Batman: Arkham Shadow Evaluation – Cowl On

As an enormous Batman fan, the announcement of Batman: Arkham Shadow earlier this yr got here as an enormous shock. Nearly a decade after the final core entry within the sequence (Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League not included), a return to the Batman-centric universe was actually an interesting prospect. Whereas I was anticipating a great time with acquainted themes and aesthetics, I didn’t know I used to be in for one of the best VR recreation I’ve ever performed.

Set a short time after Batman: Arkham Origins, Shadow takes place throughout one week in Gotham Metropolis, however primarily Blackgate Jail. Gotham is beneath siege by the Rat King, an underground cult chief making ready for a ‘Day of Wrath’ to overthrow the present governing our bodies and provides energy again to the folks.

It’s a premise in step with the Arkham video Games’ hyper-linear construction, usually going down over a brief time period whereas concurrently maintaining the stakes excessive. What it does otherwise, although, is place virtually as a lot emphasis on not enjoying as Batman because it does letting you don the cape and cowl. Concern not—there’s loads of alternative to grapple round rooftops, wail on dangerous guys, and resolve mysteries in Detective Imaginative and prescient. Alongside that, although, Arkham Shadow breaks this up by having you play as a Blackgate inmate referred to as Matches Malone.

Whereas that will sound irritating, it’s executed in such a manner that the divide in playable characters feels wholly natural, opening up totally different aspects of Gameplay. Batman sections are extra action-heavy, specializing in the traditional rhythmic FreeFlow fight alongside Predator sections the place you decide off enemies one-by-one. As Matches, you focus extra on interacting with characters, sneaking round stealthily, and fixing puzzles.

It’s a intelligent dichotomy that might really feel a lot much less partaking if it wasn’t for the beautiful implementation of VR know-how. If this had been a PS5 recreation it will really feel restrictive to lose all the devices and skills you may have as Batman, however on the Quest 3, it simply provides a special veneer to the methods you’ll be able to discover the world of Arkham Shadow.

That’s precisely why Arkham Shadow far surpassed my expectations as a licensed VR recreation: it’s not a console recreation tweaked and shoehorned to suit the format, however clearly constructed with reverence and love by Camouflaj with VR performance always in thoughts. From the best way Batman’s devices are accessible from totally different components of your waist to snappy, responsive fight sequences, all of it matches like a glove.

That fight is arguably the Arkham sequence’ defining attribute, and it’s really astounding how properly that transfers throughout in Arkham Shadow. After all, it’s barely much less bouncing and rhythmic than the third-person video Games, however the snap of every punch and the necessity to construct up combos is simply as necessary right here. The sport streamlines features similar to counter-attacks and rapid-fire punches, however by no means to the extent that fight will get boring. In actual fact, I’d relish strolling by way of a locked door, simply to search out myself dealing with upwards of ten goons all prepared for a pummelling. It does take a good bit of observe to get used to the timing of punch sequences and the administration of the digital camera so that you’re all the time dealing with an enemy head-on, however the trade-off is that you simply genuinely really feel like Batman after clearing a room.

The stealth-heavy Predator sequences within the Arkham video Games all the time felt lesser in comparison with hand-to-hand fight, and that broadly stays the identical in Arkham Shadow. As soon as once more you swing from vantage factors, slowly selecting off armed grunts and doing all your greatest to stay within the, ahem, shadows. It simply feels much less fluid right here; enemy detection is both completely off or SAS-level sharp, and sequences are lengthy sufficient that it could actually really feel irritating if you die to the ultimate goon and should do all of it once more.

Thankfully, these Predator sequences open up the possibility to check out Batman’s huge devices. A few of them by no means get previous, like zipping as much as a vantage level utilizing your grappling hook or gliding throughout gaps with the cape. Detection can typically be a bit off, with just a few situations the place it took me loads of fails earlier than the cape opened, or zipping to a climbable ledge just for it to take quite a few makes an attempt for the sport to acknowledge I used to be making an attempt to ascend it. That stated, Arkham Shadow has loads of alternatives to make use of Batman’s devices in observe, with puzzles which can be head-scratching however not at all obtuse.

It’s additionally received a story that followers of the Arkhamverse will relish for fleshing out a number of the lesser-explored characters. Sure, there are winks and nudges to A-lister villains right here, however the story focuses extra on Batman coming to phrases along with his morality and the best way he’s perceived by the general public, by way of the lens of supporting villains just like the Ratcatcher. Harvey Dent, a future adversary of Batman’s, additionally will get the star remedy with a concurrently heartbreaking and humane arc, alongside acquainted faces like Jonathan Crane and Harleen Quinzell.

Whereas not everybody has entry to a Quest 3 headset, everybody wants to play Batman: Arkham Shadow – it’s that a lot of vital that it’ll be a assured system vendor. It admirably transposes the Arkham Gameplay loop to VR in a manner that harnesses the medium’s idiosyncracies whereas additionally retaining the DNA that made the earlier video Games so particular. It’s one of the best VR recreation I’ve ever laid palms on, and certainly one of 2024’s greatest surprises.