartbeat of the story and how the two grow closer together in their fight to protect Gotham.The assassins are strongly integrated into a variety of sub-plots; leaving the Joker to rise as an unforgettable oppressive force upon Batman.G R A P H I C S & S O U N DGotham City is split into a number of districts, each portraying an individual style and its own colourful outlook. A great deal of verticality has been thrown into Gotham, giving players greater height to work with when scurrying about the city. The gothic inspired design is very reminiscent of the Tim Burton movies.Batman's character model is as sharp as ever, displaying plenty of damage detailing as the night draws on. Animations are far superior to those of the previous games, especially during free-fall and caped gliding moments. As the story progresses, Gotham also begins to change and many of its structures take damage from game related events. Buildings tumble, bridge supports collapse and generally all hell breaks loose. The voice acting talents of Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill are sorely missed, but its Troy Baker's take on the Joker that truly outclasses anyone else.There are some severe low-res textures scattered about the city, most notably upon large illuminated signs and rooftop objects. Many of these can be spotted from up close or even at a reasonable distance away.G A M E P L A YThe combat system remains untouched from the previous games, but some new takedown options inject further life into confrontations. It's still as fun as ever to take on loads of enemies simultaneously, bringing to light new ways to keep combos going and clearing groups of enemies much quicker. The new take downs allow Batman to finish multiple enemies with batarang throws and use stun attacks to provide some breathing room. The shock gloves are the highlight of the experience, transforming Batman's hands into fists of lightning. Equip these babies and the combo counter will explode through the roof! Plenty of upgrades and fancy gadgets can be unlocked also.Many gadgets can also be used during combat to keep enemies on the back foot. Enemies still pose a threat no matter how big or small they are. The martial artist is a trickier proposition before Batman, not only does he have fancy karate moves, but he can also counter Batman's attacks. Gangs roam the streets in packs, some carry firearms, others beef up with armour so they can take a greater beating. Using Detective Mode can keep you one step ahead of the game, especially when entering heavily guarded areas. The silent approach is still your best friend. The city is yours to protect, keeping the grapple gun close at hand consistently gives you that aerial boost to get about easier.The main story missions will have you encountering each of the deadly assassins. Many result in lengthy boss battles, whereas other encounters become integrated into predator gameplay sequences. The predator sequences are still challenging affairs, but enemies are for more alert and expectant of your presence. Away from these missions there is plenty to get up to in Gotham: help stop petty crimes, track down convicts, solve riddler puzzles and solve crime scene investigations.The formula may all seem a little too familiar, and it's the combat that suffers in terms of evolution. The crime scene investigations are interesting, but they hold the player's hand and require no skill to overcome.O V E R A L LArkham Origins is by no means a bad game, but the core mechanics seemed to have become frozen in time since the previous title. The story is engrossing, bringing forth interesting opposition for Batman. The graphics and presentation paint a vivid Gotham City. The gameplay is tried and tested, sticking close to familiar concepts yet executing them well.

8.11.2013

My partner and I are huge fans of this series of games and were rurally looking forward to the release of this new chapter. We were a bit hesitant about ordering this latest edition because of the change over in developers. Rocksteady had made the first two such beautiful and involving games. When we learned that the title had been handed over to someone else, we feared that the series would go the same way as the Halo series. For those that are unfamiliar, the Halo games have been taken out of the safe and skilled hands of Bungee and given to some "new" developer who made the game total crap that we finished in less than 24 hours.Not what you ant form a £30+ game.Meanwhile back in Gotham I'm happy to report that the new developers had made the scenery of the new Gotham with it's massive sprawling maps just as beautifully rich in is detail and squalor every bit as good if not better than the preceding games. The cinematic scale and ambition of the cutscenes are incredible. The plot was equally rich, gripping and engaging despite being a prequel to those that have gone before (and lets face it prequels rarely offer anything new to a story and are usually pail cash-ins on the originals. The new Star Wars films. Need I say more?)This however is where the good news ends. The game itself crashes continually. Seriously annoying especially if you had just completed a major chunk of plot and hadn't either manually or auto saved. every time we played it the thing would crash. Our record was 5 times in one evening. it's just not what you expect from an item which has had almost as much wealth and backing as Bruce Wane himself. Seriously guys sort it the ***k out! The game was woefully inadequately tested before release. At least Rcoksteady had the decency to delay release till they had debugged their versions.This just became so painful to play as you never quite knew if you'd make it to the end of what you were doing before it crashed. It totally ruined the game which is a real shame as when alls said and done it was actually a really good game in the end but Oh My GOD did it try your patients. We looked online to find out if others were having issues too and it seems that, in the catalogues of coding cockups, we were getting off lightly on the 360 platform. The PC version was catastrophically worse.My advice would be don't buy this game…. yet, especially if it's intended as a gift for a younger gamer. There way well be tears when an afternoons work is suddenly lost due to sloppy finishing from the games architects. Wait a while and let the developers finish what they clearly didn't have the time to do before the game was released. Let them get the patches to fix all the issues this game has. If the developers somehow wind up reading this, GET BUSY AND SORT IT OUT!!! There are hundreds of flaws that are spoiling an otherwise great game so sort them out.It's a real shame. I'll look forward to playing this again in 6 months or so when they have fixed it but that first sense of wonder at he game's world will be lost. Till then it'll just gather dust like a broken toy.

1.11.2013

I got 'Arkham Origins' on Friday, release day, safe to say pre-ordered on the back of really enjoying the 'Asylum/City' games. However the reviews did worry me but I kept expectations minimal due to them and to see for myself.Basically, it is like 'Arkham City' with a new map and skins. Gotham is thankfully larger and more of a basic city rather than a prison,and many locations and settings are still the same, but if you play in a city like Gotham over years they aren't going to change much, really!The fight system is the same, as are the controls, the HUDs, the use of gadgets and rapelling/gliding around the rooftops. It's not a bad thing, because from playing previous games,you feel right at home with Batman once more and can control him from the start without feeling it's changed much.It's the story that is obviously the seller here and tells the early tale of Bruce Wayne/Batman only 2 years into his crime fighting career which makes for a refreshing play as the Dark Knight due to the fact the police and criminals see him as a vigilante, and his established name hasn't really been made yet so you can get chased by both sides of the law if you're not careful.It also plays with Batman taking actions that are fulled more by vengeance against crime, and not a clear motivation by justice as yet, so he's still quite short-tempered and rash in what he does, which again leads to some nice story developments as you play the "Batman Begins"-style character.It's a very simple story of spending Christmas chasing down one master criminal, Black Mask, while contending with 8 assassins out to collect a bounty on your head and discovering webs of corruption and smoke-and-mirror tactics by the Rogues Gallery of Villains as you do. Solve crimes, assist the police in take-downs, seek out city wide bomb threats and hacker thefts are some of the sub-missions you can do that make up a good 50% of the completed gameplay once the main story is done, much like the earlier games. So plenty of play value to be had.If you enjoyed the previous games than this is not going to dissapoint. It's a fresh story with new characters, new gadgets and new ways of working as Batman himself. It doesn't offer much in terms of game development, and I am sure many people will be annoyed at that fact, but others may just want to continue the "ain't broke don't fix it" game play of earlier games and take a new adventure in comfortable, entertaining surroundings.Great visuals, a decent soudntrack and stellar voice-acting help flesh out the game and give Gotham a nice look and feel as you smash and swoop your way to learning what it really means to be Batman.But after 'Origins', I feel the Arkham series can rest a while until a new direction can be taken, rather than give us more of the same over and over again. As 'Assassins Creed 4' has proved with great reviews and a big switch from previous games under the same title, just give Batman time to breathe again and wait until we need him back on a console, not just because we want him.

1.11.2013

Batman: Arkham Origins is the 3rd entry in the 'Arkham' Series which began with 'Asylum', a stunning recreation of the Batman universe set within the confines of the notorious 'Arkham Asylum', it featured the returning voice talents of Kevin Conway and Mark Hamill (as Batman and the Joker) from the TAS and writer Paul Dini. The story was magnificent, the characterization spot on and the mixture of freeflow combat and stealth grased the nature of Batman himself. The 2nd entry, 'Arkham City' improved on every aspect moving the story into an open-world setting, increasing the cast of villains and heroes and improving on every other aspect from combat to length. Which brings us to 'Arkham Origins'

2.6.2015

Now yes.. its not as good as Arkham Asylum or Arkham City and its glitches did have me screaming at the TV like a 9 year old COD player, but it is still a great game and I did love it. It doesn't really feel like part of the arkhamverse as despite being a Prequel Batman is better equipped and better suited that he is in Arkham Asylum which disappointed me a bit, i wanted a Year One Batman in pyjamas running about instead of Arkham Light (Yes a play on Arkham Knight) Batman running about looking cooler than he did in previous games. The writing also felt a little sloppy and predictable, with nearly all the villains identifying themselves in the first part of the game and then the unsurprising

30.12.2013

As the first game in the Arkham series not developed by Rocksteady: Arkham Origins had a lot to live up to, with its predecessors being critically acclaimed. So could a new developer live up to the Rocksteady's standards.Firstly, the story of this game is (in my opinion) the best of the series. While the plot twist halfway through is slightly annoying and (Spoilers: Makes Joker the main focus once again) it doesn't destroy the plot. While Arkham city's plot felt stretched to include as many villains as possible, the amount of villains in Arkham Origins feels justified, and each villain is included for a reason. The story addresses classic Batman themes such as Batman No-Kill rule as well as how he prefers to work alone.

18.1.2015

Ok what is people's beef with this game? I understood it at the begining with all the bugs but now all the glitches have been ironed out so what's the problem? Since this was patched i have not experienced one glitch or crash. No this game isn't as great as Arkham city, but it was never meant to be. Why mess with a winning formula? People would have complained if warner bros had changed it up, this was just supposed to the same great gameplay with a new story. That's what this game is to me, it's an unpolished arkham city. Same great gameplay, same great fight mechanics, same graphics. This game truly is an origin story and the developers have tried hard to make Batman seem inexperienced and unrefined.

22.4.2016

‘Arkham Origins’ is a prequel to the videogame ‘Arkham Asylum’, and the story takes place about 5 years prior to the events of that latter game. It forms part of the wider ‘Arkham’ universe – although is made by a different studio. In many respects, ‘Origins’ is similar in layout, design and objective to the other games in this series – although it adds a couple of new things, and offers an original storyline. Overall, if you have enjoyed the other entries in this series, you’ll probably like ‘Origins’.The game allows you to play as Batman, from a third-person perspective (‘over-the-shoulder’) and you exist in a large open-world environment within Gotham City.

9.11.2013

I am a big fan or the Arkham series of games so was really looking forward to playing this, so far I have not been disappointed. I notice a lot of reviews on here and the collectors edition too, complain of the game crashing ALOT. I am happy to say that although I am only 16% done it has 'touch wood' not crashed on me at all, maybe this was down to the update that was available when I first put the game in who knows but I have had no problem with crashing so far.I have to say I love love love the cut scenes :-) so far they have been pretty awesome, I have always loved the games for their graphic detail and this one is no different in my opinion.

31.10.2013

The game may use the same mechanics as Arkham City and safely change very little but if you are never playing the game for the mechanics alone, The shock gloves may make combat a little too easy but they are very useful when carrying out Enigma challenges, which are as you could probably guess the replacement to the Riddler trophies, which actually seem a little bit easy when compared to those in Arkham City but are still fun as hell. The story is fantastic as a DC fan from a young age, it is great to see Deathstroke The terminator get some spotlight, even if it is a rather short appearance and Firefly final makes it into a Batman Game and the change to Copperhead is very interesting and she's provides a great Scarecrow-esque challenge.

29.11.2013

Maybe I'm the only one in the world who didn't know Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate was a "side-ways game". While the game is still quite good, I wish it would be a basic third person game setup like all the other Batman games. I do like the attempt to make it an open style game. There are multiple locations which you choose on a map that you need to visit and revisit as you gain new skills or tools to progress further in that area. This aspect of the game makes things more interesting and adds time to the game play. This Batman game, like the past ones has Detective Mode. What's unique about playing this on the Vita is that when in Detective Mode you can touch the screen and create a visual bubble which you can move around the room you are in to find hidden items and doorways.

1.3.2014

yup. they keep getting better and better the WB Batman games. Trying new stuff. new weapons. new enemies. a young batman learns fast that he will need more than just the means to fight injustice in this doomed crusade to rid Gotham of crime and evil.the additions of Alfred actually taking part in on screen dialogue and seeing a younger Jim Gordon and his curious daughter Barbara + a whole host of other criminals is fresh turnaround. The young Joker especially reminds of a near perfect blend of Jack Nicholson (BATMAN 1989) and Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight 2008). I was blown away by the story and the Map is large. the world is larger. you see parts of Gotham you did not see in the 1st two games.

12.12.2013

Lets start by saying that I like this game. The graphics and sound are atmospheric and immersive and it has the dark and almost melancholy feel that is befitting of a true batman game. Having played Arkham City and Arkham Asylum on the PS3, this was a must have for the vita. The cut-scenes are like living comics and will appeal to fans of the comics.The only down-side that I feel that prevents it from getting a five star rating is the lack of 3D exploration that you get on the PS3. On the PS3, you have the feeling that you can go just about anywhere. Here on the Vita, you have scrolling left and right and the use of action buttons to either jump into air-ducts or bat-rope up.

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