The Last of Us Review

I said that I would be reviewing InFamous Second Son this week, but after binge-playing The Last of Us, I feel like it needs to come first.

I'm also sticking with the style of review I used for Sherlock. It seemed a lot better, so I'm trying it out.

So without further ado, here we go.

The Last of Us-

I'll be honest, when I first heard about this game I wasn't excited.
My first thought was, "Great, another no-so-scary survival horror game."

Luckily I have friends who have a nasty little habit of changing my opinion. Shortly after The Last of Us was released, my fiancee and I were convinced to come over and check it out by one of those friends.

When he said "Come over and watch The Last of Us" though, I was confused. It all made sense when I noticed just how much this game was like a movie, and that has always been a big deal for me.

The biggest thing I noticed about this game is that the story is the focal point. Most games they try to make the story stick out, but the gameplay is so boring that you end up not caring enough about the characters or the plot and end up not playing it. The flip side of this being that some others make the gameplay great, but drop the story like a bad habit.
[To be perfectly honest, I still don't know what the hell Borderlands is about, but I could play for days.]

The Last of Us was a breath of fresh air for someone like me who values story, but greatly appreciates a decent challenge. The story is captivating, the gameplay is fluid and not too hard to get the hang of. [The bow requires a bit of practice, and you have to get used to the sway of Joels aim, but it's by no means to much to handle.]

What really draws you in, at least in my personal opinion, is the first part of this game. In these first moments you get a taste of the amazing graphic quality of this game. [Greatly enhanced in the Remastered edition for PS4, and something I've come to expect from Naughty Dog] Also notable is the voice-over. I have NEVER played a game or watched an animated film where the voice and the character

Probably helps having the VO do the motion capture too

were so absolutely perfect that I felt like they were real people rather than a fictional creation. The actors gave such amazing performances that they drew you even deeper into the story than if their performances would have been off in any way.

On to the gameplay we notice that the walking alone is very smooth, and that it seems like almost everything is explorable. Walking through the house you hear a TV, and if you go to investigate you can hear a news report of riots in the streets of Austin, just before seeing an explosion out the window and the broadcast cutting off. A moment that sets the tone for the entire game.

Right in the feels.

I have to say that if you're any kind of bleeding heart, don't play this game or watch a playthrough on youtube. You'll have too many feels just within the first few minutes. [If I didn't know any better, I would say Steven Moffat wrote this game, because we all know how much he likes to tear out your heart.]

Cheers to Naughty Dog!

Shoot ahead twenty years into this new world, and we've got a new, ass-kicking, drug-peddling Joel, working with the most badass girl I've seen in any game. I really have to give Naughty Dog credit on this one. I mean, usually the AI in games are useless. They walk into walls, they miss every attack, and half the time they glitch entirely, forcing players to restart their games just to be able to get to the next area. With Tess, the formula has changed. She's actually helpful. Honestly, at the beginning of the game I was still getting a hang of the controls, and if it weren't for Tess I would have died countless times.

[I feel like this review is all over the place already. Damn it.]

I really want to jump ahead and not focus too much on explaining the game to you, because lets face it, these are supposed to be reviews, not summaries.

So moving forward past more heartbreaking moments like Tess
revealing her infection, Joel treating Ellie like some kind of cancerous lump on his back, and meeting Bill and witnessing his painful struggle, we get a taste of something really special.

Here we have it. The Holy Grail of post-apocalyptic survival stories, graphic excellence, and intense gameplay... And what should Naughty Dog throw in but the conflict of fighting both fungus zombies and human enemies alike. It's a definite challenge when you have to change everything about your play style in order to have a hope of making it to the next part of the game. On top of it all, you get into these confrontations in realistic ways and places. You can approach these scenarios in any way you see fit, and the AI will react in a realistic manner to what you do. After seeing multiple people play this game, and after playing it twice myself, I've never seen the same encounter twice.

Another high point to me is the change in characters. This game

doesn't play like a giant escort mission, and Ellie can be played at various points through the game. At one point in the story, Joel is injured and comatose for what seems like months. Ellie has to step up and take care of them both in the dead of winter. It leads to an interesting change for Ellie, helping her mature.

What I've heard a lot of players rave about is the lack of boring characters in this game, and I have to agree. Not a single character is

boring, and I would love to have more background on them. For instance, I would kill for a DLC about Henry and Sam, the two brothers met in Pittsburgh that help Joel and Ellie get out of the city safely. Even though their run in the game was so short lived, I still felt a big tug at the heart-strings when Sam became infected, and Henry had to put his little brother down. Even more tugs when Joel and Ellie left him at his instructions, and as they closed the door there was the sound of a gunshot and another body dropping.


As their journey continues, Joel and Ellie meet up once more with the Fireflies, the organization that hired Joel and Tess to transport Ellie all

this way so she could be examined to find what makes her immune to the infection. They thank Joel for his time and sacrifices he's made, and take Ellie. Soon, however... We find that in order to synthesize the cure they're searching for, Ellie has to die. The part of her that the cure relies on grows on her brain, and has to be removed. Now for Joel to decide whether her life is worth more than the entire human race.

Every part of this game, from the first scene to the end credits, is an amazing experience that everyone with a PS3 or PS4 needs to

experience in some way before it's too late. Everything about this game touches you in ways that no other game has ever been able to. Your favorite game series will not fill you with so much fear and sadness, even in the darkest of moments.

This is without a doubt the first game I've ever believed deserved a full 10/10 rating from anyone, let alone me.

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Got something you would like me to review? Contact me on Twitter, Instagram, deviantART, or leave your message here and I'll see what I can do.

Sherlock TV Review

Alright, I know I missed a week but someone important showed up and I got caught up in that, so we'll pick things back up a week later with a television review.
[Also, sorry if this seems less thought out than my other reviews, I haven't been working on this one all week after all]

Now to get this going, I have to say this is going to be a bit shorter than my reviews of video game or movie series, as I'm reviewing the show as a whole rather than season-by-season. Also, I've had about four hours of sleep, so I have this sinking feeling that half way through this I'm going to start checking out completely so there's that.


Ladies and Gentlemen, I present...

Sherlock-

I have to admit, even as a long-time Whovian [Fan of Doctor Who, for those who don't know] and fan of Sherlock Holmes, I was a bit nervous to check out Sherlock. The BBC hadn't had a great track-record of keeping my interest with the exception of Doctor Who, and even though he is doing an amazing job running THAT show, I wasn't sure how Steven Moffat would do here.

I have to say though, I was pleasantly surprised.

The show is honestly one you have to watch a great majority of the first episode for it to peak your interest properly, but when it does, get ready for something you'll undoubtedly be drawn to time and time again.

As for the acting.

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as Sherlock Holmes and John Watson...

Season 3, episode 2

Just amazing. You can feel the chemistry between the two. You can see that friendship that borders on addiction that was ever-present in the stories and the movies. These two men have created the dynamic duo of British television, and believe me, I haven't a single complaint.

"Honey, you should see me in a crown."

But it's not just them. I even grew to love, or more accurately, love to hate, James Moriarty. [A.K.A Jim] Played by someone I have honestly never heard of before, Andrew Scott, and I have to say, he completely blew this out of the water. It was a version of Moriarty that I had never seen before, and now sort of wish I had. He's amazingly clever, infinitely cunning, and insanely [and hilariously] evil.

Honestly just look at this guy.

Even Mycroft [as big a douche as he is] is a character I have come to love in some... Strange way. He seems to be the only person other than Moriarty who can get under Sherlocks skin. The only person who can outsmart Sherlock [well, match Sherlock on some level], and their banter throughout the series is so annoyingly brilliant.

And last I have to bring up my personal favorite incarnation of an iconic character, Irene Adler [A.K.A "The Woman"] played by the ever-lovely Lara Pulver. Just the way we are introduced to her is beautiful in itself. Fully nude [Albeit not showing anything to the viewers. I mean this is television people] and sporting the biggest "deduce me, Sherlock" grin you could imagine. And even though Watson is caught of guard by her appearance, Sherlock remains brilliantly unphased.

Now, I'm moving on to reviewing the show itself and I'm going to try something new that I feel will help me avoid the "I'm just summarizing" thing I've been doing so bear with me here.

As for the show itself, I've never seen such brilliant writing and acting in all of television. I mean honestly, Benedict Cumberbatch is typically a great person who actually cares about people. So seeing him as Sherlock Holmes, a "high-functioning sociopath" [Do your research] with little-to-no skills in human interaction and a complete disregard for people and their emotions.

The way things happen, and how we're kept on our toes through the episodes pleases me to no end. As a modern adaptation of Sherlock Holmes, an idea that seems like a "crash-and-burn" scenario, I must admit that this show has been successful in sticking to the source material, as well as providing a new spin on classic literary characters.

We're kept wanting more, from the entertainment of watching Sherlock deduce what happened to a murder victim by studying the most minor of details in their appearance and the environment around them, even managing to tear apart their entire life story in an instant and effectively performing the autopsy and providing a list of suspects in seconds...

I mean, how can he tell this guy is a reader?

To figuring out everything about someone he's just met, just by small details in their clothing and overall appearance. Hell, just by looking at you, he could tell if your wife was cheating on you by a speck of dust on your left boot. That's just how the guy works.



Honestly though, I have to say that one of my favorite parts of this show is how we can become so invested in background characters and faces we'll never see again. How their story can catch our interest, and even after their issue has been resolved, even after the episode is over, and even though we know we'll never see them again... We still want to know what happens to them after the show. That, to me, is a very important aspect in a TV show. I don't want just nameless faces, I want someone who brings something to the program and progresses the story, while not being the focus of the show. Sherlock has accomplished this more times than I can count.

Spoiler alert!

I have nothing but good things to say about this show. It's perfection in television and I have no shame in saying this. The twists and turns the show takes, and the surprises you'll never see coming...[But I have to say, I hate this "3 episodes per season" formula]

And the season finales that leave you begging for more, leaving you to make your own guesses at what happens, talk amongst your fellow fans as you try to figure it out, and then be blown away when the next season comes along and tells you that everything you know [or think you know] is wrong.

As much as I hate to say how much I adore another creation of the monster of a man that is Steven Moffat... I have to give Sherlock a completely solid, and well-deserved 10/10, for solid writing, impressive casting, and leaving me begging for more as I finish season 3.

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So hopefully I haven't kept to the summary format I've been using in my past reviews. And I hope this gives people who've never watched the show a reason to at least add it to their Netflix list without spoiling anything.

Let me know in the comments below,
on Twitter [@JeffSanchezVA],
Instagram [@jeffsanchez.va],
or Facebook [If you're already my friend there] what I should review next.
At the moment, I'm thinking Guardians of the Galaxy. I saw it last night and it was fantastic.

Seriously though... Steven Moffat... He'll take every character you've ever loved, stab them directly in the face, and make you watch with your eyes taped open and your body strapped to a chair... And you'll keep coming back for more...

The Amazing Spiderman Series Review

Again, this will be a joined review. However, for a different company and medium.

I present to you [cue drum-roll]

The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2!

[obviously we'll start with the first movie]



The Amazing Spider-Man-

First I would like to point out that I know this movie got mixed reviews. Some people loved it, some people hated it, and some people [and I can't believe someone would actually say this...] thought it was a rip-off of the Sam Raimi movies.
[Seriously? They're based on the same damn source material...]


Now for the actual review.

First thing's first. The actors.

Andrew Garfield IS Peter Parker in my personal opinion. He's got the awkward thing down to a science as well as the look I wanted Peter to have since childhood. I mean lets face it, a hero like Spider-Man can't work the way he does if he's a beefed up 6'5" monster of a man. This was a breath of fresh air to the hardcore Spidey fans. His mannerisms, and his snappy come-backs and quips made this the Spider-Man we all wanted to begin with.
[Sorry Toby fans]

I have to admit, even though I would have preferred her as Mary Jane Watson, Emma Stone did a phenomenal job portraying Gwen Stacy. Her no-bull attitude and overall confidence was a break away from the "damsel in distress" we all expect from a superhero movie and was absolutely impressive. Honestly, I couldn't ask for a better Gwen.


Then there's Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Both done well, and much more well developed that the previous films. We actually had a chance to get to know Martin Sheen Uncle Ben before he died, and Sally Field actually helps give Aunt May a chance to develop and grow along with Peter throughout the film.

Now for the actual movie.

After Spider-Man 3 I was skeptical about a new Spidey film. But considering this was a reboot I gave it a shot to prove itself.

From the start I was pleased to see that the comic book feel to the movies was gone. Instead we get a more realistic feeling of what it would be like for a kid in new york to suddenly develop superhuman abilities. But not just a kid, a relatable character.

Unlike the development of Peter in the Raimi franchise, this new Peter is just a kid trying to get through high school. He rides a skateboard to get around, is smart but not a walking encyclopedia, has his trouble with bullies [that aren't your cookie cutter bullies, and actually take opportunities to be nice sometimes, you know, like real people?], has a crush on a girl with similar interests rather than a busty redhead, and has a healthy relationship with his aunt and uncle. He's a real guy.


One of the big things for me is the way they did his transformation. It wasn't the "oh my, I've been bitten by a spider and I'm faint" but rather a series of confusing happenings that catch Peter off guard. He didn't suddenly wake up at home and find himself oddly muscular. Rather, he woke up the same, but noticed something was wrong when he got stuck to the ceiling and well... Everything else.

In fact, his strength didn't really manifest until the next day, giving a strong indication that it was a steady going process rather than an instant transformation. [And even possibly paving the way for the Man-Spider story line later on]



 My favorite part of this movie actually has to be the mechanical web shooters. While the organic shooters were convenient in the previous movies, they were TOO convenient. Nothing could happen to stop the organic shooters to disable them. They were always there. Now we have the problems of "what if Peter runs out of fluid?" or "what if they get smashed?" and it creates more possible issues to overcome later on.

[I'll clarify that this is only such a big deal to me since i've always been a fan of the mechanical shooters and the development of them]

Now, things escalate from Peter having fun with his new abilities to needing to do something with them rather quickly after the death of his Uncle. They really tap into how he should feel in this situation instead of Peter just becoming Spider-Man and fighting for the people of the city, but rather blaming himself for letting the thief go and not going home or answering Ben's calls.

Taking this information we get a chance to see that in this situation, any normal person would take the selfish revenge route rather than the superhero route. The "with great power comes great responsibility" bit doesn't quite sink in at first, but does come later.

The Lizard, I have to say, seemed a bit under-developed. There was no humanity to him while in the monstrous form and led to a feeling that he just had to be stopped rather than saved. He had too much of a singular goal in mind and that just lacked something to me. The distinction between Connors and the Lizard was too extreme. I didn't like that Connors was happy about his discovery and then suddenly angry at the guy who was going to start his product in human trials in a split second leading him on a rampage across the Brooklyn Bridge.




[SPOILER ALERT] We finally see the rest of Peters development at the end of the movie after the Lizard goes on a city wide rampage and the death of Cpt. Stacy, Gwens father. He finally realizes that there are always consequences to his actions and he has to be careful. But it also finally clicks that he has the ability to help this city and not just pursue his own selfish goals.

I have to appreciate the humor throughout the film. Spideys taunts and jokes, the humorous situations he catches himself in, and then the jab at the Raimi Spider-Man game.
[the cranes that led to OsCorp at the climax referencing the convenient crane that follows Spider-Man around New York in the game, which I can't find a picture of to save my life, but I promise, it's there]

The movie paces itself well, develops the characters and their relationships well, and makes sure the viewer can relate to everything. You feel Peters loss as if it were your own, and get a real feeling for what it would be like to gain strange abilities.

I even love the new costume design. It looks like something that would get put together by a high school student using pieces of other bits of clothing. [granted as long as they knew how to sew or print images on fabric] It was also a great way to change up the design without it looking like something drastically different from the Spider-Man we know and love.

Overall I give The Amazing Spider-Man an 8/10. I only docked points for not developing the Lizard more than they should have. Other than that it was an amazing film.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2-

To say that this was an amazing sequel is an understatement, BUT it's sadly not perfect.




We start with a flashback sequence, just not to the first movie like you would expect. No, instead we're given a look back at the night Richard and Mary Parker dropped Peter off with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben, followed by the details of what happened to them afterward.

In this scene we learn that there was more to Richard Parker's research than we previously believed, and apparently it was worth his life, his wife, and the lives of the pilots of the plane they were on.

Finally back to the Spider-Man side of the story we meet up with an older [albeit not very much older] Peter who's had a little while to be the superhero version of Spidey that we didn't get to see in the previous film. He's helping the police, stopping criminals, the whole nine. We even get to see the makings of a new villain, the Rhino.

Tell me he's not Calendar Man

[Let's be honest for a moment about the Rhino. Paul Giamatti, while I love his work, was the wrong choice. I did not like his portrayal of the Rhino. He was basically the stereotypical angry Russian. I didn't mind the mech suit that they made, but it seemed like they just wanted to force a villain into the movie that didn't need to be there. It made for a good opening and ending scene, but other than that it just seemed unnecessary.]

Moving on, we find out some things that have been going on since we last saw Peter and Gwen. For instance, they've had a rocky relationship [cus you know, being a superhero probably cuts into your social life A BIT], Peter and Gwen are graduating, and Spidey has helped lower the overall crime rate in New York, albeit not by that much, but enough to be significant for one person.

Hell, Spider-Man has even developed a fan following amongst the citizens of the city, most notably being Max Dillon, a strange and awkward man who feels like he finally has a friend after an encounter with Spider-Man in the streets and Spidey tells Max that he needs him.


Finally breaking into the story we also have Harry Osborn, [played by the insanely talented Dane Deehan known for the film Chronicle] an old friend of Peters who was sent away by his father years ago. Now he comes back at the request of his father, Norman, to take over the company after his death. A request that Harry is reluctant to fulfill.

We get a chance to get to know Harry rather well through his interactions with Peter and his board members at OsCorp, and even get a taste of his internal struggle as he deals with the effects of the genetic disease he inherited from his father.

Back to Max Dillon, the obsessive fan of Spider-Man. We find that he works on the electrical grid at OsCorp, and ends up being forced to fix an issue and stay after work by himself, even on his birthday. Sad right? I agree. Because this poor guy, who just wants a damn friend in his life, just gets stepped on by others. So when he has his accident that inevitably turns him into the pure energy being known as Electro, we actually feel sadness for him. It's a nice change from the usual "normal thug gains superhuman abilities and becomes a super-villain for monetary gain" formula. We get a misunderstood guy that doesn't want to hurt anyone [in fact, he wanted to be a hero and fight alongside Spider-Man] who gets pushed into hurting others.

The standoff in Times Square with Electro actually gave a chance to see how torn Peter is between his love life and his life as a superhero, when on a date with Gwen he notices the sirens and power surges coming from across the city. Now, this is where things get interesting because he gets a chance to interact with this man he saved, but barely remembers. Stumbling around his words to save the people on the street, he barely manages to calm Max down enough to subdue him, before the police around the scene slip up and shoot Max. Now convinced that Spider-Man tricked him so they could take him out, Max feels betrayed, and takes this chance to exact his revenge on the police and the Spider for humiliating him in front of everyone in the city.

Spider-Man still manages to stop Electro from hurting anyone, but he has to reflect on the impact he has on the city and the people who live there.

Sadly, there are some issues I would like to address...

Now, what makes this movie less AMAZING than the previous film is the feeling of being overcrowded. Not like Spider-Man 3 was, with multiple villains, but rather with too many story arcs.

There's the "Harry Osborn and his daddys company" side of the story that actually manages to set up for Felicia Hardy to come into the story later on. [somehow] in which we get to see more revelations about Peters parents, one of which being that the reason Peter has the reaction to the spider venom after being bitten is because his father, during his time at OsCorp, treated them to only react properly to his blood, and thus Peters.
[great, right? makes sense. After all, OsCorp = Bad]
Also that this comes into play when Harry contacts Spider-Man hoping that his blood would help synthesize a cure for his fatal disease [which by the way, he has no way of knowing that his blood would help], which Spidey says no to for fear of creating an army of Spider-Men
[I GUESS that makes sense?], which actually leads to Harry basically... Hiring Electro to get him into the OsCorp labs [after being locked out of the company by the board of directors for being an annoying brat] so he can find the leftover venom from the spiders [seen in the previous film] after they were incinerated, hoping for a cure.

We also get the Peter and Gwen love issues of "will they, won't they" and that takes up entirely too much time in the overall film.

On top of all of that, we get the fact that [as I said previously] Rhino is basically cut out of this film.
Sure he got some screen time and it was a great "oh wow, Rhino!" moment, but kind of disappointing for the most part.

Then, even though it's actually a big point in this movie, the Goblin

gets almost no screen time either. He basically swoops in and causes trouble for Spider-Man in the last twenty minutes of the movie, and his damage only really lasts for fifteen of those twenty.

"A God named Sparkles?"

[But I have to say, the scientific way they attempt to destroy Electro actually made me remember just how much of a science nerd Peter was, and even happier when he succeeded]

[SPOILER ALERT]

Seriously, what is this place?

Now, although his role is shorter than expected, the Goblin has a lasting effect on Spider-Man himself. Not only realizing that Peter is Spider-Man, he takes it upon himself to hurt Peter the way he feels he deserves, by trying to get rid of Gwen. We see an admittedly epic struggle in the clock tower [or whatever the hell that place was. I have no idea. I just know there were giant gears and shit] that could be the end of Peter, Gwen, or Harry.

Sadly though, we see it as the end of Gwen, as the chaos destroys the tower, sending Gwen plummeting to her death at the base of the tower, with Peter just barely able to catch her... But not before her body hits the ground below.

I have to say, I normally don't get overly emotional at movies [with the exception of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows], but I found myself choking up as my fiancee bawled next to me.

At the next few scenes, I'm reminded of something Peter said to Gwen previously in the film.

"I'll follow you forever."


This comes into play as we see a montage of Peter standing at her grave over the months following her death.

Once again though, Aunt May comes to the rescue with her words of wisdom. She tells Peter that eventually, no matter how much we love someone, they would want us to move on, and that if we don't, we'll never be ourselves again.

"There really is no place like home"

As a sign of him coming back into his own, Peter responds to a police call that a man in a mechanized suit is terrorizing the city in Spider-Man's absence. As a small child in a Spider-Man costume steps up to face Rhino, Peter swoops in and pulls him aside before launching the attack.

Now sadly I have to give this movie a lower rating than the first.
Due to the issues I had with it I'm giving The Amazing Spider-man 2 a 7/10, for being overly crowded with story.
It was a fun ride and full of emotions and laughter, but honestly it lacked something that the first movie had, and that was a clear and singular storyline.

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Now, as I said in my Arkham reviews, I'm still getting the hang of this so hold on and don't lose faith, because I still have a lot of room to improve.
I feel as though most of what I'm doing is just explaining the movie to you guys and I need to stop doing that. So give me some time and I promise you'll have some proper reviews and I can really take off with this whole thing.

Comments, questions, concerns? Use the comments section below or contact me on Facebook if you're a friend, or twitter if you're not [@JeffSanchezVA]

Thanks for reading and supporting me on this, and we'll continue to see where this goes.

Batman Arkham Saga Reviews

To make things simpler, rather than reviewing on a whole. I'm breaking this review into around four micro-reviews.

First and foremost, I give you

Batman Arkham Asylum-

The first installment of the Batman Arkham Saga was really expected to be a flop by much of the community. I mean lets face it, Batman hasn't had a great track record as far as video games are concerned.

Cartoons? Amazing. Movies? Hit and miss, but for the most part people love them, or at least, love to hate them. But you would be hard pressed to find someone who actually says they've enjoyed any previous Batman games.

To get things started, I have to honestly admit that when I started this game, and I heard Batman speak... I was hit with a huge rush of nostalgia.
I mean how can I not? It's Kevin Conroy! For anyone who doesn't know who that is, he's the voice of Batman in Batman: The Animated Series, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, The New Batman Adventures, Justice League, and DC Universe Online. To sum it up, this guy IS Batman.

Now, hearing Kevin as the Bat brought back great memories, but what really hit home for me was Mark Hamill reprising the role of the Joker. He was dark, he was funny with a hint of creepy, and he actually brought that character to life in a way that I hadn't seen from the animated series and movies.

From the jump, this game captured my attention and I can honestly say I wasn't disappointed with the overall experience.

The voice acting was superb, the graphics [at the time] were breathtaking, and the feeling that I got from the game just felt amazing.

Now for gameplay.

I'll admit, going back to this one after playing Arkham City and Arkham Origins... It feels sort of choppy and hard to play. But when I first played it [all 10 times], it was the best control I'd felt from any game I had played. All games prior, I felt like the motion, the combat, the overall control was just... lacking something. If you turned to sharply you hit a wall, or if you didn't hit the button just right or stand in just the right place your options would just disappear. But with this game, none of that. Batman moved the way I wanted him to. The only mistakes I made as far as attacks were caused by my own forgetfulness [eg. Which button was it to use my batclaw?]. This game just felt so smooth and easy to play.

The story.

I don't even want to get started on the story because I know I'll bore everyone to tears. But alas, I have to in order to give a proper review [even though I feel like this has already gotten away from me].
I have to say, I'm a sucker for a great story. Whether it be from a tv show, movie, video game, whatever. If the story isn't good, I typically don't like it. So to say that the story for this game was amazing is a huge compliment from me.

You start off just dropping Joker off at Arkham Asylum. No big deal right? Kinda routine for Batman at this point if I'm going to be completely honest. But something's up, clearly. I mean, how can we have a video game without some kind of struggle? Joker just led an attack on Gotham City Hall, taking the mayor as a hostage, only to be stopped by Batman [duh] and brought to the asylum. So why are we starting this with a victory? Answer: We're not.

Batman peaks our interest with one statement,

"He surrendered almost without a fight. I don't like it."
And boom, Joker breaks free of the cuffs and springs his trap on Batman, dropping us right into the gameplay [thankfully without any mind-numbing tutorial level], leading us through the halls of the seemingly abandoned asylum, and bringing us deeper into the lore.

We find things that we aren't supposed to understand. We see things we've never seen before. And above all, we're kept on our toes as we never know what's going to happen next.

At this point we get a taste of what's to come. A laundry list of Batman villains, expandable combat and strategic gameplay, classic and newly created gadgets, and an experience that will stick with you for quite some time.

On top of the main story, we also get small side stories happening all throughout the island. We get to learn the origins of Harley Quinn. We have to solve the Riddler's, well, riddles. We even find audio tapes all throughout the island that help us better understand the monsters we encounter.

As for the Riddler's challenges, I have to admit, they kept me going back to the game for about a week of collective gameplay before I found them all, only to see, or rather hear, what happened to the great Edward Nigma [Nashton].

Every last bit of this game just drags you deeper into the universe. With every solved riddle, we get a character bio, a challenge map, or an audio tape. Something to tell us a story. Something to tell us more than we already know.

This combination, topped with the amazing gameplay and storytelling made for a great start to a great series of games. Hell, to give video game purists everything they asked for, Rocksteady even finished everything off with the classic final boss fight and the one thing nobody expected,

                           "This isn't even my final form!"

 I personally give the game an 8/10. Docking two points only because there were honestly some bugs that irritated me throughout the gameplay, and because in my mind Rocksteady owes me a new Xbox 360 controller because of that damn game-breaking moment  that started a Scarecrow dream sequence. I stopped playing for a month when it happened because I thought my disc was messed up, and after the third time watching it happen, I threw my controller. So yeah, there's that.





Batman Arkham City-

The prodigal son returns in a blaze of 3D animated glory. New story, more villains, and a better chance to see just how Batman earned the title "World's Greatest Detective."

Everything starts with Bruce Wayne campaigning for the Mayoral position of Gotham City, claiming that this new Arkham City area posed a great threat to the safety and security of the people of Gotham.

All of a sudden Bruce is being attacked by TYGER guards and being thrown in prison. Now I have to admit, this left me pretty confused, but as I learned in the last game, never expect to know everything that's happening as it happens. You'll just hurt yourself.

Well soon afterward we get thrown into the gameplay. Fighting Penguins goons [Cobblepot being voiced by Nolan North = perfection], scaling buildings, calling Alfred for assistance, the whole nine.

What we find beyond the protected walls of Arkham City is a shadow of the rich city of Gotham. Criminals running the streets even more than they did before being locked up. Uneasy alliances, and murder scenes left untouched as police are not required to enter the walls. The only monitoring being helicopters that only attack if they're told to.

We start this game with more gadgets than the previous title, and I would be lying if I said they didn't come in handy. And I have to say, the larger map and free roam are far better than the last installment. As impressed as I was with Asylum, City topped it almost ten-fold.

The combat, as amazing as I found it previously, was greatly enhanced.

The gliding made better by the heights you could glide from, and how you could easily launch yourself into a glide with the Batclaw. This game truly makes you feel like Batman if
you're immersed deep enough into it.


The Riddler challenges have been changed, offering more of a challenge. There are riddles that play out like missions, where if you don't solve the puzzle, someone dies. Hell, even after a couple years of having this game, I still haven't found all of the trophies, all of the riddles, or even come close to getting 100% on this game. It's that much of a challenge.

Zsasz leads you on what feels like a wild goose chase through the city, answering payphones, finding bodies, and tracing the calls in hopes of finding him somewhere.

[Spoiler alert] Batman finds bodies with their faces removed all over the city, only to find that Hush is behind the murders,
stealing their faces to make his own look like that of Bruce Wayne.


The story takes you on twists and turns you wouldn't expect, and takes you to places that seem insignificant to the overall story, but actually have a rather large impact in the long run.

We go from thinking Hugo Strange is the force to be reckoned with, then somehow the plot has something to do with Catwoman, and suddenly we're realizing the Joker is up to something. Then all of a sudden we're being convinced that Penguin is the real threat because Joker is too sick to do anything. Now we're working with Freeze, and then BAM! Ra's Al Ghul comes into the lineup before we're suddenly launched back at Hugo Strange, only to be redirected to a seemingly healthy Joker has been running things from the shadows all along. Just... What?

And of course, we see the mantle of Harley Quinn handed down from the original actress, Arleen Sorkin, to the widely talented Tara Strong, who absolutely nails the character.

Taking the player to Wonder City and the streets of old Gotham, meeting Ra's Al Ghul, having multiple villains with multiple goals, and seemingly endless side missions, and one of the greatest climaxes in video game history [in my personal opinion anyway] keep people wanting to come back and play.

Honestly, if I hadn't sold my Xbox for grocery money I would probably be playing this game right now. I actually kept the game even though I have no means of playing it.
If you haven't played this game, you're seriously missing out on a really fun experience.

I give Batman Arkham City a 9.5/10 for being absolutely amazing, wonderfully confusing, and infinitely fun.


Batman Arkham Origins-


Welcome back, or rather, welcome for the first time, to Gotham City.
The solo project by WB Montreal to keep us hooked on the Arkham franchise had one and all excited, even with the "change" of studio. [I put change in quotations, because WB Montreal has been working on the franchise from the start, but Rocksteady just stepped aside this time].

Let me just start by saying that I was heartbroken when I heard one piece of news regarding this game. Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill would not be reprising the roles of Batman and Joker. Instead they would hand the reigns over to Roger Craig Smith and Troy Baker to play the roles of younger versions of these iconic characters. Both of these men do an amazing job, and Troy established my undying faith in his abilities with this role, but I am glad to hear Kevin is coming back for Arkham Knight. [And lets be honest, while Troy was awesome as Joker, Mark was a better singer using the voice. I'm just saying "Only You" was better than "Cold, Cold Heart." and I don't mean the DLC]

On top of everything else, the designs of some characters have changed. Like Black Mask for instance. While he was featured briefly in Arkham City, I was unhappy with his design. However, the recreation in Arkham Origins was great. The mask was menacing rather than goofy, and it didn't have skin and hair poking through. He was the Black Mask we deserved to see all along. And Batman having a more Nolanverse, Dark Knight-esque suit made me more than a little happy, although I still love the previous suits. But I digress.

We start this game with a Batman who only has a few years under the
cowl. More rough around the edges, and tougher on criminals. I mean, when in the last two games did we see Batman drop a criminal straight from a rooftop, seemingly to his death? Never, that's when.

So as we begin we notice that it's clearly Christmas in Gotham. There are lights, trees, decorations, everything. And what should happen on Christmas Eve? Oh just a group of assassins getting sent after Batman for 50 million dollars. Nothing big.

The list of assassins hired by the Black Mask, Roman Sionis, only
happens to include Bane, Copperhead, Killer Croc, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Shiva, Electrocutioner, and Firefly. All formidable opponents.
Well... Except Electrocutioner. [Just... Way too easy to beat]

But there's another issue with this. Black Mask is supposedly dead? Killed just a few hours before Batman hears word of the hit on his head. So who's pulling the strings? Black Mask wouldn't fake his death like that. Not when he has a goal like killing Batman on the line.
Well, come to find out, as with the previous two games, Joker is running things from the shadows again. Only this time he's disguised himself as Black Mask, and even trying to lay the part. But as it often goes, he gets bored and reveals himself. [But honestly I have no complaints about this. Any excuse for Joker is alright with me]

Sadly on the gameplay side of things, we don't see much innovation. Granted, the new feature of Detective Mode was amazing. I love being able to rewind and recreate a crime scene to see what happened. It helped me understand better and just made more sense. But honestly, the combat system hasn't changed, the gadgets are the same, the only things they added that were worth anything were the electric gauntlets. Everything else was just a carbon copy of Arkham City.
Which in retrospect I guess was better than just changing everything and ruining it, but I just wish they would have done something more with it. In all honesty, playing this game just felt like playing a big DLC for Arkham City.

This was definitely a solid effort from WB Montreal, i'm not saying they didn't do a great job. This game just didn't do anything different aside from the larger map, Batcave, Fast Travel, and giving Alfred a face.

I wish I could say more about this game, but it just feels like i'm going over Arkham City all over again. I mean, the Enigma Packs are basically Riddler Trophies and too easy to find and obtain. Anarky is a joke of a villain and the hardest part about dealing with him is beating the clock to race across the city and stop a bomb from blowing up a landmark [which in the end was not difficult, the time-crunch was just stressful].
No villain in this game gives a very significant challenge other than the assassins [mostly Deathstroke], making this game somewhat boring as those encounters are few and far between.




Batman Arkham Origins gets a 7.5/10 from me, just because they didn't do enough to set it apart from the other games, Not explaining the fact that in the future [Arkham City] so much technology is new, but suddenly you have more and better technology [up to and including said brand new tech from Arkham City] in the past. And for not telling anyone this isn't the origins of Batman, but rather the origins of Joker, Harley Quinn, Barbara Gordon [A.K.A. Batgirl/Oracle], and The Riddler.
[Just FYI, that .5 was only because they attempted to add multiplayer. Not because it was good, beause it wasn't. Just the sheer fact that they tried]


Batman Arkham Knight Trailer-

[WARNING: This part seems more like opinions and fangasming than reviewing, but I still felt it was important so I left it in since it's still part of the Arkham Saga]

I'll be honest, even after the disappointment I felt after playing Origins, Arkham Knight has me legitimately excited. Leaving behind Joker
leaves a hole in my clown-loving heart, but keeping Harley around and making Scarecrow a more serious threat to the city has me feeling all warm and tingly inside.

This new Batsuit truly shows just how done "playing" Bruce really is, and that excites me. There won't be any holding back, and even though he loves Gotham, he's not holding back

from plowing through a few obstacles to get across town in the Batmobile. Everything about this game SCREAMS finale from what I can see, and honestly I can't wait to play it.

As for the Arkham Knight himself, I can't wait to find out what his deal is, because there is so much speculation it's not even funny anymore. I just want to wait and see like they're hoping we will. Granted, the ideas people have seem pretty awesome and I love reading them, I just hope people don't see the truth coming, because I feel that if people can figure it out, it wasn't a big enough mystery. So hopefully Rocksteady has done a good enough job of covering their tracks.

I'm definitely looking forward to the gameplay though. The addition of the Batmobile is one thing I've been waiting for. I wanted it in City and Origins, but I guess leaving it out kind of made sense. And the Fear Takedowns really look like they're going to change things. Rather than still having to punch the hell out of the last goon in the area, he flips out, panics, and Batman can use that to his advantage and get the KO or you can use it to drop in and take down multiple armed thugs, rather than trying to take out each one individually every time. To me, that feels like the extra bit of BATMAN that Origins was missing. Even the gliding looks like you get more lift and duration after diving and ascending.

Overall it just looks really exciting and I feel like if this is the end of the Arkham Saga then this is them going out with the biggest bang possible and giving the fans the ending they deserve.
My hope? That maybe if Batman survives his encounter with the Arkham Knight, he retires, paving the way for a possible Nightwing, Robin, Batgirl, etc. game and then later a Batman Beyond. I want a Batman Beyond game so bad I can taste it.

And the fact that Harley and Red Hood are playable through Gamestop pre-order... Just makes me so happy. It opens up the idea of alternate costumes and actually giving us the original Arkham Asylum concept and previous Arkham costumes for Harley, and maybe the New 52 comic or Under The Red Hood costumes for Jason Todd.



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Alright, so I know it kinda got away from me, but any complaints about my reviews or additional points you would like to make are more than welcome in the comments section of this post.
I would just like to point out that my blog is by no means a differing-opinion-free zone. By all means, debate, add, whatever you feel you need to do. You won't be yelled at by me
[although I can't promise there won't be some sort of drama from others].
All opinions are more than welcome.