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Topic: User Impressions/Reviews Thread

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RogerRoger

@Th3solution Thanks for reading, buddy! I'll be honest, The Prophecy passed me by for a while, too. It was only when I got my DS Lite and started checking its back-catalogues of available software that I stumbled across Lara's handheld exploits (and even then, the game sat untouched on my shelf for a few years, for reasons I can't recall). It's not a huge loss leaving it on GBA, but I still reckon it'd make a neat little unlockable extra in some form of "classic collection" someday. Kinda like how some versions of Metal Gear Solid 3 include the original MSX2 games. That'd be pretty sweet.

And yeah, speaking of which, I think it's worth waiting and seeing what this PS Plus service offers. There have been rumours of Tomb Raider remasters for years. If the first game hadn't been adapted in Anniversary already, I think we'd have seen something by now. Depends what this new Embracer Group wants to do with the I.P. going forward, I guess. They might keep 'em away from Sony if they're planning some kind of compilation or re-release of their own.

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

RogerRoger

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Platform: GameBoy Advance
Release Date: June 2005

***

On home consoles, EA's Batman Begins ended up being a better-than-average licenced game, thanks to its inclusion of fear-based stealth mechanics in its gameplay and its resultant similarity to the popular Splinter Cell series. Previous attempts to make a playable Caped Crusader anything other than a brawler had fallen flat but briefly, thanks to EA's deep pockets and the efforts of developer Eurocom, there existed a workable blueprint for any potential follow-ups. In 2008, after Pandemic Studios wrecked a game based on The Dark Knight, Rocksteady would end up embracing some of Eurocom's design choices in their pursuit of the definitive Batman experience, to great success and critical acclaim.

It's worth keeping this context in mind when picking up the GBA version of Batman Begins, not least because it'll help you complete the blasted thing. Developed by Vicarious Visions, this 2D side-scrolling platformer tries to balance the "assault and batmannery" of old with the source material's focus on stealth, fear and intimidation, but alas, this identity crisis ends up being the game's undoing.

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At first glance, it appears as though your bat-sprite is simply tasked with walking, jumping and gliding from left to right in search of goons to pummel. To achieve this, you're given a fairly robust series of melee attacks and blocks and, despite the latter's reluctance to register when called upon, everything feels okay enough. You'll breeze through a cold opening as Batman before undertaking a set of Himalayan flashback tutorials as Bruce Wayne, and then it's back to the rain-soaked warehouses, office blocks and dockyards of Gotham City for the rest of the game. More goons advance, and so you raise your fists.

But, after a while, this approach stops working. Fights drain too much of your health, as enemies start to box you in (tactically) in order to box you in (physically). You'll struggle your way through to a level's final boss, only to be left with a bare minimum of armour against an onslaught of new attacks, and death becomes inevitable. The cartridge's battery save checkpoints might be generous, but they're not quite generous enough. Repetitive frustration will eventually make you try to bypass some of the fisticuffs by shimmying along pipes to avoid unaware assailants, or flipping switches to turn out the lights, and it's only then that the penny drops, and you realise that sneaking past a bunch of thugs is safer than hospitalising them.

The problem is, the game does everything in its power to convince you otherwise. Would you really think to be stealthy when the soundtrack's busy doing this?

And the limitations of the GBA do you no favours in this regard, either. Whilst the game looks great for the most part, boasting some beautifully fluid animation throughout, the screen's small size prohibits planning, leading to more trial-and-error as you glide into groups of heavily-armed baddies you couldn't possibly have been expected to anticipate. Effective stealth requires observation before execution, but there's nowhere to stop and take stock of your surroundings, so you just have to forge ahead with fingers crossed (and believe me, that makes pressing the L and R triggers a real challenge).

Even your utility belt suffers from the game's split personality. It features a wide array of useful gadgets, from batarangs and a grapnel gun to various non-lethal grenades and a powerful bat-swarm, but you have to stand still and hammer the Select button to cycle through them all. This isn't a problem when you're platforming, but in combat, right when you need an advantage, you'll be forced to take a few hits whilst Batman fiddles around under his cape. Chances are, you're gonna panic at some point, and waste the wrong thing on the wrong enemy. And then you'll arrive at one of those aforementioned boss battles, perhaps with a little more health than last time, but now missing the tools that'd help you win.

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When you're trying to traverse a tricky sequence of bottomless pits on your way to the grand finale, a thick, muddy atmospheric filter descends to tank the framerate, and you'll wish ol' Batsy never began in the first place. No matter how much it wants to be, this game isn't a good brawler, nor is it a decent sneak 'em up. I respect Vicarious Visions for attempting to capture the best of both these worlds, especially on an ageing handheld, but they've done neither justice here.

Elsewhere, the Batman Begins game might mark an important turning point in the history of the Dark Knight's interactive exploits, but its GBA version should be consigned to a mere footnote.

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

Th3solution

@RogerRoger That’s a really interesting piece on another retro game that I’m not familiar with. My days of playing 2D side scrollers is long gone, but I can’t think of any I played back in the day which had stealth mechanics. So perhaps it’s admirable that they made a reasonable attempt. But, as you say, part of stealth gameplay depends so much on environmental context, and the small 2D screen does sound like a limiting factor. But I guess the industry had to start somewhere. 😄

“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

RogerRoger

@Th3solution Thank you! Am real glad you found it of interest. And yeah, I think I know what you mean about 2D side-scrollers. They're not my favourite genre and, as was the case here, I'm usually showing up out of obligation to a particular licence or platform more than anything else.

So, after mentioning the series earlier, something sparked in my memory and I had a quick Google, and discovered that there were apparently two Splinter Cell games on GBA...?! Haven't watched any gameplay yet, but I'd imagine that somebody, somewhere, made stealth action work on a tiny 2D screen. It's one thing for a random Batman game to half-heartedly incorporate some stealth mechanics, but when stealth is your entire premise, you'd have to be sure that you're getting it right, right?!

But yeah, even if that just makes Batman Begins even more of a failure, I have a lot of love for Vicarious Visions, so I definitely admire their attempt here, if nothing else.

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

RR529

Mario Golf: Super Rush (Switch)
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Gameplay:

  • Standard Golf - The first of the main modes is this traditional take on the game. Play on any of the games 11 courses (up from the 6 the game launched with) with up to 4 players (human or CPU) with various other optional adjustments (intensity of wind speed, use of special shots, number of holes played, etc.). Easily the best part of the game IMO, as there's something chill about a generally normal round of golf with just enough arcade zaniness added in.
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  • Speed Golf - The highly advertised new mode for the game. Same course selection & adjustable rules as the former mode, however in this variant everyone tees off at the same time & you have to run to your ball after each shot, adding just a smidge of that trademark Mario platforming to the proceedings, with total shot count & time spent both contributing to your final score. Really didn't play it much (beyond what you have to in the story mode) as I think the idea kind of runs counter to the vibe of golf.
  • Battle Golf - Another new mode (and one I haven't tried) which is essentially Speed Golf on steroids. Playable on two different arena themed courses (which aren't playable elsewhere), it seems to have the same general rules as Speed Golf, however you can go after any hole on the course at any time, with a hole being removed from play once someone completes it, so the name of the game is to complete more holes than your competitors.
  • Target Golf - A game play mode where you have to aim for the highest score by aiming for one of three different targets (you change teeing position after each round, and there are sometimes things to mix things up, like special balls or a 4th bonus target). It has Regular, Forest, & Volcano layouts (each being more difficult than the last). It seems to have been added in an update sometime after launch.
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  • Golf Adventure - Probably the most substantial mode in the game, where you take your Mii on a journey from Rookie to Pro. Your adventure takes you through the six courses included at launch (each one has a cozy little hub world), where you can level up your Mii RPG style by completing rounds of golf (usually some variant of the "Speed" variety. Even the "Cross Country" golf that appears in one area never to be seen again which reviewers were confused by is clearly just training for "Battle Golf"), or by taking on optional target challenges in each area's training grounds (which could be quite brutal, IMO). There are even a few boss battles on display, which I actually quite enjoyed when they popped up. Kinda mixed on this one though, as I wasn't a huge fan of Speed Golf, which is what is mostly featured (I thought I was going to get a break in Wildweather Woods when one of the Toads said they don't play Speed Golf there due to it being so wet, but after the 3 hole practice round it was all Speed Golf anyway...).
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  • Otherwise there are a handful of Medals (achievements) to unlock (one for completing Golf Adventure, one for obtaining Birdie on every hole at least once, etc.), "Star" & "Super Star" club sets to unlock for each character by playing as them repeatedly (obtaining these is another Medal achievement), and of course most everything (aside from the story mode for obvious reasons) can be played online if you have NSO.

Audio/Visual:

  • It's definitely a bit more of a B-grade game in this department (this ain't no Odyssey or MK8D), but still, it's clean cartoon styled graphics look generally nice. There is some texture pop in, but this is really only noticeable during wide panning overhead shots & I didn't really find it all that distracting.
  • As I mentioned before there are 11 courses, two of which have "Amateur" & "Pro" variants, so arguably a total of 13 (plus the 2 Battle Golf arena courses, I guess), and these range from the relatively mundane (Beginner Course, Bonny Greens, Ridgerock Lake) to the Mario-rific (Bowser Highlands, New Donk City, All-Star Summit). My favorite has to be New Donk City as it's clear they just lifted it wholesale from Odyssey and puked a few greens all over the place (it clearly wasn't designed for golf, but that makes it all the more fun as it gets pretty creative with how you have to get the ball to it's destination, especially on it's "Pro" variant).
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  • Also, there are over 20 playable characters & while the generic baddies (Boo, Koopa Troopa, Chargin' Chuck, Ninji, etc.) don't get much of a glow up the series mains are dudded out in their finest golf attire, including Pauline (from the original Donkey Kong arcade game) after her reintroduction in Odyssey, which is pretty cute.
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Conclusion:

  • Again, it's a bit more of a B-grade offering, but I'm actually quite glad to have given it a shot. I wasn't a huge fan of Speed Golf, but the classic variant is still here & accounted for, and I enjoy that quite a bit.
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Currently Playing:
Switch - Blade Strangers
PS4 - Kingdom Hearts III, Tetris Effect (VR)

RogerRoger

@RR529 Great review, was wondering if you'd write one! As nice as your screenshots are, I agree that it isn't hugely impressive in the visuals department, but I reckon that's arguably helpful when you're just trying to line up an accurate shot and don't want a bunch of fancy lighting and particle effects obscuring your view. From what little I've played, I think the graphics do the job.

And yeah, the idea of Speed Golf is a fun novelty, and it's a very Nintendo thing to do, but it feels a bit like putting a pair of premium running shoes on a sloth. You don't play golf to panic. Makes me wonder why Nintendo didn't pursue another sport instead, legacy be damned.

Still, credit to them for continuing to support what was quite a bare-bones game at launch, and I'm glad you were able to find enough to enjoy as a result! Thanks for your thoughts!

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

Ralizah

@RogerRoger It's a pity to hear that GBA Batman game didn't turn out very well. An action game with a lot of tools on a system with a lack of buttons is never a great idea, unfortunately. It's interesting to hear about it being a pre-Arkham attempt at diversifying the gameplay style of the Dark Knight, but it sounds like the execution was rather poor at the end.

The small screen size of the GB consoles hurt a number of games. The lack of screen real estate, for example, is one of my few issues with the otherwise stellar original Shantae game on GBC, as you often couldn't get a good sense of where it was safe to jump in some of the game's giant environments.

Nice review.

@RR529 I remember being a bit baffled when I saw footage of Mario characters hoofing it on a golf course in a Direct, since, yeah, it doesn't seem like a great fit for golf. I've not heard great things about this title, but I'm glad you found enough enjoyable about it nonetheless, even if the speed golf thing ended up falling flat.

It's not a looker, but the cartoon-style employed in Mario games makes it where even the lower-budget ones are still easy on the eyes.

Any interest in that new Mario soccer game releasing next month?

Edited on by Ralizah

Currently Playing: Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re- Boot Camp (NS)

PSN: Ralizah

RogerRoger

@Ralizah My thanks for reading and replying, as always! It always pains me to have to highlight the shortcomings of the GBA itself (lack of buttons, small screen, etc.) but it seems that most of the games I own for the console usually end up falling victim to at least one of 'em.

I think the GBA definitely bridged a gap between the simplicity of what we now consider to be retro gaming and the complexity of cinematic AAA experiences, and it's often the licenced tie-in games that get caught between both extremes. They're often the ones stuck ticking boxes for a marketing department, rather than focusing on what actually makes good game design. I'd have been perfectly fine with Batman Begins being a solid, well-presented brawler but alas, here we are.

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

Ralizah

@RogerRoger GBA would have been so much more appealing if it had initially shipped with a backlit screen and two more buttons. It's a great platform, but I think Nintendo wasn't fully aware of how much more complex handheld games were going to become when they were designing it. Which probably helps to explain why it only had the handheld market to itself for a few years.

Technically, the NDS would have been a better host platform, with its wider screen and full set of buttons, but you just know the publisher would have felt compelled to needless hamstring it with touchscreen gimmickry.

Currently Playing: Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re- Boot Camp (NS)

PSN: Ralizah

RogerRoger

@Ralizah That's very true. I've got a DS bat-game sitting on my shelf, and was gonna jump straight into it after I'd finished Batman Begins. I'm building up my courage to endure its inevitable gimmickry.

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

RogerRoger

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Platform: PS3, Xbox360 and Wii U (original) / PC, PS4, PS Vita and XboxONE (expanded)
Release Date: April 2013 (original) / November 2013 (expanded)

***

I should begin by making crystal clear that I'm not a fighting games expert. My experience with the genre has been extremely limited over the years. The few examples I own are almost exclusively devoted to established licences (Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Käsi and X-Men: Mutant Academy on PSone, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale on PS Vita, numerous Naruto games, etc.) and sure, like many, I've played a couple rounds of a Street Fighter and a Tekken before, either at friends' houses or as part of impromptu student halls tournaments, but I couldn't tell you which specific games they were, and any minor victories on my part would've been the result of lucky button-mashing. Oh, actually, I tell a lie; one of 'em was Soulcalibur IV, but I only remember that because Darth Vader was in it.

Which brings us to Injustice: Gods Among Us. Developed by NetherRealm Studios (they of much Mortal Kombat fame and controversy) it's a cinematic one-on-one beat 'em up starring superheroes from the DC comic book universe. There'd been a crossover between Mortal Kombat and DC characters back in 2008, and its success helped convince publisher Warner Bros. Interactive that the likes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman deserved their own dedicated fighter.

It was a smart move. The Arkham series was at the peak of its popularity in 2013, and folks like me, folks who hadn't been interested in seeing their favourite weaponised billionaire share the spotlight with Sub-Zero and Kitana, were swayed by the DC brand being placed front and centre.

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Injustice boasts a well-presented story mode, with cutscenes that seamlessly segue in and out of fights and occasional minigame challenges. The whole thing takes less than two hours to clear, making it the equivalent of your average movie, but that's probably for the best, given its relentlessly chaotic pacing and heavy emphasis on apocalyptic action. It's packed with a lot of people talking very quickly, and there's a substantial amount of fighting which gets done without any player input, to the point where some of your subsequent gameplay-based brawls feel a bit silly by comparison. Despite its short length, you'll definitely need a few breaks along the way, if only to grab your head and stop it from spinning.

The context for all this mayhem is that, during a battle to end all battles, most of the Justice League and a handful of their enemies are transported to a parallel dimension in which a dystopian Earth is ruled by an evil Superman. What unfolds is partly an attempt for "our" heroes to get home, and partly a civil war against a tyrannical regime, featuring good guys going up against their dark reflections and villains who've been softened by a cruelty greater and more powerful than their own. I'm making it sound a lot deeper than it actually is, but fans of the wider DC superhero slate will find plenty of fascinating threads to tug at.

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What I can't say with the same certainty, however, is that fans of fighting games will enjoy the mechanics and execution of the core gameplay system. That's not a criticism, though; I just don't have the experience to be able to compare Injustice with other popular examples of the genre, s'all. From my perspective, what's here is smooth, responsive, and eminently playable, fitting nicely into that "easy to pick up, difficult to master" sweet spot I've heard so much about, but again, I stress that I'm conducting this analysis as the most casual of bystanders. Even though that opinion might hold some small value by itself (it might help newcomers, curious DC fans, and other gamers of similar entry-level ability) it's an essential prelude to the statement that Injustice is the most accessible and enjoyable beat 'em up game I've ever played.

Combos all share similar inputs between characters; for example, ranged attacks often use the same buttons, or at least close enough so that, once you've learned how to chuck a batarang, chances are high that you'll also be able to fire Deathstroke's guns, Green Arrow's green arrows, or a blast from General Zod's heat vision. Throws are mapped to L1, which is a godsend, whilst R1 allows you to interact with the environment, either by kicking your opponent into dangerous parts of it, or by picking up and yeeting anything that isn't nailed down, such as trash cans, missiles, fish tanks and motorcycles. Unique abilities are activated by tapping Circle (these vary in effectiveness, but none seem to give any character a significant advantage) and, if you hit somebody hard enough, you can trigger a transition, knocking them into an adjacent arena. Finally, in addition to a Clash wager, you'll be able to see all the best, most spectacular pre-release trailer shots by building up your Super Move meter and then pressing L2 and R2 together.

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Injustice won over critics and sold well at launch, enough to justify an Ultimate Edition re-release mere months later. This version made the leap to eighth-generation consoles and bundled in the six DLC characters that'd been drip-fed as part of the game's single season pass. These extra contenders aren't integrated into the story, but are playable across a full suite of other modes, including battle ladders, online and offline multiplayer, and objective-based S.T.A.R. Labs missions of increasing difficulty. There's also a truckload of alternate skins added for the most popular characters, including Arkham City makeovers for Batman, Catwoman and the Joker, as well as "New 52" promotional glow-ups, Cyborg Superman, and the John Stewart Green Lantern, to name but a few.

Never one to stop milking a cash cow, Warner Bros. Interactive announced the inevitable sequel as soon as NetherRealm had finished focusing on 2015's Mortal Kombat X.

And y'know what? Since we're all here...

***

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Platform: PC, PS4 and XboxONE
Release Date: May 2017

***

Don't worry, this'll be brief. Not least because, in gameplay terms, Injustice 2 is a case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" and therefore offers up a near-identical fighting experience. I've just had to Google whether anything was added or tweaked, and apparently there are some advanced techniques that weren't present before, including an evasive forward roll and an air recovery move. Um, okay? I think it's safe to say that I didn't use either of those, at least not intentionally!

Of course, there are huge presentational changes. The visuals benefit from a proper generational jump this time around. Almost all of the locations are new, and the roster has been reshuffled, booting characters like Doomsday and Hawkgirl to make way for fresh fan favourites, including but not limited to Gorilla Grodd, Swamp Thing, Doctor Fate and the much-publicised Supergirl. The story also runs a little longer, replacing the previous minigames with brief branching paths that allow you to pick which person to play as (and therefore, which opponent to fight) through certain sequences. It all takes place entirely on the parallel Earth, with no more crossovers, keeping the plot as simple as possible. It does waste a lot of its first half by going "...and then Brainiac happened!!" and madly waving its arms about, but it eventually settles down to take a swing at exploring the twisted morality of superheroes gone bad, and fulfilling the potential of the first game's premise. It's still about as shallow as a Saharan puddle, but it held my attention.

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The problem I've got with Injustice 2 is that, once I'd torn through the story's couple of hours, and then gone back through chapter select to check out all of the alternate paths, the rest of the game's content can barely conceal its greed. Most extra-curricular activities are centred around the Multiverse, a persistent series of ladders, timed challenges and other objectives which, when tackled, reward players with randomised loot drops and up to three different flavours of in-game currency (one of which can also be purchased with real money). Upon starting the game for the first time, and upon returning after an extended absence, you'll be encouraged to join an online Guild, in order to maximise your loot returns.

Loot comprises character-specific upgrades of varying rarity, with armour broken down by body part to ensure you'll struggle to complete a full set on your own. There are even certain characters' special moves locked away in blind packs, meaning some associated trophies are impossible to obtain without spinning that RNG wheel over and over and over again. Mercifully, there is an option to disable all loot upgrade status effects in multiplayer and so, provided you remember to toggle it from its default setting, we're not looking at a pay-to-win system here. Nevertheless, all this just feels exasperating at best, and grubby at worst (and no, I'm not just upset because I can't afford to unlock Batman's Boba Fett paint job).

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At launch, there were scattered whispers of disquiet about the loot system's crapshoot nature and confusing cascade of currency, but they were drowned out by an otherwise positive reception from critics and fighting game fans alike. Perhaps this is where I should double down on all those disclaimers concerning my lack of experience with beat 'em ups, and highlight the possibility that this reaction could simply be a result of me having wandered too far off my usual, well-worn track. I just don't have the patience to wrestle with fight after fight, on the off-chance that I might get lucky enough to earn the right gear for my favourite characters, so that I can make them slightly more capable of wrestling with fight after fight.

Injustice 2 did well enough to receive plenty of ongoing support, with nine extra fighters made available across three separate season passes to stand alongside pre-order incentive Darkseid, expanding the total number of playable characters to thirty-eight (and that's not even counting the ten premium transformation skins, which swap out the appearance and dialogue of select characters to create entirely new ones, so that, for example, your Captain Cold can become Mr. Freeze). All copies of the game received a patch to upgrade to a Legendary Edition in March 2018, although this only included some tutorial refinements and an increased level cap for free, and still requires payment to unlock the DLC for use.

If you can ignore all of its superfluous fluff, however, then I reckon Injustice 2 does Injustice justice. The story is good enough to be worthwhile and, when you're in the thick of things, NetherRealm's efforts result in a satisfyingly playable, bone-crunching but, importantly, largely gore-free fighting game. It was, and is, a shame to see the steady march of predatory practices sweep across all genres, but I suspect that we all know to blame Warner Bros. Interactive in that regard.

Worth ten bucks, then. Maybe fifteen if you're already a bat-fan. Sixteen if you can name everybody featured in the screenshots I've embedded.

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Edited on by RogerRoger

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

nessisonett

@RogerRoger Blue Beetle, Firestorm, Boba Fettman, Black Canary! Do I get it for £16 now 😂

Plumbing’s just Lego innit. Water Lego.

Trans rights are human rights.

RogerRoger

@nessisonett I knew, I knew you were gonna do that!!

Except you didn't name everybody in the first game's roster screenshot (but don't worry, I sincerely believe that you could, so yes, get the games)!

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

sorteddan

@RogerRoger
"Injustice 2 does Injustice justice".
Awesome just Awesome. Sometimes Rog your way with words astounds.
Thanks as ever for your thoughts. Similarly to you I tend to swerve fighting games as a genre but the DC licence was enough to draw me in. Played through the story mode with multiple characters on both 1&2, picked up easily obtainable trophies then called it a day without having to be demoralisingly trounced trying to be competitive in the online arenas.
I think my highlight was the multi-stage transitions, bashing opponents through walls/floors onto another part of the stage usually amused me... Also beating up Superman, I never really liked that goody two shoes.

“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.”

nessisonett

@RogerRoger I should really grab the Vita version of Injustice 1, I played it through PS Now a couple years back and it’ll be interesting to see if it holds up on a handheld!

Plumbing’s just Lego innit. Water Lego.

Trans rights are human rights.

RogerRoger

@sorteddan Thank you; very kind of you, and glad you enjoyed reading!

Seems we share a similar relationship with the Injustice games, for sure. I'd previously gotten the first game on PS3, so its PS4 upgrade was my first replay years back, but I hadn't revisited the sequel until now. Like you, I played through the story modes, dabbled in some of the other stuff, then moved on. I have never gone online with either game, except to briefly play a private match against a close friend of equivalent skill. You're right, it'd be far too demoralising to attempt to fight other gamers for real!

The transition animations are indeed superb. I think my favourite from the first game is in the Metropolis stage, where you punch your opponent upwards through a skyscraper, and you see them smash through each floor in succession. The sound design helps, too! It's really satisfying!

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@nessisonett Reportedly, the PS Vita version is very playable. I've had it recommended to me a couple times, and was tempted to check it out for this replay but, since I already own a physical PS4 copy, I just couldn't justify the purchase. I'd imagine the story's blending of pre-rendered cutscene and in-engine fights wouldn't seem quite so seamless, but otherwise footage on YouTube looks impressive.

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

Th3solution

@RogerRoger Awesome review(s) and spot on with my own thoughts and experience. I think I probably spent a little more time with Injustice 2 than you did, but still agree on your analysis of its annoying RNG grindfest. I dabbled in the asymmetric online team mode (I forget what it’s called) and every day I checked how my band of heroes fared against the online competition while I slept, but this too became redundant and boring after a while. I was able to get a lot of the gear I wanted, but the incentive to deck out my favorite characters was not worth the effort in the end. But the actual fighting gameplay and the visual presentation (especially the second game) was really quite good and definitely worthwhile for fans of the DC Universe. Like you mention in your review, NetherRealm struck a nice balance to make the game approachable for us fans of the franchise who don’t usually play fighters.

I enjoyed revisiting my memories of the games through your wonderful reviews and I’m glad you got a modicum of enjoyment from your time with them.

“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

Ralizah

@RogerRoger Yeah, it can be a struggle to discuss genres you're only passingly familiar with. My lack of interest in piercing beyond the surface of the fighting game genre is why I typically ignore those sorts of games, as I enjoy the cycle of mastery involved with really coming to grips with a game's mechanics.

The changes to Injustice 1 vs 2 are very telling in terms of how many major AAA developers have gone all in on freemium-style game design since eighth gen. Really tragic for fans of those games.

I think I tried Injustice 1 at one point when it first went to PS+, but couldn't really get into it, despite enjoying the DC Universe overall.

Nice set of reviews!

Currently Playing: Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re- Boot Camp (NS)

PSN: Ralizah

RogerRoger

@Th3solution Thanks, buddy! Between you, me and Dan up there, I'm sensing a pattern, although I do recall you mentioning that you got a little more out of Injustice 2 before, which is cool. It's funny you should describe checking in daily, as another mildly annoying element I forgot to discuss were the numerous prompts to "connect with the Injustice 2 mobile game" in order to earn extra loot and some exclusive gear. You think about that alongside a mode with a daily log-in requirement, and the game's underlying DNA (whether mandated by Warner Bros. Interactive or not) becomes all too clear.

But yes, all that aside, these are some beautiful, highly playable, flashy cinematic fighting games, and are great fun for a few hours of story and any associated visceral rage-venting. Thanks again; real glad you enjoyed reading, and that the trip down memory lane I triggered was a pleasant one!

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@Ralizah I totally get what you mean there. Despite my limited experience with the genre, I do often think that there's less universality between individual fighting games (y'know, Cross isn't always "low kick" in the same way R2 is almost always "shoot" in an FPS) and that makes them a daunting prospect to get to grips with, for me at least. That's why I need some kind of hook to reel me in.

The fact that a free copy of the first game failed to hold your attention for the duration of its 90 minute storyline speaks volumes! At least DC's superheroes are well-served in the gaming sphere, and that you could seek out other interactive alternatives if you wanted to. Anyway, thank you, as always!

"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."

PSN: GDS_2421
Making It So Since 1987

LtSarge

Resident Evil 4 (PS4) - Review

I just finished Resident Evil 4 on PS4 after 25 hours of playtime. That's crazy for me to write down. After so many years of not liking horror games and not having played any Resident Evil games, I never thought that I'd work my way up to the legendary fourth entry in this series and actually beat it. It's such a major accomplishment for me as a gamer and this game basically solidified my fondness for this franchise. I've played Resident Evil 0, 1 (both original and remake), 2 and 3 but RE4 is when the series hit its height. It's not an overreaction to say that this is the best game in the series (at least from what I've played so far).

First, the fact that the series finally entered into the third-person realm with an over-the-shoulder view truly changed how we perceived Resident Evil, horror games and just action titles in general. It gave the player more control and thus made the experience that more immersive. The added challenge that comes with actually aiming at enemies instead of letting the game lock-in to the closest one made the gameplay more challenging, intense and most importantly, more fun. After all, the fun gameplay is one of the reasons why we love Resident Evil so much and I can honestly say that this was the most fun I've had with a Resident Evil game.

That's not to say that Resident Evil 4 doesn't come with its own fair share of flaws. For starters, and this is one of the biggest issues I've felt during my playthrough, the game's length. As I mentioned earlier, it took me 25 hours to complete the game. Compare that to e.g. Resident Evil 3 which took me under 10 hours to beat. RE4 is simply too long. However, there's nothing wrong with the content of the game. The problem is that you're not given enough motivation to keep moving forward.

When you start the game, you're immediately told your main objectives: find the president's daughter, rescue her and escape. After roughly 5 hours of playtime, you've already achieved the first two objectives. Then you spend another 20 hours trying to escape. Unfortunately, that's not enough motivation for me to keep playing the game. The lack of short-term goals throughout the story is what brings down the experience and it's one of the reasons why I felt that it was too long. I wanted more stuff like: "Go to the village and locate this person who will help you find the president's daughter". Simply put, I just wanted the game to keep feeding me objectives throughout the playthrough so that I would constantly want to move forward. But I didn't get that at all.

It doesn't help either that the story takes a back seat. The game had the weakest story of any of the Resident Evil games that I've played so far. There was barely any mystery or suspense. The plot just didn't go anywhere interesting and it was clear to me that the focus was on the gameplay. And because of the game's length, the story is spread thin over the 25 hours of playtime. I mean, I still can't believe how many villains RE4 had just because they needed to fill out those 25 hours with stuff to do.

It's like the development team took all the ideas they could come up with and implemented them into this game, thus creating 25 hours of content. Because when you get to the second half of the game, each area you enter feels completely different from the previous one. It's like the development team thought: "What if we implemented this idea here, and this one there" and so on. It just felt so disjointed and that's also one of the reasons why the game felt longer than it needed to be.

Now I just want to make something clear, all of the content in RE4 is great. I never got the feeling that it was padding because it all felt original and refreshing. Some of it just didn't feel like it belonged here. Sure the ideas were great and the set-pieces were really fun, but some of them could've easily been omitted and it wouldn't have changed the experience. It's kinda hard for me to explain because these moments were great but unnecessary, which sounds contradicting. To put it in a different way: even if you have tons of great ideas, it doesn't mean that you should use all of them because you still need to make a cohesive game. At least in the case of Resident Evil.

So when you have this long game with barely any motivational factors, it kinda sours the experience. I'm sure back in the day, people probably loved that you would pay 60 bucks and get a long survival horror experience considering how short they were back then. But today, the campaign just overstays its welcome.

To bring this back to a positive note, I truly liked how much variety there was in this game (as I mentioned earlier, this will sound contradicting because even though the content is great, I didn't want all of it in the game since it didn't feel significant to the overall progression). There were so many different and awesome action set-pieces, which I didn't expect in a Resident Evil game. In fact, it was with this game that the series started to take a more action-oriented approach. And honestly, I didn't mind that at all. It just added more to the fun factor.

With that said, it's hard for me to say that this felt like a pure Resident Evil experience. More action, less puzzles to solve, more linearity in the level design, less horror, all these things make Resident Evil 4 feel less like a Resident Evil game and more like something else. It's certainly the best game in the series that I've played so far without a doubt, and a phenomenal game in general. But it just doesn't feel like a traditional Resident Evil game.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed my time with Resident Evil 4. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't getting annoyed by the game's length towards the end of my playthrough. But ultimately, it was an extremely fun game with lots of great moments. I'm so glad that I've finally got to play it and I'm looking forward to starting up the bonus content "Separate Ways" before I move on from this game.

Edited on by LtSarge

LtSarge

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