Batman: Arkham Knight Review

Before we begin, I would like to make a few things clear. I played the Xbox One version of Batman: Arkham Knight, and while the complications of the PC version have not carried over to its console counterparts, there were many bugs and glitches that I did experience. I can only speak for the Xbox One version and my experiences with that version.

He is the Night, The World’s Greatest Detective, and The Caped Crusader.  He is Batman, but has his recent video game success (Batman Arkham Series) carried over into his supposed final installment? This is what I’ll be looking at in this review, as I recap the feats and faults of Batman: Arkham Knight.

Playing off the title of the series, Arkham Knight’s primary focus is on the new villain (created for this game), The Arkham Knight (clever). This mysterious military-prominent villain wears an armored suit with obvious inspiration of Batman’s. As you progress through the game, it is evident that The Arkham Knight knows Batman, and holds some type of deep-rooted grudge against him. This is used very well through the main story, where The Knight is most prevalent, alongside the main antagonist Scarecrow. The main story offers numerous twists, turns, and even some “deaths” of main characters (sorry no spoilers), and is easily the best aspect of the game, as it was the portion I felt most intrigued, and invested in. The story, and how The Arkham Knight’s relation to Batman, is written very well, and really takes you to the core of what Batman is really about.

The side missions, however, including Gotham’s Most Wanted, was an aspect of the game that I did not know I wanted, but something I needed in the game. It added a whole new level of Batman-nes that I did not expect. Gotham’s most wanted is the overall goal of the side missions where you attempt to capture and lock-up Gotham’s most notorious criminals, i.e. Two-Face, Penguin, and The Ridder (and yes the Riddler trophies are back). Gotham’s Most Wanted actually made me feel like I was Batman, and made me determined to catch them all (haha Pokemon) and lock them up; and without giving away too much you do need to get all the major criminals in order to initiate the Nightfall Protocol (the true ending), which I have yet to do as I still need to finish the Riddler portion.

With that being said, there are numerous bugs and glitches that I experienced, although many others I talked to about Arkham Knight did not experience. I found the controls at various times to be sporadic, causing me to grapple somewhere I did not intend, or being unable to drop down onto an adversary to do a silent take-down. I found this to be frustrating at times, as the difficulty in the game quickly increase about 75% through the main story. The enemies got smarter, and they had better technology than your average Batman thugs, forcing you to be more careful, but sometimes the junky controls make it difficult to do so. Another issue I had is that I purchased the season pass in order to download the various skins and DLC, but I have been unable to. This could be a Xbox issue, as they have been unable to offer a solution at the point of this review’s completion.

Batman: Arkham Knight is a good game that could have been great without all the bugs and poor controls. The funny thing is the game’s original release date was around this time last year, so you can imagine the potential problems it had back when they first delayed its release. If it actually is the conclusion to the series, then it goes out with a bang, and I felt satisfied with its completion after playing the other games in the series (haven’t beaten Origins yet). Minor issues aside, Batman: Arkham Knight is a game that any Batman fan should experience, as it is another success by Rocksteady to place you inside the cowl of one-half of the Dynamic Duo.


(Also Mark Hamill returns as The Joker)

~Cody Tassin
Co-Host of The Gamers Talk
Follow Me on Twitter @captaintassin

Valiant Hearts Review

 It is difficult to find a truly intelligent puzzle game in the fast action-packed world that is the current generation of video games.  It is even far more difficult if that puzzle game you discover; not only pushes you care about the story and the characters, but naturally forces you (in a good way) to look more in-depth to what really is occurring within the game.  That is what Valiant Hearts: The Great War, accomplished with flying colors.  On the surface it is your charming and challenging puzzle/adventure game, but once you begin your journey, the somber mood of the story and the relentless reserve of the characters really brings you into a whole new world of chaos and suffering as you trudge through the horrors of WWI.  Do not fret, however, as Valiant Hearts also expresses strength and resolve among the sea of destruction that definitively creates a remarkable story in both video games, and in the real world.

   The mechanics of the game are nearly flawless.  Early on you discover that if you fail to reach your objective, or if you fall in battle, the fault lies solely on you.  The 2D side scrolling  controls are so crisp and well balanced, that it feels that you are actually a part of the world you are forced to survive.  The visuals are absolutely stunning with each frame being more beautiful as the last.  The art design is really what brings the whole game together and truly defines it.  Whether it is the grass on the foreground, or the explosions in the background, Valiant Hearts' creative art design gives it a visually stunning personality.  The sounds are as authentic as I have ever heard from a war game short of Call of Duty 2.  From explosions to machine gun fire, the situations the player is placed into truly feel genuine, causing the player to feel more in-tune with the game itself.  From the controls, to the graphics, and the sound, Valiant Hearts really excel in bringing the players to really enjoy a game, instead of just playing it.

  However, Valiant Hearts is not perfect.  Occasionally the puzzles you encounter can drag on to the point of boredom causing you to lose interest, or track of the story.  The majority of the puzzles are quick and do not take so much time that you forget about your surroundings, but are a few that you notice to either be solved in a less than creative way, or is just plain dumb.  For example there is a puzzle where have to save some people from various gas attacks, and in order to reach a gas-mask, you must punch a hook in order (and then raise it) in order to reach the mask.  Some of the mini-games can also be arduous and tedious causing many "groan" worthy moments.  Constantly bombarding the player with many "let's stop and do this for five minutes" situations can really cause you to not enjoy the game as much as you could.  Fortunately the good overwhelmingly outweighs the bad in Valiant Hearts.  

  Valiant Hearts is well worth the buy, as it creates a chaotic, yet hopeful world that lets you truly enjoy the story and the characters.  With the controls being as strong as they are, the visuals being beautiful all throughout the game, and the audio bringing you an authentic war-like experience that few other games can muster, Valiant Hearts is a complete game that cannot passed up by the gamer community.  Valiant Hearts could make a strong case for Indie Game of the Year easily, even if they were competing with some of the greatest indie games ever made.  Valiant Hearts is an emotional tale of the horrors of war, and the lives it affects, but also tells a tale of resolve, friendship, and family that makes you literally tear up during moments of the game.  If you play Valiant Hearts be sure to equip yourself with many tissues!!

 

Valiant Hearts receives 9 giant spoons out of 10.

~Cody "the captain" Tassin