Batman: Arkham Asylum -- Final Opinion.

I have completed the main game of Batman: Arkham Asylum. I found all two-hundred and forty of the Riddler's challenges and collected everything there was to collect. I made it through the predator challenges, the ones based on stealth, with ease. However I wasn't able to make it through the combat challenges. The game's combat system is fine for what's required in the main game. When you're trying for the combat challenges it becomes quite apparent how awful the combat system actually is. And I'm talking the hand to hand stuff here. Not the stealth based takedowns and gadgets side of things. That side of things is perfect and as fun as can be. Why is the combat system awful? The game's combat flows much like a dance pretty much as it does in Assassin's Creed. And Batman's combat is truly a sight to behold. Batman leaps around agile as can be blocking and countering and just being about as badass as one can be. When it works. And therein lies the issue. Batman's hand to hand combo dance fails far too often. It just doesn't do what it's supposed to be doing. And the more I attempted the combat challenges the more annoyed I became with it. Assassin's Creed never once failed me. If you're going to go for such an autopilot heavy combat system, then you had better make sure it freaking works all the damn time. Maybe it's an issue of Batman being so close to true greatness that each flaw glares all the more for it. That's sort of the same issue I have with the characterization of the Joker. He's awesome. Just all around awesome. That is, until the end. Here is a wonderfully written and acted Joker who pulls off some Emperor Palpatine level string pulling in a plot to trap Batman within Arkham. He pulls it all off flawlessly and then for some unfathomable reason he just plan turns outright retarded in the final battle. I found it almost character breaking in its stupidity. And it's on the concept and character side of the final battle that this is an issue. And for many it probably isn't even an issue. The plot of Batman is generic comic book stuff. But the actual writing and characters, the Joker's end notwithstanding, are all extremely well represented. The voice acting is just top notch all the way around. From the lowest Joker henchman to the generic Arkham guard all the way up through the major characters. The graphics in the game are great. When I stopped to look at them. As I spent most of my time in the game's detective mode, which allows for thermal imaging and the like. And that mode is actually far less impressive as it tends to reveal the level geometry and uses less texturing. So unless I actually remembered to stop and turn it off and then looked around each room, I was missing most of the graphic power in the game. I really enjoyed the Riddler's collection aspect of the game. I think it's one of the best implementations ever devised in a video game and it made collecting every last item a joy. I also really enjoyed the Super Metroid find a new tool to progress style gameplay involved in the collection aspect. I did thoroughly enjoy my time spent in the main game. I think Batman: Arkham Asylum will make quite a few Game of the Year lists for 2009. It just won't make mine, but it is a must own title. I'm giving Batman: Arkham Asylum an 8.

Batman: Arkham Asylum -- Initial Impression.

Next up for me is Batman: Arkham Asylum, developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Eidos Interactive. Batman will likely be one of the last titles published by Eidos Interactive as they're now known by the name Square-Enix Europe. I've gone with the PlayStation 3 version of the game for two reasons. First, I'm looking to bolster my PlayStation 3 library. Second, the playable Joker challenge maps are the only real exclusive for the title. If Shadow Complex was a great send-off to the summer season Batman looks to be just as impressive a kick-off to the holiday season. Some of you might be saying holiday season? Batman marks the point where it essentially becomes a game a week or two for me through Thanksgiving and thus marks the start of the holiday season. From my time with Batman so far it appears to be a wonderful blending of ideas. At the core you have a 3D brawler coupled with the Batman aesthetic and all of his wonderful toys. You also have an experience system that allows for upgrading of items and abilities that provides sort of a Metroidvania sense of progression through the game. The game is also story intensive and actually pulls off the Batman world far better than any Batman game before it. It doesn't hurt that the three main characters are voiced by their counterparts from Batman: The Animated Series, which many, including myself would consider to be the best thing Batman ever created. A word of warning to the completionist out there, Arkham Asylum will drive you insane with its two-hundred and forty collectables. Which is rather fitting as they are all tied to the Riddler. They're just collectables, but how they're handled and presented just might be the coolest means yet. Batman: Arkham Asylum early on is showing signs of potential Game of the Year candidacy. Let's see how it shapes up on the other side...

Shadow Complex -- Final Opinion.

I have completed Shadow Complex numerous times and have earned the full two-hundred Gamerpoints. I have to say that Shadow Complex lived up to the hype and delivered a grand finale to Microsoft's Summer of Arcade II. Chair Entertainment and Epic Games have brought about a nearly perfect title. The only real flaw happens to come in the gameplay with the 3D aiming. It's not as dependable as it needed to be. It becomes far more noticeable on the harder difficulties. You'll die numerous times on the harder difficulties because it just wouldn't cover the target you needed it to cover. Another complaint, but not really a flaw, is in just how much they borrowed from the games that inspired Shadow Complex. They just blatantly steal from Super Metroid and Metal Gear Solid, and they throw in some G. I. Joe in there as well. I don't think I've ever seen anything as blatant. The graphics are great for an Xbox Live title. They're expanding the boundaries on what one would have thought possible for a download title. The music works very well, and there are some unique choices in the score. The voice work is top notch all around. The game's story is actually good in a quite goofy way and it doesn't get in the way. I found the game to be surprisingly cinematic. One of the aspects that I was surprised that I enjoyed were the bosses. In the fact that none of them are telegraphed with a boss door as they are in Castlevania. You just happen upon all of them without warning. I'm also really impressed with how they used achievement like pop-ups to inform you of your running totals towards the achievements. And that they took it a step further and started showing you the progress of the people on your friends list who were playing the game. You'd do a melee kill and you'd get a pop-up saying that ZBo had this many melee kills and that you had that many melee kills. The pop-ups inspired some friendly competition and they provided an interesting look at how others played the game. Overall Shadow Complex was a very satisfying conclusion to the summer season for me. I'm giving Shadow Complex a 9.

Shadow Complex -- Initial Impression.

Next up for me along with a return to regular updates is Shadow Complex for the Xbox 360. Shadow Complex is the final game of Microsoft's Summer of Arcade II and as such has a lot to live up to if you subscribe to the theory of saving the best for last. Shadow Complex is a predominantly 2D action game with 3D graphics that borrows heavily from the gameplay of Super Metroid and the aesthetics of Metal Gear Solid. The game was designed by Chair Entertainment with support from Epic Games and it uses the Unreal Engine. The game also comes with a degree of controversy as it has been written to some extent by Orsan Scott Card of Ender's Game fame. For some people he's a noted homophobe and religious zealot. I don't know what to make of the controversy as of yet. But I can say that Shadow Complex's initial couple of hours are great fun. And it really does owe everything to Super Metroid and Metal Gear Solid at this point. I'm a little iffy on the control so far though. It does have some instances where it fails. Normally in heavy combat. I've been pleasantly surprised by the level of the combat. And the situations are far more varied and interesting than I ever was expecting. So far Shadow Complex seems to be living up to the hype. Let's see if it can maintain its momentum...

Onechanbara: Bikini Samurai Squad -- All-in-One.

At just a couple hours shy of fifty hours I have completed Onechanbara: Bikini Samurai Squad for the Xbox 360 with the full one-thousand Gamerpoints. The total time to complete the game should give you an idea that there is actually a real game here. I went in to the game expecting a title that caters to Japanese perversion, and make no mistake about it as it is that, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a skill based hack and slash game at the core. The game was developed by Tamsoft of Battle Arena Toshinden fame. The game was published by D3 Publishers who are best known for their Simple series. A line of budget titles that range in quality from surprisingly decent to broken tech demo and failed student project levels. On the surface Onechanbara is a mess. It's exceedingly ugly. The graphics come off as decent original Xbox, not even good original Xbox. The story is batshit insane in its ludicrousness. The voice work is proof that even supposedly superior Japanese voice work can truly suck. The level design is uninspired and bland. Everything would be a real mess, if it weren't for the actual gameplay. There is something that's just satisfying about slicing through hordes of zombies. Now I realize that even the gameplay isn't going to click for everyone. It's truly skill based, and the game does nothing to help you. It just throws you in and lets you figure it all out. That alone will break it for a lot of people. Something did click for me with the combat though and I was able to find something beyond the chicks in bikinis being drenched in blood as they slice through wave after wave of zombies. I would say Onechanbara is worth the gamble of checking out to see if it clicks for you. I'm giving Onechanbara: Bikini Samurai Squad a 7.

Another Freaking General Update: Because I'm Lazy.

Every summer is the same thing. Planning on tackling the large backlog of games. Meandering around playing this and that instead of doggedly playing the games you should be playing. This summer seems to have been worse than any I can remember. I didn't get anything done. Well, that's not true. I've put in hundreds of hours into Sacred 2 and have all but one last achievement. Too bad that'll have to wait as I've snapped and can't play another second of Sacred 2 for the foreseeable future. I'll get that last achievement someday, so I tell myself. Magus is psyching himself up for a purchase of a PlayStation 3, finally. And what a long process this has been. The guy has three games for the system already, wants a few more already out, and shows interest in some future titles as well as wanting some PlayStation Network titles, especially some original PlayStation titles he needs to finally round up. And he's waiting on the Sony press conference from Cologne, Germany in hopes of an announcement of the rumored Slim PlayStation 3 or a price cut in the US in time for Demon's Souls and Uncharted 2. What else has been going on? Well, Microsoft's Summer of Arcade II is definitely a major cause in why I haven't accomplished much in the way of clearing the backlog. I've purchased four of the five titles thus far. I enjoyed the hell out of 'Splosion Man in both the single and multiplayer games. I've messed around with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled. Waiting to hook up with Riddel to play through it online. Most of us bought Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 but we haven't even begun messing around with that one. Trials HD came out today and I'm already really enjoying the game. And next Wednesday I'll be getting Shadow Complex. I purchased Fat Princess for the PlayStation 3 and enjoyed what I've played of it but the connection issues made me put it aside. Now that the patch is out, I'll have to get back to it, but will most likely wait for Magus and Neo to get the game before truly getting around to it. I've also been playing Onechanbara: Bikini Samurai Squad for the Xbox 360. You know the one, it started out as a Japanese PlayStation 2 title in the Simple Series of budget priced titles. It's a hack and slash with chicks in bikinis and zombies and showers of gore. I've been lazy but I'll write that one up in an all-in-one as there is some level of game there. More than most reviewers gave it credit for easily. Let's see, what else is going on? Oh yeah, Batman. Most of us had dismissed the title when it slipped from June to late August. We were interested but it now just was in the wrong spot. Bad timing and all that. Then the demo came out and it pretty much changed everyone's mind on the subject. So this holiday season will once again kick off in late August with Batman: Arkham Asylum. I'll be picking up the PlayStation 3 version, for the exclusive Joker maps, and it's time to expand the system's library a bit. After Batman, it's a game a week through November. And my backlog remains untouched. Joy. Maybe I should just stop pretending to care because one obviously can't win, especially with committing to online gaming over single player experiences this year.