These are some loosely assembled notes on the game that I took as I went.
Movement is strangely clunky, like he has to walk and then get up to running speed even at full control stick tilt. He doesn’t like to smoothly change direction either.
Opening intro credits is very ahead of its time. Feels cinematic.
Great voice acting and good writing!! But of course, with the same writers and actors from Batman: TAS. So of course it is.
Me: “LET US PILOT THE BAT WING YOU COWARDS!”
Me, once piloting the Bat Wing: “OMG LET ME OUT OF THIS THING!” CRASHES 20 TIMES
The idea that after being knocked out, enemies will eventually get back up and fight you is interesting. You can handcuff them to take them out of the equation, but the handcuff system is a little puzzling because I was never sure when I did or didn’t have handcuffs or how many I had.
The idea that most of these goons could lay a finger on you, much less that 100 pound Mr. Freeze henchwomen could lay you out is preposterous. I’m talking flat on the ground here. Sigh.
Really digging the story, acting, cinematics. Definitely top tier. The graphics hold up really well even 20 years later.
The combat is almost what I would consider broken. The ability to block doesn’t help because the attack animations are too long and can’t be canceled and you often times get flattened by enemies who can haymaker you.
The game does an abysmal job of explaining things. (Note: I played my old save file from 20 years ago when I rented it, and I think there might be scenes where things got explained the first time through a level but not upon revisiting.) Some puzzles are introduced with no explanation, whereas others are.
Batmobile section is inexplicable. You missed a turn and failed. What? How? Why? I just started! It’s the first turn! You won’t even let me make it before insisting I missed it and FAILED. How did this make it through 2 minutes of play testing? I don’t even have enough time to drive to figure out the controls without failing first. Absolutely horrible game design. Absolutely unforgivable. (Update…I think this might be explained to you the first time through…that would make sense.)
Some interesting cinematic kind of moments, like running through a hallway while a helicopter shoots out the windows and you run ahead. Again, feels sort of ahead of its time here and there.
This game makes loading noises on my Wii I have never ever heard before. Maybe my console is failing?
Whether or not the Batmobile section is forgivable or not, the combat is unforgivable. You can’t guard until you enter combat, upon which the controls change, and if enemies are barreling at you, you have no choice but to let them land a series of hits on you before you can even guard. You can try to strike, but they usually beat you to the punch (literally) and if you choose to attack, you can’t guard.
There’s absolutely no flow or rhythm to the combat. There’s no dodge or counter moves. You can only guard, and there’s no right way to time an attack vs. a block. It’s not like the enemies have discernible patterns or openings. You just have to wait your turn and hope there’s an opening when you strike. You are pretty much playing roulette every time you throw a punch or kick. There’s no way to master the combat and emerge unscathed because you’re skilled.
Enemies have an annoying bear hug move that just happens. You can’t preempt it. You just have to wriggle free once someone uses it on you. Enemies late in the game spam the heck out of this. Others also get into a loop where they just punch you over and over again that you can’t break out of. Is the correct thing to guard until they stop? No! They won’t stop, and hits taken while blocking still sap your life slowly. If you want to interrupt the cycle, you have to hit back, and this works maybe 50% of the time without getting whacked.
The platforming is sometimes sloppy. I appreciate how good the game is at catching you instead of letting you fly off a ledge clumsily. Batman has a reliable twirl around and grab the ledge animation that he’ll do.
The implementation of various gadgets is kinda neat. Using Batarangs to disarm enemies is rewarding, if clunky, but the challenge makes it interesting. Cycling through the entire gamut with one button in order to find the right one is a sad system, and while it makes good use of dual analog aiming, the C-Stick dead zone is rough and the look sensitivity is a tad slow. It made me appreciate how the Arkham games eventually loop gadgets into the combat, because you don’t get that here.
FINAL THOUGHTS: This game frustrated me to no end at times. I dig the art style, voice acting, and story. It feels exactly like The Animated Series in the best possible way. Some of the puzzles are kinda nifty. The combat fluctuates between uninspired and straight BS. The level design is ho hum, and I got lost once or twice. I think most of my issues with the game stem from the combat—the difficulty, the frustration, and the tedium. I’m glad I played it, but I won’t be revisiting anytime soon.
Movement is strangely clunky, like he has to walk and then get up to running speed even at full control stick tilt. He doesn’t like to smoothly change direction either.
Opening intro credits is very ahead of its time. Feels cinematic.
Great voice acting and good writing!! But of course, with the same writers and actors from Batman: TAS. So of course it is.
Me: “LET US PILOT THE BAT WING YOU COWARDS!”
Me, once piloting the Bat Wing: “OMG LET ME OUT OF THIS THING!” CRASHES 20 TIMES
The idea that after being knocked out, enemies will eventually get back up and fight you is interesting. You can handcuff them to take them out of the equation, but the handcuff system is a little puzzling because I was never sure when I did or didn’t have handcuffs or how many I had.
The idea that most of these goons could lay a finger on you, much less that 100 pound Mr. Freeze henchwomen could lay you out is preposterous. I’m talking flat on the ground here. Sigh.
Really digging the story, acting, cinematics. Definitely top tier. The graphics hold up really well even 20 years later.
The combat is almost what I would consider broken. The ability to block doesn’t help because the attack animations are too long and can’t be canceled and you often times get flattened by enemies who can haymaker you.
The game does an abysmal job of explaining things. (Note: I played my old save file from 20 years ago when I rented it, and I think there might be scenes where things got explained the first time through a level but not upon revisiting.) Some puzzles are introduced with no explanation, whereas others are.
Batmobile section is inexplicable. You missed a turn and failed. What? How? Why? I just started! It’s the first turn! You won’t even let me make it before insisting I missed it and FAILED. How did this make it through 2 minutes of play testing? I don’t even have enough time to drive to figure out the controls without failing first. Absolutely horrible game design. Absolutely unforgivable. (Update…I think this might be explained to you the first time through…that would make sense.)
Some interesting cinematic kind of moments, like running through a hallway while a helicopter shoots out the windows and you run ahead. Again, feels sort of ahead of its time here and there.
This game makes loading noises on my Wii I have never ever heard before. Maybe my console is failing?
Whether or not the Batmobile section is forgivable or not, the combat is unforgivable. You can’t guard until you enter combat, upon which the controls change, and if enemies are barreling at you, you have no choice but to let them land a series of hits on you before you can even guard. You can try to strike, but they usually beat you to the punch (literally) and if you choose to attack, you can’t guard.
There’s absolutely no flow or rhythm to the combat. There’s no dodge or counter moves. You can only guard, and there’s no right way to time an attack vs. a block. It’s not like the enemies have discernible patterns or openings. You just have to wait your turn and hope there’s an opening when you strike. You are pretty much playing roulette every time you throw a punch or kick. There’s no way to master the combat and emerge unscathed because you’re skilled.
Enemies have an annoying bear hug move that just happens. You can’t preempt it. You just have to wriggle free once someone uses it on you. Enemies late in the game spam the heck out of this. Others also get into a loop where they just punch you over and over again that you can’t break out of. Is the correct thing to guard until they stop? No! They won’t stop, and hits taken while blocking still sap your life slowly. If you want to interrupt the cycle, you have to hit back, and this works maybe 50% of the time without getting whacked.
The platforming is sometimes sloppy. I appreciate how good the game is at catching you instead of letting you fly off a ledge clumsily. Batman has a reliable twirl around and grab the ledge animation that he’ll do.
The implementation of various gadgets is kinda neat. Using Batarangs to disarm enemies is rewarding, if clunky, but the challenge makes it interesting. Cycling through the entire gamut with one button in order to find the right one is a sad system, and while it makes good use of dual analog aiming, the C-Stick dead zone is rough and the look sensitivity is a tad slow. It made me appreciate how the Arkham games eventually loop gadgets into the combat, because you don’t get that here.
FINAL THOUGHTS: This game frustrated me to no end at times. I dig the art style, voice acting, and story. It feels exactly like The Animated Series in the best possible way. Some of the puzzles are kinda nifty. The combat fluctuates between uninspired and straight BS. The level design is ho hum, and I got lost once or twice. I think most of my issues with the game stem from the combat—the difficulty, the frustration, and the tedium. I’m glad I played it, but I won’t be revisiting anytime soon.