Batman: Arkham Origins & Origins Blackgate

[Gamerforlife]

I think Arkham Asylum definitely had good achievements. The Riddler trophies had a nice metroid element to them. The only annoying achievements were the combat challenge room ones, but that's not due to the achievements themselves, just due to some of those rooms being harder than necessary. I think Arkham City went overboard on content though. Too many challenge rooms due to all the playable characters and the unnecessary campaign challenge rooms as well. Plus, they loaded the game up with far more Riddler trophies then necessary. It's not that they weren't fun to acquire, there was just too many.

Interestingly, the reviews for Arkham Origins are mostly lukewarm on the multi-player. So not only was it unnecessary, but apparently the devs didn't even do a great job with it. Some of the more recent reviews for this game are harsh, fives and sixes. Also, I'm reading complaints around the net about freezes, bugs, and glitches. Some people are even saying they changed the core combat mechanics.

Sad thing is, part of me still wants to play it just because I'm such a big Batman fan, but it seems like these devs dropped the ball.

I'll say this much though, I saw a boss fight with Deathstroke that actually looked pretty damn cool

[emwearz]

I have been playing it on Steam., if you like the series, you know what you are in for really.

Is it as good as Arkham City, so far, no. Is it a fun game that I am enjoying playing, so far, yes.

The PC version has its fair share of bugs, hopefully the squash them shortly.

They have also tightened their grips with Hybrid Physx, the first two, it worked fine. First game I have played that won't allow me to enable Physx using Hybrid.

[SpaceBooger]

I have been playing it on Steam., if you like the series, you know what you are in for really.

Is it as good as Arkham City, so far, no. Is it a fun game that I am enjoying playing, so far, yes.

The PC version has its fair share of bugs, hopefully the squash them shortly.

They have also tightened their grips with Hybrid Physx, the first two, it worked fine. First game I have played that won't allow me to enable Physx using Hybrid.

Is it on par with Asylum in your opinion?

I like Asylum better. I'm not a fan of the open world/sandbox games, I like the metroidvania feel of AA better.

[Gamerforlife]

Just started Blackgate, and already I can tell you that they screwed up combat. On the surface, it looks the same as Asylum and City, but it's more stiff and the enemy AI is more random. Counters don't always register and sometimes Batman seems frozen in place for a few seconds for no apparent reason. This is coming from someone who mastered all the combat challenge rooms in Asylum and City

Grrrrr

[RyaNtheSlayA]

Just started Blackgate, and already I can tell you that they screwed up combat. On the surface, it looks the same as Asylum and City, but it's more stiff and the enemy AI is more random. Counters don't always register and sometimes Batman seems frozen in place for a few seconds for no apparent reason. This is coming from someone who mastered all the combat challenge rooms in Asylum and City

Grrrrr

I heard bad things about it. I don't think I've seen a review featured anywhere.

Are you on Vita or 3DS?

[Gamerforlife]

Just started Blackgate, and already I can tell you that they screwed up combat. On the surface, it looks the same as Asylum and City, but it's more stiff and the enemy AI is more random. Counters don't always register and sometimes Batman seems frozen in place for a few seconds for no apparent reason. This is coming from someone who mastered all the combat challenge rooms in Asylum and City

Grrrrr

I heard bad things about it. I don't think I've seen a review featured anywhere.

Are you on Vita or 3DS?

I'm on Vita. The combat is really irritating me. They changed the core mechanics and it just feels all wrong now. For example, enemies can now attack you mid-counter, forcing you to counter attack...while you're in the middle of a counter attack. It's so stupid. The AI drives me nuts too. In Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, enemies would constantly attack so you could get into a rhythm of countering incoming attacks. In Blackgate, enemies will just randomly stand around staring at you and doing nothing which really throws you off when you instinctualy hit the counter button expecting an attack that never comes, and thus kill your combo. Sometimes too, an enemy will be across the screen and you try to get Batman to lunge towards him and attack him and it's like the game's targeting system is just oblivious so Batman simply throws a punch in front of him hitting nothing. Combat just feels sloppy

Also, the vault over move which had as much priority as a counter attack in previous games, seems to have less reliable priority now as I've actually been hit while performing hit. It's like the designers just watched a video of some combat from previous games without actually playing them and understanding how the combat works

I've heard some people say that they screwed up the combat mechanics for the main console game too

[Gamerforlife]

The 2d completely screws up combat too. You just knocked out everyone and a new guy shows up and you try to hit him to continue your combo, but Batman doesn't hit him because the guy is still in the foreground and not on the same plane as you yet.

God, it's so awful.

[Ack]

The RPS review of the PC version of Origins is pretty telling:

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013/10 ... m-origins/

Basically they say that while the game is very similar to its predecessors, it obviously lacks the soul and grandiosity that made the games work.

[Gamerforlife]

The RPS review of the PC version of Origins is pretty telling:

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013/10 ... m-origins/

Basically they say that while the game is very similar to its predecessors, it obviously lacks the soul and grandiosity that made the games work.

Yeah, it seems clear that both of the new devs just don't get it. I played a little bit of Origins last night and right off the bat I questioned the absurdity of having a grading system for combat. Now, whenever you beat up a group of thugs a score tallies up at the top of the screen and you're given a letter ranking. Do they not realize that one of the reasons people loved the last two games is because they made them feel like they really were Batman? If a player has just cleared the room of a dozen thugs and feels like a bad ass super hero, what happens when a score tallies up and gives that player a letter ranking of C, or even a B? Do you think that player still feels like he's the bad ass Batman now that he's been judged and graded and given a mediocre grade by the game? No, probably not.

That's just common sense. If I was in a room with the designers I would have shot down that idea the minute it was suggested. For players that actually want to be graded and pressured to play better, that's what challenge rooms are for you moronic developers.

That whole not feeling like you're really Batman thing plagues Blackgate too. You know that awesome feeling you got in previous Batman games when a group of guards found the bodies of their friends that you've stealthily taken out and suddenly fear and panic struck everyone in the room? That never happens in Blackgate. You never feel like you're instilling terror in people. You don't feel like you're Batman. Even Mark of the Ninja was smart enough to cop this mechanic. You could terrorize people in that game too, instilling fear of the mysterious ninja in your foes, and that's what Batman really is, a scary ninja.

God, please bring Rocksteady back to this franchise

[AppleQueso]

Wait, they added a grading system? What do they think this is, Devil May Cry? Totally wrong game for that.

I was kinda on the fence when they announced this game without Rocksteady, and based on the lukewarm reception I'm seeing all over the place online I think I can safely avoid this one.