Batman Arkham Origins: How are you finding it so far?

[Buizel91]

Well i have just completed Batman AO, and i have to say, i am VERY surprised. I knew i would like it, but i didn't think it would be as good as the others, ooh how i was wrong.

Its not as good as AC, but its about on par with AA. Whatever AO doesn't do, AA did, and vice versa which isn't really a bad thing. The story isn't as over the top as AA's was (Giant Plants, Titan Joker etc) and manages to keep you engaged longer than AA did, however the story is a little all over the place and hard to follow at times, and the assassins aren't as hyped as they should of been. I managed to complete the game without doing Shieva's mission, now i hardly see the point of going after her now that i have completed it.

(I don't want to make either game sound bad by the way, AA was good, and was easy to follow, it just went a little over the top, where as AO is harder to follow and doesn't go over the top. Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly, some characters in AO feel a little meh and lacking)

There is a HUGE twist which i wont spoil, but WB Montreal did a superb job of hiding it, kudos guys! The game is a little buggier than the previous 2, But they are hardly game breaking. I hear there are plenty of problems on the PC version, on the 360 however all is okay, apart from some minor annoyances (i have hid from you sniper, stop following me everywhere i go!)

All in all i think WB montreal have done a perfect job of tying us over till the sequel to AC. I haven't had chance to play multiplayer, but i have been told it's surprisingly fun, and its on a different disk, so it doesn't affect the story or length of it. Speaking of length, the story takes up 20% of the games completion, so there is plenty to do post game, plus the challenges.

So what do you guys think of it? Did it disappoint? Were you as shocked as i was? Discuss!

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly

Whoaaaaaaa. Half the time the hype fell flat. Zsasz showed up as little more than a silent takedown tutorial, Bane was tastelessly handled as a sub-boss, you never got proper fights with either Harley or Scarecrow (though his levels were fun), Croc you never even fight despite arguably being the second-most hyped character after Joker (his intro, his little threat cutscenes, the interviews, all that banter between Bruce and Oracle and Cash) and Joker... well, it's just fighting mooks all over, right? You only get to punch him three times, and the third is a cutscene. The only character that gets away with the hype is Ivy. She's introduced at the right time, and plays out more or less accordingly. She's the most wholesome boss battle you get in the game, hands down. The rest of the bosses suck.

Anyway... I won't be playing AO just yet, but so far I'm hearing nothing but good things. The appreciation mileage between AA, AC and AO varies from one person to another, but the important thing is, beyond the subjective "X was better than Y", I'm not finding any punctual flaws. So far it sounds bigger and better.

 

[endtherapture]

So far I like it. Tutorial was good, so was Killer Croc. The city seems a bit empty, but I'm hoping it will be longer than City overall, City sorta disappointed me in general.

 

[Buizel91]

Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly

Whoaaaaaaa. Half the time the hype fell flat. Zsasz showed up as little more than a silent takedown tutorial, Bane was tastelessly handled as a sub-boss, you never got proper fights with either Harley or Scarecrow (though his levels were fun), Croc you never even fight despite arguably being the second-most hyped character after Joker (his intro, his little threat cutscenes, the interviews, all that banter between Bruce and Oracle and Cash) and Joker... well, it's just fighting mooks all over, right? You only get to punch him three times, and the third is a cutscene. The only character that gets away with the hype is Ivy. She's introduced at the right time, and plays out more or less accordingly. She's the most wholesome boss battle you get in the game, hands down. The rest of the bosses suck.

Anyway... I won't be playing AO just yet, but so far I'm hearing nothing but good things. The appreciation mileage between AA, AC and AO varies from one person to another, but the important thing is, beyond the subjective "X was better than Y", I'm not finding any punctual flaws. So far it sounds bigger and better.

I meant each character was portrayed perfectly sorry my bad, i know the boss battles pretty much suck, but the way the characters are in the game is pretty much perfect. xD

 

[Tahaneira]

I haven't finished it yet, but I will say this: it's a step down from the other Arkham games. However, that still leaves it a step up from most everything else.

It's a little jarring; you can tell that it was done by different people. I'm not just talking about the voice actors, the writing itself is different. Little things. Almost petty things. Where the Dini team would put 'computer,' these guys write 'laptop.' Where Dini would say 'radio,' these guys have Batman say 'walkie-talkie.' It sounds incredibly pedantic, and it probably is, but for someone who grew up watching the work of these people, the difference is definitely noticeable.

Again, not that it's bad. Just a little off-putting until you can tune it out.

 

[Kennetic]

That Deathstroke was freaking epic I can't even describe! I enjoy it. The controls feel superior to me over AA and AC. The story is engaging. No seriously, Deathstroke is awesome.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly

Whoaaaaaaa. Half the time the hype fell flat. Zsasz showed up as little more than a silent takedown tutorial, Bane was tastelessly handled as a sub-boss, you never got proper fights with either Harley or Scarecrow (though his levels were fun), Croc you never even fight despite arguably being the second-most hyped character after Joker (his intro, his little threat cutscenes, the interviews, all that banter between Bruce and Oracle and Cash) and Joker... well, it's just fighting mooks all over, right? You only get to punch him three times, and the third is a cutscene. The only character that gets away with the hype is Ivy. She's introduced at the right time, and plays out more or less accordingly. She's the most wholesome boss battle you get in the game, hands down. The rest of the bosses suck.

Anyway... I won't be playing AO just yet, but so far I'm hearing nothing but good things. The appreciation mileage between AA, AC and AO varies from one person to another, but the important thing is, beyond the subjective "X was better than Y", I'm not finding any punctual flaws. So far it sounds bigger and better.

I meant each character was portrayed perfectly sorry my bad, i know the boss battles pretty much suck, but the way the characters are in the game is pretty much perfect. xD

Yep, portrayal was great. Design, voice cast, all of it. I wish Gordon hadn't been such an inept stooge though, I think he deserves better than that. I'm still not sure how the hell he managed to get himself kidnapped a 2nd time AFTER he left the Asylum and was supposed to be off in Gotham doing his thing.

 

[Kungfu_Teddybear]

I'm just after the Deathstroke fight (which was awesome by the way) and I'm loving it so far. I'm playing on the PC but I haven't come across any bugs yet.

 

[BleedingPride]

Holy mother of god the relationship with the joker is so perfect in this game, THIS is how you make a batman game

 

[The Wykydtron]

Just beat Deathstroke. One of the best boss fights I have ever seen, it reminds me of the Mr Freeze stealth fight in City in terms of how they take the mechanics and throw them into the spotlight. That one was an awesome stealth battle this one was an awesome straight man fight.

This game has been really impressive so far. Really fuckin' good.

 

[bossfight1]

I enjoyed it; the combat was more difficult than in Arkham City, but it really sold the point that I was playing a less-experienced Batman. The bosses were decent, much better than AA, but none of them came close to Mr. Freeze's fight in AC (though one end-game boss, which I won't spoil, did something in the same way). Firefly's fight was cool, it reminded me a bit of the god-awful fight with Poison Ivy (which I liked even less than Killer Croc; at least the Line Launcher let me speed through that 'fight'), but it felt much more hectic and exhilarating, though at one point I died and the game's Game Over hint said, "Contact with fire will cause damage."

...THANK YOU, game.

The story was good too, particularly when the Joker got involved. Troy Baker did a great job, it's nice to know we can rely on folks other than Mark Hamill to voice the character, between Baker, John di Maggio (Under the Red Hood) and Richard Epcar (MK vs DC, Injustice). I loved how you went through his little origin story, and was surprised I could play as him for a bit. (Also the cameo from Harley Quinn is great; she's voiced by Tara Strong, and I found it ironic when she said "I don't have that many friends." Tee hee, voice-acting irony!)

I do have an issue in the side-missions; I didn't feel quite as obligated to finish them as I did in Arkham City. Maybe because, unlike AC, they actually feel like minor additions with little payoff. Though I suppose it helped that pursuing these missions unlocked moves such as my beloved Disarm+Destroy combo move, which I was desperately missing throughout the game. Also, Gotham felt rather empty and lifeless. They kept hammering in the whole, "oh people are hiding because criminals are walking the streets," but I couldn't shake the familiarity of Arkham City. Plus the dudes patrolling the rooftops with guns, taking potshots at me as I fly by, remain as irritating as ever.

But really, most of what I liked about Arkham City is here, and I'm looking forward to where else the Arkham series goes.

 

[Buizel91]

Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly

Whoaaaaaaa. Half the time the hype fell flat. Zsasz showed up as little more than a silent takedown tutorial, Bane was tastelessly handled as a sub-boss, you never got proper fights with either Harley or Scarecrow (though his levels were fun), Croc you never even fight despite arguably being the second-most hyped character after Joker (his intro, his little threat cutscenes, the interviews, all that banter between Bruce and Oracle and Cash) and Joker... well, it's just fighting mooks all over, right? You only get to punch him three times, and the third is a cutscene. The only character that gets away with the hype is Ivy. She's introduced at the right time, and plays out more or less accordingly. She's the most wholesome boss battle you get in the game, hands down. The rest of the bosses suck.

Anyway... I won't be playing AO just yet, but so far I'm hearing nothing but good things. The appreciation mileage between AA, AC and AO varies from one person to another, but the important thing is, beyond the subjective "X was better than Y", I'm not finding any punctual flaws. So far it sounds bigger and better.

I meant each character was portrayed perfectly sorry my bad, i know the boss battles pretty much suck, but the way the characters are in the game is pretty much perfect. xD

Yep, portrayal was great. Design, voice cast, all of it. I wish Gordon hadn't been such an inept stooge though, I think he deserves better than that. I'm still not sure how the hell he managed to get himself kidnapped a 2nd time AFTER he left the Asylum and was supposed to be off in Gotham doing his thing.

Huh? twice? i only remember one time where he got kidnapped, when was the second time? He went back to Gotham and found the fake bombs joker had planted. Or you confusing him with Quincy Sharp?

 

[Buizel91]

Holy mother of god the relationship with the joker is so perfect in this game, THIS is how you make a batman game

Ikr? Watching how Joker turns from crazy, to completely bat-shit crazy (pardon the pun) was great.

Also the twist...MY GOD!

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly

Whoaaaaaaa. Half the time the hype fell flat. Zsasz showed up as little more than a silent takedown tutorial, Bane was tastelessly handled as a sub-boss, you never got proper fights with either Harley or Scarecrow (though his levels were fun), Croc you never even fight despite arguably being the second-most hyped character after Joker (his intro, his little threat cutscenes, the interviews, all that banter between Bruce and Oracle and Cash) and Joker... well, it's just fighting mooks all over, right? You only get to punch him three times, and the third is a cutscene. The only character that gets away with the hype is Ivy. She's introduced at the right time, and plays out more or less accordingly. She's the most wholesome boss battle you get in the game, hands down. The rest of the bosses suck.

Anyway... I won't be playing AO just yet, but so far I'm hearing nothing but good things. The appreciation mileage between AA, AC and AO varies from one person to another, but the important thing is, beyond the subjective "X was better than Y", I'm not finding any punctual flaws. So far it sounds bigger and better.

I meant each character was portrayed perfectly sorry my bad, i know the boss battles pretty much suck, but the way the characters are in the game is pretty much perfect. xD

Yep, portrayal was great. Design, voice cast, all of it. I wish Gordon hadn't been such an inept stooge though, I think he deserves better than that. I'm still not sure how the hell he managed to get himself kidnapped a 2nd time AFTER he left the Asylum and was supposed to be off in Gotham doing his thing.

Huh? twice? i only remember one time where he got kidnapped, when was the second time? He went back to Gotham and found the fake bombs joker had planted. Or you confusing him with Quincy Sharp?

Boles kidnaps him the first time and is held as bait throughout a large portion of the game until Bats rescues him from Harley Quinn and puts Gordon on a boat to Gotham following the fight against Bane. During the film's climax with Titan Joker, Gordon's revealed trapped in an electric chair, occassionally electrocuted during the boss fight.

(top left)

As far as I remember, it's never addressed nor explained how did Joker capture Gordon a 2nd time, nor who did, and how they shipped him back to Arkham.

 

[votemarvel]

I simply can't get past the Deathstroke fight.

My reaction times are poor to say the least but I manage in the games because of the 'lightening' prompt for a counter.

That doesn't appear when you are close quarters with Deathstroke, meaning I've died so many times that I'm beginning to plan on becoming a super-villain myself.

If I ever do get past it then I'm not going to use that damn grapple ever again.

 

[cip_raziel]

All I can say is that Yahtzee was right, there wasn't anywhere to go after they gave us the whole city to play in in the previous game, so this one just feels "meh..." nothing special, less atmospheric than the previous one, no real reason for every corner to have so many thugs, except "cuz ÄC did it too so it has to be here too", but in that one the whole place was turned into a prison, and again with the Riddler...err ENIGMA now having you collect greeny glowy stuff cuz he is smarter than you. Combat is the same, Deathstroke fight was a bad joke quick time event fiasco and the new detective mode doesn't get you involve in solving crimes at all, it's just a "press A so solve it" event. The only saving grace is the story, haven't finished it yet, I'm tracking Bane right now and yes I loved the part where they described Joker's and Batman's relationship, I kept hearing in my head The Joker's Song from Miracle of Sound. Oh and I miss playing a second character like Catwoman in AC, they took a step back not including something like that in this game.
Personally I think this game should`ve been an expansion pack for the previous one in the series cuz it just feels like they re-painted the city from the previous game, they did use most of the buildings and enlarged others, added 3 new gadgets and a useless detective mode. I run this game on PC and it feels that they optimized it pretty well, I don't have a very good PC and it still runs great and except for the very well known Burnley Comm Tower bug and once falling through textures, I didn't had any troubles with the game.

 

[Silvanus]

I'm just past the Deathstroke fight (which was awesome), and I've run into a number of bugs so far. Croc flickered & briefly disappeared when I fought him, and a door that was meant to be openable stayed locked tight until I restarted the game.

Nothing too bad, though, and it's damn fun.


One question: does Electrocutioner resurface after your first encounter with him, and is he more impressive?

 

[Buizel91]

Each character in AA was hyped and done perfectly

Whoaaaaaaa. Half the time the hype fell flat. Zsasz showed up as little more than a silent takedown tutorial, Bane was tastelessly handled as a sub-boss, you never got proper fights with either Harley or Scarecrow (though his levels were fun), Croc you never even fight despite arguably being the second-most hyped character after Joker (his intro, his little threat cutscenes, the interviews, all that banter between Bruce and Oracle and Cash) and Joker... well, it's just fighting mooks all over, right? You only get to punch him three times, and the third is a cutscene. The only character that gets away with the hype is Ivy. She's introduced at the right time, and plays out more or less accordingly. She's the most wholesome boss battle you get in the game, hands down. The rest of the bosses suck.

Anyway... I won't be playing AO just yet, but so far I'm hearing nothing but good things. The appreciation mileage between AA, AC and AO varies from one person to another, but the important thing is, beyond the subjective "X was better than Y", I'm not finding any punctual flaws. So far it sounds bigger and better.

I meant each character was portrayed perfectly sorry my bad, i know the boss battles pretty much suck, but the way the characters are in the game is pretty much perfect. xD

Yep, portrayal was great. Design, voice cast, all of it. I wish Gordon hadn't been such an inept stooge though, I think he deserves better than that. I'm still not sure how the hell he managed to get himself kidnapped a 2nd time AFTER he left the Asylum and was supposed to be off in Gotham doing his thing.

Huh? twice? i only remember one time where he got kidnapped, when was the second time? He went back to Gotham and found the fake bombs joker had planted. Or you confusing him with Quincy Sharp?

Boles kidnaps him the first time and is held as bait throughout a large portion of the game until Bats rescues him from Harley Quinn and puts Gordon on a boat to Gotham following the fight against Bane. During the film's climax with Titan Joker, Gordon's revealed trapped in an electric chair, occassionally electrocuted during the boss fight.

(top left)

As far as I remember, it's never addressed nor explained how did Joker capture Gordon a 2nd time, nor who did, and how they shipped him back to Arkham.

Huh...forgot about that :') its probably mentioned on the Arkham wiki

 

[Buizel91]

All I can say is that Yahtzee was right, there wasn't anywhere to go after they gave us the whole city to play in in the previous game, so this one just feels "meh..." nothing special, less atmospheric than the previous one, no real reason for every corner to have so many thugs, except "cuz ÄC did it too so it has to be here too", but in that one the whole place was turned into a prison

To be fair, Batman Arkham City, is hardly a City, just a section of it.

I was a little shocked that they gave us the Arkham City map with and extra bit strapped on connected by a bridge. I was expecting most of the city, and been able to go to Wayne Tower, but meh, its not so bad. Don't know what they can do next time, hopefully more of Gotham.

 

[Kenbo Slice]

That Deathstroke was freaking epic I can't even describe! I enjoy it. The controls feel superior to me over AA and AC. The story is engaging. No seriously, Deathstroke is awesome.

By epic do you mean frustrating? Seriously, that fight was the most fucking frustrating thing ever. I hated every moment of it.

OT: It's alright, it's not as good as City and the camera can be a bit buggy at times.