Batman: Arkham City for Xbox 360 Review

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Batman: Arkham Asylum was outstanding; its sequel Batman Arkham City is quite simply one of the greatest video games ever conceived. It combines a great character and villain with beautiful graphics, a good story and exciting game play, creating a genuinely unique gaming experience.

Synopsis and Premise: In Batman: Arkham City a section of Gotham has basically been turned into a giant prison for the inmates of Arkham Asylum who can prowl the streets but not leave. In the beginning of the game Bruce Wayne is kidnapped and dragged into Arkham City by Hugo Strange who seems to have masterminded the city's creation. The super villains contained in the city are attacking and killing each other and Batman has to find out what is at the bottom of this.

Production Values: The production values for Batman: Arkham City are pretty much in a class by themselves. They do a better job of bringing the Batman and his world to life than almost any other game, cartoon or film with the possible exception of the Christopher Nolan Batman films. Kevin Conroy reprises his role as Batman and Mark Hamill returns as the Joker (he has likely now become as famous for playing the Joker in cartoons and video games as he is for playing Luke Skywalker). All of the villains in the game look as sick and twisted as they ever have in the movies or the comics. Gotham City is remarkably well detailed with its gothic architecture and dark nightscapes. Even the musical score is stunningly appropriate for the game. My only complaint here is that there are so many villains in the game that not all of their roles and characters are fully developed. But this is a minor complaint given the scope and purpose of the game.

Gameplay: Batman's main objective in this game is difficult and there are many side quests in the form of challenges left by the Riddler that will likely occupy gamers for a long time. You can spend hours looking for tiny and relatively meaningless trophies. Solving quests and defeating opponents earns you experience points. It is not too difficult to accumulate points as you move through Arkham City. As you accumulate points you can add or upgrade Batman's weapons and gadgets.

The controls are somewhat complicated and I am still getting used to all of the new things that Batman can do. Like in Arkham Asylum, one button strikes, one button jumps and one button counters. But there are also a large variety of multipliers and combos that enable Batman to do an impressive and fun array of combat maneuvers.

In Arkham City Batman gets a terrific array of new toys such as smoke pellets that enable him to sneak away from opponents, ice grenades and a new version of the cryptographic sequencer. Some of Batman's toys from Arkham Asylum have also been improved and can do more. The line launcher has new a new feature that allows Batman to flip and change directions. Moreover, players can now use the grappling gun when Batman is gliding enabling him to get higher up in the Gotham skyline. There is a way to use almost all of these weapons during fights. Again, players have to learn how to use some of these features but once they do they will find that Batman is capable of an astonishing range of motion.

Batman: Arkham City also allows gamers to play as Catwoman who has her own separate storyline. She has her own weapons and moves and fights quite differently from Batman. She feels lighter and more agile than Batman but not as strong or powerful.

I have only one caveat about this game and that is that it is definitely not meant for the inexperienced game player. The game often requires you to produce a particular gadget or weapon to deal with a specific situation or defeat a particular foe. And as you play along it becomes harder and harder to keep track of everything that you have accumulated. Sometimes the game gives you a reminder or clue about what to use. But I think the complexity of Batman's mission and his equipment might be a bit frustrating to a new or relatively inexperienced gamer.

Conclusion: Rocksteady has created an expansive and challenging game with Batman Arkham City. It sets a new standard for superhero games and single player games. If you play it for a little while you will almost feel like Batman.

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Im gonna keep this review short since my fellow reviewers above me have said about everything. I love this game, it is everything Arkham Asylum had and more. I do want to stress the importance of installing the Catwoman DLC before you start playing as her parts are intertwined with the Batman Gameplay from the beginning. Its not like you beat Batman's story then install her DLC and play it seperately. Other than that the Setting is Dark yet inviting. The combat is flawless and super addicting, and there are TONZ of side missions and riddler trophies to be found. Batman fanatic or not, anyone could find something from this game to have a blast with! Pick it up!

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Alright, I received my game early this morning and just finished a roughly six hour session. In that amount of time you would think I accomplished some type of milestones, but truthfully most of that time was spent just running around exploring the city and beating up some random thugs. I didn't realize how much fun I would have in this game just grappling around rooftops, swooping down and taking out a gang of henchman over and over again. If you've played Arkham Asylum, you'll feel right at home with the combat system and it's still fun as ever making Batman take out a group of 10 or so thugs by himself. The inclusion of Catwoman is a nice addition, and she's just as fun to play with as the bat himself. The opening credits scenes are fantastically done setting you up for the epic time ahead. Voice acting is, of course, very well done. Characters look great, the overall city looks great, and so far the story is definitely keeping me interested. The only complaint I have for this is that so far, and it doesn't look like it's going to come to be, is that you still can't drive the batmobile. Also, I would've liked to have been able to have a small part of the story playing as Robin & Nightwing like they did with Catwoman since they're usable in the challenge maps. But, overall i'm very happy that I bought this game. I played through Asylum 3 times, and i'm sure this one will get multiple playthroughs as well. Bottom line: If you enjoyed Arkham Asylum, you will enjoy Arkham City, because it attempts to expand on it in every way possible and succeeds in doing so.

Honest reviews on Batman: Arkham City for Xbox 360

When I originally started playing Batman Arkham City, I thought it was one of the most entertaining and fun games I'd ever played, but the people at Rocksteady really outdid themselves with Arkham City. The storylines in both are very entertaining and keep you into the game, but the gameplay in Arkham City is so much more exciting and expansive...it blew my mind!!

Granted I am a Batman fan, but I think this is a great game for anyone. The extras and DLC's for this game are also above and beyond any game I've played. Being able to play as Nightwing, Robin, and Catwoman as well as Batman kept me playing even after i beat the game.

A great game for anyone!

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This is honestly one of the best games I have ever played. It's a little like the old Spiderman games, but 1000 times better. If Rockstar studios made a GTA with the main character as Batman, this would be it. The combat system is dynamic, the movement is fluid, the graphics are gorgeous, and the story is unparalleled. Is there anything else I need to say for you to buy this game? If you are on the fence, it is a must buy and is in contention for game of the year. This game is everything one could have dreamed it to be.