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Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate Review in Progress

  • Writer: Admin
    Admin
  • May 22, 2016
  • 3 min read

Today, my long awaited copy of Batman: Arkham Origins on the Ps Vita has finally arrived! I have finally completed my Arkham Game Collection, except until Return to Arkham comes along. But the only reason I wasn't motivated enough to pick it up until now, was due to the amount of negative response to it. This wasn't a similar scenario to Arkham Origins on console, since there were already some good reviews, and I already made up my opinion about the game based on gameplay uploaded online. Blockage however got me concerned, and the 7 out of 10, and even lower reviews didn't help the cause. But now I have it, and I have fully played the prologue which acts as a tutorial to the basic gameplay mechanics. Please note that this is not a complete review, and the score I give it is NOT FINAL! But now I do regret something...waiting so long to pick up this fun and amazing game!

I'm not fanboying here, I legitimately enjoyed this game. First is how the graphics actually look surprisingly well done. It certainly looks better than Arkham City Lockdown and the mobile version of Arkham Origins, but it falls short of the graphics of for example, Golden Abyss. Rain looks neat, and the character models have a pretty look to them. However character models for some is a flaw here. The cops or guards and Catwoman look dull, and not very impressive, however this all washes away with Batman's character model. He looks sick, just like the console version, which makes me want to applaud Armature even more.

The next section is the gameplay, how has the amazing Arkham gameplay transferred over to the Vita and 3DS? It did fine. Combat is fast paced and fluid, whilst predator mode still recaptures the sense of being a hawk waiting for its prey. Also the game makes solid use of the Vita's unique features only rivaled by the 3DS. However there is one part that keeps bothering me, and that affects both gameplay and presentation. The 2-D design of the game. This was my biggest concern and in my opinion the most ambitious new feature of the game. It didn't really pay off though. Sure, it may have looked unique from the other Arkham games, but that really isn't a good thing. The linear design, makes combat unresponsive sometimes, making you hitting somebody who doesn't exist. This rarely happened in the console versions, so the fact that the 2-D design made this happen makes me blame it entirely. This game would have been practically perfect if it had a 3-D design, like the Amazing Spiderman, Lego the Hobbit, and even Uncharted Golden Abyss, which was practically a rehash of the Uncharted gameplay and story onto the Vita. Sound familiar?

But overall, Blackgate is still a satisfying experience that will resonate with most Arkham fans. For this in Progress Review, I award Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate on the Ps Vita, an amazing 9.0 out of 10.

Reviews, posts, and Return to Arkham news, will be put on hold for quite a while, as this June, I am visiting China, and Google services don't work there, so I will not be able to view new gameplay, or check out the latest news. My sincere apologies to all the fans of this website.


 
 
 

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