In 2009 I did not think that Albert Wesker’s 7 minutes quote would apply to my own agency in a completely different IP (That also has a character with the last name Wesker), but the Catwoman DLC for Arkham knight fulfilled that prophecy.
Catwoman’s predator segment is done twice. The first time you need to pickpocket 3 key cards. I was hoping this would be the norm for the entire DLC, as since Catwoman is a thief, logically like she does so in the comics, you would think she wouldn’t want to attract any attention. Of course the game just has to have you knock out all of the guards to progress.
There is for what it is worth fun to be had in this segment. Catwoman’s take down animations are very long so you have to be very strategic in how you go about each guard. You are heavily encouraged to use her caltrops to divide and conquer and the game punishes you if you camp on the ceiling after a take down since the AI will instantly look up to cover every angle they have.
This is where the fun ends, as after this you then solve an incredibly simple puzzle that requires no more than 2 tries due to only having 4 switches which only do 25% damage if you press the wrong one. Then you do what is probably the worst free flow segment in the entire series, with Riddler’s annoying as hell hazards exploiting your magnetized attacks, forcing you to engaging in mashing Y so you don’t go flying into the lasers or electric tiles. I’m not gonna lie, I’m impressed when some games actually live up to the jokes about their combat mechanics, much like how soulsborne fully lives up to the joke that all you do is press R1 and circle, the Catwoman DLC lives up to the joke about Free flow being a Y button whacker.
The fidelity is as strong as always, I never had time to appreciate the details in Catwoman’s costume in the base game, so I enjoyed the cool details like the outline of her underwear in her suit or the subtle jiggle physics on her backside. The toy store gives a twisted sense of dread and conveys the childishness of Arkham’s take on the Riddler.
Though I will be honest I hate the Arkham series take on the Riddler, by the time of Knight he’d been reduced to an unironic caricature of a redditor (There’s a painful line in his side quest where he talks about astroturfing himself on a twitter clone by arguing with his sock accounts), while Riddler is indeed arrogant and pretentious in the comics, he’s still quite smart and far more focused on his goals. His obnoxiousness in this DLC is cranked up to eleven here, as his cadence is no different than a twitter addicted clout chaser imaging a guy and getting mad about it, which Catwoman easily exploits.
The DLC then ends with Catwoman draining Riddlers one bank account cause I guess him being stupid enough to have all his money in one place must have been really funny (it is not), and the game fades to black. It took me seven minutes to finish this, which would not be an issue if the quality was there. But it isn’t for 70% of the playtime.
There is no new music as expected, so you’ll have nothing but bland dark orchestral background noise for the millionth time.
So far this DLC has been the absolute low point for the season pass. It’s nothing more than a cheap poorly/under designed cash grab with one of the worst interpretations of an iconic super villain. If you’re really curious, just watch a play through online and save yourself the trouble, time and money.
5/10.
Catwoman’s predator segment is done twice. The first time you need to pickpocket 3 key cards. I was hoping this would be the norm for the entire DLC, as since Catwoman is a thief, logically like she does so in the comics, you would think she wouldn’t want to attract any attention. Of course the game just has to have you knock out all of the guards to progress.
There is for what it is worth fun to be had in this segment. Catwoman’s take down animations are very long so you have to be very strategic in how you go about each guard. You are heavily encouraged to use her caltrops to divide and conquer and the game punishes you if you camp on the ceiling after a take down since the AI will instantly look up to cover every angle they have.
This is where the fun ends, as after this you then solve an incredibly simple puzzle that requires no more than 2 tries due to only having 4 switches which only do 25% damage if you press the wrong one. Then you do what is probably the worst free flow segment in the entire series, with Riddler’s annoying as hell hazards exploiting your magnetized attacks, forcing you to engaging in mashing Y so you don’t go flying into the lasers or electric tiles. I’m not gonna lie, I’m impressed when some games actually live up to the jokes about their combat mechanics, much like how soulsborne fully lives up to the joke that all you do is press R1 and circle, the Catwoman DLC lives up to the joke about Free flow being a Y button whacker.
The fidelity is as strong as always, I never had time to appreciate the details in Catwoman’s costume in the base game, so I enjoyed the cool details like the outline of her underwear in her suit or the subtle jiggle physics on her backside. The toy store gives a twisted sense of dread and conveys the childishness of Arkham’s take on the Riddler.
Though I will be honest I hate the Arkham series take on the Riddler, by the time of Knight he’d been reduced to an unironic caricature of a redditor (There’s a painful line in his side quest where he talks about astroturfing himself on a twitter clone by arguing with his sock accounts), while Riddler is indeed arrogant and pretentious in the comics, he’s still quite smart and far more focused on his goals. His obnoxiousness in this DLC is cranked up to eleven here, as his cadence is no different than a twitter addicted clout chaser imaging a guy and getting mad about it, which Catwoman easily exploits.
The DLC then ends with Catwoman draining Riddlers one bank account cause I guess him being stupid enough to have all his money in one place must have been really funny (it is not), and the game fades to black. It took me seven minutes to finish this, which would not be an issue if the quality was there. But it isn’t for 70% of the playtime.
There is no new music as expected, so you’ll have nothing but bland dark orchestral background noise for the millionth time.
So far this DLC has been the absolute low point for the season pass. It’s nothing more than a cheap poorly/under designed cash grab with one of the worst interpretations of an iconic super villain. If you’re really curious, just watch a play through online and save yourself the trouble, time and money.
5/10.