Category Archives: DC
Review: Batman: Arkham City
I was considering not writing this review because it can be summed up in one word: ‘awesome’. But I’m trying to be a legitimate blog here, so I should really do my best to expand upon my thoughts. I will also need to be careful with the overuse of the word ‘awesome’, because everything in this game is ‘awesome’. The freeflow combat, the story, the side missions, the game world, the game play and, most especially, the rich look into the the world of Batman.
Clearly some very big Batman geeks made this game.
Game rating: 5/5: Great!
The Internet is currently filled with glowing reviews and praise for Batman: Arkham City, the sequel to Batman: Arkham Asylum. Did you know that the first game, Arkham Asylum, holds the record for the best reviewed superhero game ever in the Guinness Book of World Records? You do now. And it’s no surprise. Arkham Asylum was a glorious achievement in the world of video games, especially superhero video games. It made up for decades of mediocre to crappy Batman games, and revolutionized the depth and breadth to which superhero games could reach. Arkham Asylum was clear proof that with a love of the character and a lot of creativity, superhero games could be something special. And then the game developers, Rocksteady, went and made a bigger, better and deeper game for the sequel, Arkham City.
The Batman: Arkham games are to superhero video games what The Dark Knight movie was to superhero movies. We’re not just talking a game changer. We’re talking revolution!
Review: Teen Titans #2
Both dialogue and overall quality of the new Teen Titans series take a noticeable dip in the second issue, providing a lackluster follow-up to what I thought was a stellar first issue. We’re introduced to a rather ridiculous new member of the team and are once again faced with a baffling status quo about the ‘dangers’ of teenage superheroes. Part of the new DC relaunch was that the average person doesn’t trust superheroes anymore, which is fine, but there’s a stark disconnect between every other title I’ve read and the status quo of Teen Titans.
Teen Titans #2
At least Red Robin is still very cool.
Comic rating: 2/5: Bad.
Issue #2 introduces us to brand new superhero Skitter, who I am going to call Skittles from now on. At least until I get to the paragraph where I discuss what a stupid name ‘Skitter’ is for anybody. Teen Titans is still very much in team-building mode, with the B-story devoted to establishing the villain: the secret organization N.O.W.H.E.R.E. I can’t stress enough what a ridiculous job writer Jeff Lobdell does in trying to give N.O.W.H.E.R.E. some villainous cred. This issue features roll-your-eyes bad dialogue, particularly when it comes to that group.
The issue also features roll-your-eyes bad dialogue between the main characters. Basically the issue is just troublesome to read. Which is really too bad. Spoilers after the jump.
Less Than a Week Until Nightwing Joins Arkham City
Batman: Arkham City only came out a week ago and already developer Rocksteady is ready to hit us with some downloadable content. They will be bringing Nightwing into the game as a fully playable character in the Challenge Maps, just like they already have Robin and Catwoman. Nightwing will also bring his own Challenge Maps called ‘Wayne Manor’ and ‘Main Hall’, so that should be neat.
Batman games can never have enough Robin, as far as I’m concerned.
The 6 Best Easter Eggs in Batman: Arkham City
I love video game Easter Eggs, and Batman: Arkham City is littered with them! For anyone who doesn’t know, an Easter Egg is an in-joke or a wink to the fans that game developers put into their game for the sheer fun of it. Like finding He-Man in World of Warcraft, the beating heart in the Statue of Liberty in Grand Theft Auto IV or being able to play as Bill Clinton in NBA Jam. They don’t have anything to do with the main game; but if you’re a fan of the series, and you get the ‘joke’, they can bring a smile to your face. They are a real treat.
Arkham City up close and personal
And when creating the ultimate set of Batman video games, the makers of Batman: Arkham Asylum and the new Batman: Arkham City went Easter Egg crazy!
The story of Arkham City (which I won’t spoil here), is an epic adventure that pits Batman against the Joker and Professor Hugo Strange. The game has Batman facing off against other classic rogues like Two-Face, Catwoman, Penguin, Mad Hatter and more as he tries to solve the mystery of Arkham City and save the day! The game takes place in a sprawling map of Gotham City, featuring such notable levels as Penguin’s Iceberg Lounge, the Gotham City Police Station and Ace Chemicals, where the Joker received his vicious grin.
But hidden in the nooks and crannies of the game, far off the beaten path, are tons of Easter Eggs and references to other characters, villains and stories from Batman lore.
It was like that in the first game too. I loved walking around Arkham Asylum and randomly stumbling across Two-Face’s or Mr. Freeze’s cells. They were just there as part of a normal cell block, the way any prisoner’s cell would be. Well Batman: Arkham City has much more room to work with and a lot more ways to hide Easter Eggs. I won’t be spoiling the main story in this list, just a few of the fun and funny Easter Eggs that you can find hidden in the game.
Here are the 6 Best in Batman: Arkham City:
Sinestro is a Jerk…but Green Lantern Sort of Deserved This
I’m a huge fan of Robot Chicken, the stop-motion animated variety show that celebrates all of geekery. Well they have a DC Comics special coming up soon, and this is a preview clip of the Green Lantern vs. Sinestro. Hilarious and filthy. So the rest of the special should be more of the same. Guess they ran out of jokes to make about Star Wars.
Henchman-4-Hire 