Batman: Arkham Origins

Albeit not as original as either 'Batman: Arkham Asylum' or 'Batman: Arkham City', 'Batman: Arkham Origins' is still fun and, for avid Batman and DC Comics fans or even fans of comics and games, this is a great buy!

You're introduced to some fascinating characters, arguably many of whom have appeared in other games in the same franchise, but you're catching them before they have really come to understand Batman as being either their ally or their enemy. Some, of course, have made up their minds already and will never change them.

As with all the Arkham games thus far, the cinematics are incredible and there are several sequences involving both Batman and The Joker that hold up as well as if the inspired Paul Dini had written them himself. On that note, however, Dini's presence is sorely missed and it was a mistake to remove him from the production team even before the ill-fated 'Harley Quinn's Revenge' had gone into development several years ago.

That is not to say that Arkham Origins is bad. It isn't. You get to explore Gotham almost without barriers, the fighting system is still good and the story is incredible, even though it feels like it starts to lose steam and fall into clichés towards the end of its run.

Fans of comics like 'Batman: Year One', 'Batman: The Long Halloween' and 'Batman: Dark Victory', to name but a few will definitely enjoy some of the characters and events that crop up here and, for the seasoned game player, the Arkham series is still enjoyable. It just needs something a little new, perhaps coupled with a return from some characters who have been absent from the Arkham series and from Gotham City for quite some time. The Arkham series should also take a more adventurous step (that Rocksteady quite possibly would have done had it retained its licence over the franchise) and give the player controlling Batman a bit more chance of actually piloting the Batmobile and/or the Batwing and other assorted vehicles.

The voice cast here really has to be commended. Unlike some other gamers, I grew used to Roger Craig Smith as Batman/Bruce Wayne quite quickly, but he still seems like a flawed addition when compared to Kevin Conroy, who has been voicing the character for so long that his successors can sound a bit alien in the role. Anyone who has seen 'Batman: Gotham Knight' (2008) will also know that Conroy is still capable of playing a young Batman/Bruce Wayne, so Smith's presence here does seem kind of redundant. On the other side of the coin, however, Mark Hamill was irreplaceable and, yet, he had to be replaced after he hung up his joy buzzer and razor-edged playing cards. Troy Baker is an excellent replacement for Hamill and, while I would still love it had Hamill surprisingly leapt back into the role once more, Baker is an energetic and memorable Clown Prince of Crime and, if nothing else, a scarily effective Hamill impersonator at times.

Those returning to their Arkham Asylum and Arkham City roles remain inspired choices, whilst long-time Batman animation music composer, Christopher Drake delivers a fine score that, whilst up to his own standards, misses out on some of the quirkiness that made the music of the previous two games, as composed by Nick Arundel and Ron Fish, so unique and tailored to this interpretation of Batman.

The Batcave is awesome, holding an Anton Furst/Nathan Crowley/Goonies feel all at the same time (hopefully next time Wayne Manor will get more of a showing as well), and Gotham is still a fascinating place, especially as players are given the chance to explore regions that previously weren't available, such as those areas of Gotham that were underwater during Arkham City. Even though the Christmastime setting has been ridiculed for cutting corners (as it was snowing through most of Arkham City), this time period demonstrates just how unrelentingly hostile Gotham City is. Villains like The Joker and new-breed, Anarky, wage war on Gotham during the season of family and giving -- it is almost like something out of the pages of Frank Miller's 'The Dark Knight Returns'.

However, I agree with one reviewer who complained about the ridiculously long bridge! But other complaints about the static nature of the opening sequences are a point of personal preference -- I found them to be a useful tutorial that helped me to brush up on my old techniques from the last two games, whilst not being killed too often!!!

So, in summary, there's plenty to enjoy here, particularly as the game is set in the Dark Knight's formative years but, next time, perhaps Warner Brothers will either take a chance or return to trusting Rocksteady to take those chances on their behalf! All the same, the Arkham series remains one of the most effective and enjoyable ways of introducing or reintroducing both new and long-term fans to the mystique and intricacy of the Batman comics and his world in general!

I remember hearing about this game coming out nearly a year ago. And right from the start I became excited because I've been a die hard Batman fan since I was 6 and the previous 2 Arkham games were amazing. But then I began to have mixed emotions as the months fallowed. I heard that Rocksteady games wasn't making the 3rd installment in the series and I was worried because some new video game would screw up the series where we get a game too kid friendly and PG like and too much like that crappy 1997 Batman and Robin film. And I had heard that the game wont fallow the previous 2 games and I was let down by this considering I thought that a instant sequel to Arkham City was needed since their were a lot of questions fallowing Arkham City and I thought a 3rd fallow up game was needed. And of course finding out that Kevin Conroy wasn't voicing Batman and that another actor was needed to voice a younger Batman had me very worried. So in overall the question was could a prequel game really live up to the previous 2 games?

Well I got the game yesterday and I can say it does have its pro's and cons.

The Pro's. The open world environment. Gotham City looked just amazing and dark which helped keep the feel of the previous 2 games intact. And the idea of 8 assasians coming to Gotham City to kill Batman for 50 million dollars was very interesting. And it was nice to see the Black Mask getting more time in the game. And some of the villains in the game I never expected to see ever were in it. I also liked how it was the same control system as the previous 2 games because I had this belief the new video game company would change everything around to make it harder. The Con's. The off by a couple of second glitches. Every time I get into the batwing the game slightly freezes up. This was too familiar with Arkham City. When Arkham City came out I remember how that game had lots of bugs. Mainly the whole box popping up and the damaged download content crap that caused peoples game systems to constantly reset. I also found it slightly strange that Batman has the same weapons he did in Arkham City. If Origons takes place years before the previous 2 games shouldn't Batman not had had the same weapons he had in Arkham City. And if he did have these weapons the whole time shouldn't he had them when Arkham Asylum and Arkham City came along?

The verdict.

I will admit when this game was coming out and after hearing info on it I almost didn't get the game. I had worries from the start that this game wouldn't be as good and this game would likely end the series with a whimper. But I will admit it surpassed my expectations. Roger Craig Smith did a great job voicing a younger Batman. As did Troy Baker with voicing the younger Joker. And I was delighted they kept the dark atmosphere of the other 2 games intact. You cant have Batman be in a non dark feel. It just wouldn't be the same. So Warner Brothers Montreal. You did a great job. I rate the game as a 9. I recommend the game to anyone who hasn't played it.

This is game is amazing, it is a amazing take on Batman, Gotham and the Characters. The gameplay is also quite impressive with a good balance of Combat & Predator missions as well as full use of Batman's detective skills. The winter/Christmas setting works perfectly as a contrast from the darkening story.

While the game is amazing it feels like it should be setting up another trilogy of Batman games. It doesn't feel with like it connects with the timeline that Arkham Asylum to Knight set up. The result of this being it's outcasted by most fans. Making it quite underrated.

Rating: 8.75 / 10. Impressive but doesn't feel like it belongs to it's franchise.

Batman Arkham Origins was absolutely awesome! The combat with all the punching, kicking, and gadgets was very fun! The boss battles were also extremely cool especially the boss battle against Deathstroke and Firefly. The scenery with the very snowy Gotham City was beautiful. The story had some very funny moments. The story was another great story about take the fight to evil, don't ever murder, don't loose confidence, take care of your family, and don't be doubtful! Without doubt this is one of the best video games ever and is extremely underrated! Have a great day and goooo Batman Arkham Origins!

"Don't add me to the weight you carry..."

I know I'm not the only one when it goes to saying that Arkham Asylum shocked gamers back in 2009, presenting a dark malevolent atmosphere superhero game like no other. What nobody ever expected was Arkham Asylum, a sequel that pushed the boundaries to both video game storytelling and game engineering. So when they announced that a new prequel game was coming out, I was looking forward to it, but questioned it's success as soon as I heard that Warner Bros Montreal was making it and not the almighty Rocksteady. I feared that Origins would suffer the same fate all superhero video games do: mass advertising yet no game creativity and effort.

When I finally played the game, I was relieved that the game managed to exceed my expectations. No, this is no Arkham City or Asylum if you're wondering, consider it more of a Arkham City 5-6 hour DLC package.

I'll start off by saying that the story is by far the best of the franchise, it feels the most batman like of all three games. We are presented with a darker and deeper storyline, expressing a more humane and vulnerable Batman. In fact the character development is so well done in this game, you can actually feel Bruce Wayne's pain and anger and fears. The interaction between him and Alred is very well done, you can feel the emotion and tension of their parent child relationship throughout the game.

As for the gameplay, I think it was a notch down from the predecessors. While I commend WB for trying to be original and not blindly copying Rocksteady, I think it was a backfire. The combat system and boss fights have been dumbed down to simple and formulaic approaches. It's really just an over kill and bosses can be defeated using the 3 same buttons time and time again. The combat flow has disappeared and now you will experience abrupt glitches and loss in frame rate when combatting large groups of enemies. It's a real shame because the game has so much replay value, but is obstructed by game freezes and massive bugs.

The voice acting in this game is just as good as the previous games. I was a little nervous about Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill being replaced, but Roger Craig Smith (Batman) and Troy Baker (Joker) were great replacements. Smith did a great job of bringing Batman to life, and even seemed to bring more character and emotion to the character.

At the end of the day, if you loved the first 2 games then you'll love this one. As a Batman fan in general, you'll really love this game, just don't expect it to extend the limits of the batman universe we've loved since 2009. For these reasons Batman Arkham Origins gets an 8.5/10.