As a seasoned Batman fan with years of swinging through Gotham’s dark alleys under my utility belt, I must say that Batman: Arkham Shadow has left me thoroughly impressed and slightly nostalgic. The blend of classic Arkham gameplay, innovative VR mechanics, and intricate puzzles is akin to finding the perfect balance in a cup of Gotham’s finest coffee – strong, smooth, and surprisingly addictive.
It’s surprising that over 9 years have passed since the release of the latest primary Batman Arkham game. In that time, various projects connected to Arkham have been unveiled, but they often fell short or lacked something. The 2016 Batman Arkham VR was an innovative technology showcase, focusing on the series’ detective aspects. Both studios associated with Arkham, Rocksteady and WB Montreal, introduced cooperative Batman games recently, yet each faced multiple challenges for varying reasons. However, Batman: Arkham Shadow breaks this downward trend by genuinely re-capturing the spirit of the Arkham series in ways that other recent Batman universe games unfortunately missed out on, making it the best Batman game since Arkham Knight. Although it doesn’t reach the same heights as the series’ most memorable moments, it certainly stands out.
Batman: Arkham Shadow is exclusively for VR and serves as a direct follow-up to Arkham Origins, occurring about a year afterward. Here, Roger Craig Smith delivers an impressive portrayal of Batman, echoing Kevin Conroy’s iconic voice. This version of the Dark Knight is still somewhat green and cranky, working on refining himself into the usual unflappable Batman we recognize. His temper sometimes gets the better of him, and his knack for staying one step ahead of his adversaries isn’t yet a given. The game primarily takes place within Gotham City and Blackgate Prison, following a structure reminiscent of the Metroidvania-style design found in 2009’s Arkham Asylum.
The task of the Dark Knight is to locate and thwart a fresh adversary in Batman lore known as The Rat King, who is suspected to be secretly residing in a prison, mere days before his planned devastating attack on Gotham commences. This narrative takes place over the span of a full game week instead of the typical night-to-night structure found in Arkham storylines, and at times, it reveals some imperfections.
During a significant part of the game, you’ll assume the identity of Irving “Matches” Malone, a convict, to gain access into a high-security prison. The gameplay in these sections might feel different from what you’d typically expect from the Arkham series. One minor aspect includes spending money on commissary items to customize your cell, but the choices are limited and not particularly attractive. Adding such features could have seemed out of place within the Arkham universe.
Regardless of whether he’s in prison garb or his superhero outfit, Batman doesn’t socialize much. You’ll mainly catch a glimpse of him at the end of the day. When not wearing the cowl, there are some entertaining moments playing as Batman, such as missions requiring stealth or combat against other prisoners without his typical tools, but they can’t compare to the thrilling times in the Kevlar suit.
Despite the various costumes worn by Bruce Wayne, one persistent concern was the scarcity of memorable villains in the game. The battles with the bosses were limited, and many of them did not feature Batman’s primary antagonists. Playing Arkham Origins often left me feeling like I was fighting secondary or tertiary villains, such as Firefly, who couldn’t compare to well-known adversaries like Poison Ivy, Two-Face, or the Joker.
Arkham Shadow subdues the dramatic flair to minimal levels, exchanging a character like Deathstroke from Origins with Lock-Up, a powerful Tyger enforcer who often appears less than a complex antagonist. To its merit, Shadow skillfully utilizes its narrative being set during Batman’s early career, allowing for extended interaction with characters whose stories fans are familiar with, but encountering them before their descent into darkness is common in prequels. This approach is typical of prequels, yet it is satisfyingly executed in the Batman universe, as it is here – notably in several instances, but most significantly in one.
Compared to Rocksteady’s finest Batman tales, Arkham Shadow doesn’t quite measure up. I’ve always felt that Arkham City was one of the best Batman stories ever told, regardless of format, so the bar is set very high. While Arkham Shadow doesn’t reach this level, it’s not a poor story by any means. It improves in its final act and contains some excellent character moments. The game effectively recreates the atmosphere of the earlier titles in the series, thanks to its similar art direction and music score. Essentially, Arkham Shadow aims to remind you fondly of your experiences with the previous games in the franchise, and it aspires to be a part of that same cherished space in your memory. Despite a story that falls short, most other aspects of the game deliver.
Arkham Shadow is unique in that it’s only available on the Meta Quest 3 (and its less powerful counterpart, the Meta Quest 3S), setting it apart as a VR-exclusive game. However, for fans of the series, it plays like an essential expansion due to its faithful representation of the core elements of the franchise. Unlike Arkham VR, Arkham Shadow encompasses all three aspects of the series’ gameplay: combat, stealth, and detective work.
Experience in the combat proves Shadow is truly an authentic Batman game. For those who are skeptical about VR or have never tried it before, it would serve as a stunning showcase. It retains the balance of smoothness and intricacy characteristic of past games, with its distinctive counter mechanics flawlessly adapted to VR, enabling you to effortlessly defeat a dozen foes without a single scratch on your jawline.
As a gamer, instead of hitting a button when a prompt appears on-screen to trigger a counter, Shadow uses a lightning bolt symbol on the left or right side of my interface. To execute this move, I just extend my arm towards the same side, much like in other Arkham games where you can pound an opponent but swiftly switch to a counter that extends your combo meter. This action triggers special abilities such as finishing moves and activating Batman’s shock gloves. The camera adjusts automatically to face the countered enemies, although I still have the freedom to rotate it myself. It all flows just as smoothly as the other games in the series, deserving the “freeflow” title on its own merit.
In this game, familiar foes from the series reappear, each one introducing an intricate layer to the battle mechanics. To subdue the larger, more aggressive Tyger guards, you’ll need to use your cape as a makeshift stun weapon – in VR, this is achieved by waving your arm without squeezing the triggers, which would simulate a punch instead. Enemies with stun batons can be overwhelmed by moving the right stick to adjust your position and then striking them from behind by raising and lowering both arms quickly. Enemies with knives require quick dodging before you can counter their attacks with your own moves, while riot-shielders call for a combination of cape-stunning followed by climbing and an overhead forearm smash. Veterans of the Arkham series will recognize these tactics, as they’re similar to what was done in previous games. The physical interactions in combat feel just as I remember them from before, creating a unique sensation that I’ve never experienced before. Each battle is both thrilling and accessible, allowing for mastery of its systems, which in turn triggers a rush of dopamine. In a way I’ve never felt before, I am Batman.
This is just as uncannily true when moving through the world in all the ways you can as the hero. When gliding down from gargoyles, or bat-clawing over a ledge, you move at the same speed, and with seemingly the same animations, you’d be used to from other Arkham games. Here, you’ll physically hold out both arms to your sides to perform a glide, rather than hold down a single button, but how it looks and feels is otherwise identical to before. A glide kick from 40 feet away includes the same look and feel that series experts will be used to. Even looking down at my legs when I was simply walking, Batman seems to have the same gait he always had in the series. I didn’t expect this degree of duplication and probably would’ve settled for something quite like what I knew before. But this isn’t just quite like it. It is it. Having played each of the Arkham games several times over, Arkham Shadow feels like coming home after some time spent away. It’s familiar and faithful in all the right ways.
In VR games, combat actions are similar to those on a controller, but stealth maneuvers require more physical, multi-step movements. For example, in an older Arkham game, you’d press one button to pounce on an enemy below and hang them up as a warning for others during the “predator” sections. In VR, this single ability is broken down into several smaller motions: First, you hold down the right stick to cling to a gargoyle, then lunge at an enemy nearby with both arms. The enemy is automatically lifted, but to complete the move, you must toss them away, much like The Undertaker throwing Mankind off the cell in 1998.
This game might seem complex initially, but it quickly becomes intuitive with the on-screen instructions. It’s not overly precise in its requirements, so if you come close, that usually works just fine. Much like other VR games, it allows for approximations. For instance, crouching behind adversaries or emerging from grates beneath them to silently strangle them is a very tactile experience. You need to reach out towards them by extending your arms when attacking, and then move your arms sideways repeatedly to mimic a chokehold until they lose consciousness.
In a creative upgrade for virtual reality, Batman’s utility belt also gets an update. The device previously used to open doors in earlier games has been transformed into a motion-based puzzle. You draw the device, aim it at the lock, then consult a mini radar-like map in your hand to find the precise spot where inputting the unlock code becomes possible. Additionally, familiar tools make a comeback such as the bat-claw for removing grates from high, hard-to-reach ducts and the explosive launcher which can be used to blast open walls or even momentarily stun adversaries during a fistfight.
Of course, Shadow comes equipped with a detective mode too! To activate it, simply guide either controller towards one side of your head and press a trigger. This function operates like a basic on/off switch, instantly altering the environment to a light blue tint. Items crucial for quests and numerous additional puzzles become conspicuous in orange within this filter. In terms of detective gameplay, this series has always been relatively straightforward – it’s not as intricate as Obra Dinn; you primarily roam around, interacting with highlighted items to let Batman automatically make his conclusions based on these interactions.
That’s true here too, but like before, I find even this simplistic take on detective work functions well as a reminder that Batman isn’t just one part MMA fighter and one part ninja; he’s also a gumshoe. Whereas the previous attempt to bring Batman Arkham to VR captured only this basic gameplay loop that usually doesn’t survive such a spotlight, in Shadow, it’s one relatively minor but still important piece to delivering a well-rounded, authentic Arkham experience.
In this Metroidvania-style game, I find myself veering off the main path quite often to break rat statues, silence propaganda radios, and gather audio logs – among other intriguing puzzles. These challenges are similar to Riddler Challenges in the Arkham series, offering a satisfying yet not overly challenging distraction from the primary objective for a short while. While some of these puzzles can’t be solved until you acquire specific tools later in the story, the game does a good job of signaling when they are beyond your reach, like when it’s obvious that I can’t access a vent high above me without the bat-claw yet. I always find myself drawn to these optional puzzles, often delaying my progress unless I lack the necessary equipment to overcome them. To achieve 100% game completion, you’ll need to clear out these brainteasers along with the game’s engaging combat and stealth challenges, which are strategically placed outside of the main campaign – another hallmark of this series.
Equipped with numerous tools and all essential gameplay elements, Shadow provides an extensive array of movement and accessibility settings, enabling players to discover their preferred playstyle. Three primary movement styles serve as the foundation, yet each can be tailored to suit individual preferences. For instance, if you prefer a realistic turning method, it’s available. Moreover, if you enjoy a heavily blurred viewpoint, similar to some VR games that help minimize nausea, you can have that too.
As a gamer, let me share my recent experience with Virtual Reality games. Some of the latest ones left me feeling queasy, which surprised me given my history of avoiding such issues. Luckily, Arkham Shadow didn’t give me that sensation. I played it on the moderately challenging setting, finding the perfect balance between easy-going gameplay for beginners or those prone to nausea, and the intensely immersive VR experience sought by more experienced gamers. However, it seems the game consumes battery quite rapidly, as I managed to complete it in five sessions of about two hours each, not because of nausea but due to my device’s 5% battery warning.
My foremost problem with Arkham Shadow is a lack of polish, which I consider different from the ubiquitous VR jank that pops up in Blackgate occasionally, like mangled forearms seen when opening some doors, or fingers that clip through held objects. The bugs I experienced were diverse in their nature, though thankfully not too numerous in their total instances. To name a few: Sometimes I’d get stuck behind an invisible wall, like when I’d deactivated an electrified barrier, but the game treated it like it still stood there. Other times, I’d load into an area and briefly witness a strange out-of-body experience where I watched from a great distance the entire game world laid into place before being teleported into the right spot. I’m not sure if it was a bug or just a lack of enemy barks and taunts, but in some fights, the bad guys I was scrapping with would too often repeat each other, too.
In isolation, none of these issues are significant enough to ruin the game, but together, they were quite noticeable. A virtual reality game often has to compromise on visuals compared to what a PC or console game can provide. When I encountered bugs like these in addition to the Arkhamverse being presented in a lower resolution, it served as a reminder that while this new style of Arkham game feels authentic and reminiscent of the classics, it occasionally falls short.
Despite acknowledging its flaws, I must admit that I’m well-acquainted with my criticism bias by now, and I tend to be less bothered by bugs than many others. If a game delivers an outstanding core experience – if it offers moments that are genuinely thrilling – I usually find myself willing to overlook some rough edges. That’s where I stand with Batman: Arkham Shadow. Indeed, the high points of this game are indeed high enough. The storyline is an enjoyable Batman adventure that could easily pass as a compelling comic book series, even if it doesn’t quite match up to Rocksteady’s main narrative. What truly sets Batman: Arkham Shadow apart is its skillful implementation of the core Arkham gameplay mechanics, making it a must-play for Batman enthusiasts and serving as an impressive benchmark of how far virtual reality has progressed in just a few short years. Although there have been other Batman Arkham games designed for VR, Shadow is the one that truly feels like it belongs alongside its predecessors.
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2024-10-29 00:39