Batman: Arkham Origins - Playstation 3

The first two Batman games were nothing short of amazing. I was definitely buying Arkham Origins, regardless of the things I was hearing and reading about it. I'll admit that my expectations were lowered due to the fact that a different group made the game. However, might I be so bold as to say this is the best Batman game I've ever played? Lets find out.Combat - It's pretty much the same combat system as before, which will always be a good thing in my book. Some have argued the combat feels a bit 'stiff', but I didn't notice that. The only difference that kind of stood out is the difficulty of some of the fights. I really looked forward to fighting huge groups of enemies in Arkham Asylum and Arkham City because it became easy once I got the hang of things. Arkham Origins' fights are lengthy and difficult, and at times feel like a total button masher. I'll explain what I mean: I've played more than my fair share of action games on the PS3. There's only been two games that caused me to experience forearm fatigue because of the button mashing fighting. Those games are Heavenly Sword (demo version) and now Arkham Origins. This is a prequel, so perhaps the fighting is difficult because they're wanting to emphasize that Batman is early on in his career, I don't know. At any rate, it gets a little easier when you acquire a certain gadget that I'll discuss in the next paragraph.Weaponry - If you've played any of the previous Batman games, you'll know he mainly uses gadgets as opposed to weapons, and that trend continues. The usual gadgets are present, so I'll focus on the new additions. We all know about the remote controlled batarangs; well now there's a remote controlled batclaw! Awesome, right? It doesn't really directly affect combat, I mainly used it to connect to far away grapple points. The concussion detonator actually does affect combat. It'll cause enemies to be momentarily dazed, giving you the chance to move in and put in work! The glue grenade is used to shut off those ever so annoying steam valves (or you can use the grenades on enemies too). Now to my favorite addition - The shock gloves!!! Here's how they work: You build up the battery by pounding on bad guys. Once fully charged, each melee strike will be accompanied by an electric shock. This made the tougher combat more enjoyable and a little easier :-)Enemies - I noticed a few new enemy types sprinkled here and there. The ones that stood out were the ninjas, the dudes with the venom filled canisters on their backs, and the brutes. The ninjas were different because you'll have to plan your strikes against them, as opposed to straight button mashing. I've been hearing a lot of negative things about the boss battles, and I don't understand why. In my opinion, each one was a little different and required some technique. Ok, the first one was a button mashing affair, but the others really weren't. You probably recall me saying I've played several PS3 action type games. Well, the final boss battle is the most terrifying boss battle I've ever encountered! I'm tempted to explain why, but I can't do so without giving spoilers. Some people are smart enough to give details without spoiling the game, but I'm sure in the hell not...Miscellaneous - Don't worry guys and gals, there's plenty of sidemissons with some pretty cool enemy encounters. You will not see the usual Riddler puzzles (thank God), but there are still collectables around town. Also, you'll get an opportunity to solve crimes, similar to how it's done in LA Noir, if you're familiar with that game. If you're into multiplayer, that feature is available in a Batman game for the first time. Arkham Origins didn't feel quite as long as the others, but it took me about 28 hours to complete (that includes the sidemissions and me screwing around in the city).The only negative thing about the game is very minor, but I still thought I'd mention it. The graphics are not as good as the previous two games, but that's not a big deal to me. After finishing Arkham Origins, I felt it was the best Batman game I've ever played. I had tons of fun, and was constantly looking forward to what might happen next. I'll be honest, if you play this game and you don't think it's at least 4 stars, I'll be shocked. Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus, you're up next!

EXCELENCT, FAST SHIPPING, GOOD PRODUCT.

"Arkham Asylum" and "Arkham City" are two of my very favorite games of last gen, from the way they amazingly encapsulate the iconic comic book hero, to the top-notch writing and voice-acting, to the terrifically fun predator and combat gameplay. Developed this time not by Rocksteady but by Warner Bros. Games Montreal, "Arkham Origins" isn't quite as good as the first two, but is in the same league, and delivers a meaningful, well-crafted storyline about Batman's (Roger Craig Smith) first run-in with the Joker (Troy Baker). The game takes place in the open-world environment of wintery Gotham City on Christmas Eve, where it's perpetual night and always snowing. Throughout you'll run into such villains as Black Mask, the Penguin, the Mad Hatter, Deathstroke, Bane and Shiva. Some of them I was unfamiliar with. Once the Joker is introduced, he steals the show. The city you get to glide around in and explore is just big enough and packed with tremendous detail, including numerous landmarks, Riddler challenges and side-quests. Story missions have you investigating the interiors of different locations around Gotham, like the Police Department and the GC Bank, and have hidden secrets to uncover once you've unlocked all your abilities. Predator and combat gameplay work about as well as it always has, though for some reason I found myself getting more frustrated here with the hand-to-hand combat than I did previously. (Maybe due to new enemy types?) "Origins" is not as polished as the previous games. It's also not the leap forward for the series that moving from the smaller, more intimate world of "Asylum" to the gigantic openness of "City" was. New is a kind of online multiplayer that combines third-person shooting with predator gameplay, but it comes off to me as arbitrary and unnecessary. I couldn't get into it. Multiplayer aside, this is a very good game that suffers only by comparison to two better games.--- 4.5 STARS ---