When footage of the game was released, I wasn't impressed. Mainly because it looked pretty much like Arkham City. Then they started releasing cinematic trailers and the quality of that reeled me in. Don't be fooled, because that's pretty much what you're going to get, awesome cut scenes and mediocre formulaic game play that you've already seen and done in two games.
Strengths
- The cinematic scenes are amazing. All of it combined is like practically watching a movie in itself. I would have probably given it a 3 were it not for the cut scenes and story.
- Story is good, adding a new perspective to a Batman we've already known for many years.
- Boss fights are really fun. Deathstroke's fight especially is one of the best boss fights I've ever experienced.
- Side mission rewards such as audio tapes are rewarding enough to merit their tediously trivial tasks.
- Fast travel is a much needed feature in this game.
- Voice acting is great. Roger Craig Smith had some big shoes to fill and pulls it off wonderfully, portraying a younger Batman. And although no one can really match up to Mark Hamill's Joker, Troy Baker did put in a pretty decent effort. Other voices were also great.
Weaknesses
- Fighting and predator missions are pretty much the exact same thing from Arkham City & Arkham Asylum They tried to throw in some new equipments to add depth but failed to overcome how over done and repetitive it is.
- Crime scene investigation is cool the first time around. Nevertheless, Batman's inner monologue and symbols pointing exactly where the next clue is pretty much dumbed down the whole experience making you feel like a machine walking from point A to point B rather than a detective you're supposed to be.
- Although Gotham is meant to be dark to set the mood, the city shows no personality whatsoever. It's practically one brown/grey building after another. Nothing in the city stands out, and they've just doubled the size of it.
- The game shows no progress from it predecessor. Aside from the story and the cut scenes, it just feels like lazy writing. Much like every Assassin's Creed game, they've just repeated the same thing and thrown in some misdirections in the form of equipment, city size and Alfred to make this feel like a whole new game. At least with Assassin's Creed there's a whole new culture involved, new setting and so on.
- Few side missions can be annoying, like getting access to a building. Without spoiling it, for a few tasks they've hidden the access to a certain place you need to get into to disable something. They've made it seem like a puzzle, something that makes you think but it's more of an annoyance than a puzzle. There's no real brain power being used here, you just have to search every corner of the building like an idiot to find the one entry point they've made.
- Another wasted resource is the Gotham Radio Station I think it's called. They've basically created a radio station or two I think and yet you have to stand still to listen to it, pretty much wasting all the effort that went into that because no one is going to stand still and listen to pointless chatter in hopes there may be some reference to a character or event in the Batman universe.
- Speaking of which, I didn't notice any references anywhere in the game. They've taken out the quick scan snap shots, where you basically quick scan an item that belongs to a character or villain. At least that made you feel a little like a detective since you'd actually have to find the related items. Not to mention the references were good often bringing to light characters that weren't in the game.
-Since it is the same place that was in Arkham City, some levels are exactly the same. One side mission takes place in a church and that predator mission is exactly the same as the one in Arkham City.
- With all the beating Batman takes, he is still able to stand straight with not even a bruise on his mouth area. Sure, his armor has seen better days but Bruce is fine.
- The story progress is great, each cut scene as I mentioned earlier is awesome but the climax is somewhat of a let down. May be it's overshadowed by other moments in the game or may be it's just me.
Overall, as a game, it's disappointing but if you enjoy watching a short movie by doing tedious tasks to unlock the next scene, then this game is for you. Die hard Batman fans may get a kick out of it but as a big Batman fan myself, I was pretty much bored out of my wits within the first two hours. The concept was great, the game was a waste.