Batman: Arkham Origins Review (PC)

very good
key review info
  • Game: Batman: Arkham Origins
  • Platform: PC
  • Show system requirements
  • Gamepad support: Yes  
  • Reviewed on:
Batman: Arkham Origins review on PC

The first two Batman Arkham games, Asylum and City, proved that titles based on comic book characters can deliver exceptional interactive experiences, provided they receive a lot of love and care and are made by experienced teams like Rocksteady.

Now, the recently founded Warner Bros. Montreal studio has just released Batman: Arkham Origins, a prequel to the first two games with a younger version of the Dark Knight, as well as with other new things, including a multiplayer mode made by Splash Damage.

Can this new game coming from one unproven studio and with a new feature never-before-seen in the series deliver a great experience or should this chapter of Batman's life be closed for good? Let's find out.

Review image
Review image
Control Batman ...
... and explore Gotham City

Story

Batman: Arkham Origins, like its name suggests, charts an earlier period in the crime-fighting career of the Dark Knight, taking place in Year 2. Black Mask, one of the biggest criminals in Gotham City, decides to put a huge bounty on Batman's head right on Christmas Eve, just as the city is ravaged by a huge snowstorm.

As you can imagine, plenty of people are interested in taking the hero down, from lots of major villains, like Killer Croc, Bane, or Deathstroke, to regular thugs or even the corrupt police department.

As such, Batman needs to go out in the open world of Gotham City and try to neutralize all these threats, lest they start harming civilians or innocent people in order to draw his attention. At the same time, he'll investigate various murders and interact with all sorts of iconic characters from the comic book series, like Barbara Gordon.

The whole plot is quite interesting and there are some intriguing twists. The crime scene investigation system is really well done and really shows that Batman is, in fact, the world's greatest detective. While it may not have Arkham City's dramatic ending, Origins is still quite entertaining.

Gameplay

In terms of gameplay, Batman: Arkham Origins doesn't bring that many new things to the core recipe, as it's still an action adventure composed of several key elements, from the FreeFlow combat, to the exploration system, or the Detective mode that helps Batman take on all sorts of situations.

Combat-wise, at least at first, you won't find any new elements, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially since the great FreeFlow system is still very good. As you progress through the story, however, you get to unlock new gear, like the Shock Gloves, which do add some fresh elements.

Boss fights are much more varied this time around, particularly since there are eight major assassins coming after Batman, not to mention bigger villains like Black Mask. Some require quite a bit of work, such as an early encounter with Deathstroke, while others are a bit straightforward, like the first brawl with the Electrocutioner.

Just like previous games, Origins also focuses on stealth, as one of the main weapons wielded by the Caped Crusader is fear, especially during his first few years when he preferred violence and intimidation. There aren't a lot of new mechanics, although special new gadgets, like the remote claw, do add some interesting new possibilities for stealth takedowns.

In terms of exploration, things also stay the same. Batman continues to use his grappling hook to scale buildings and his cape to glide between them. Returning elements, like Grapnel Boost, are slightly modified and renamed, i.e. the Grapnel Accelerator.

In order to make going around the open world of Gotham City easier, there's a special fast travel system that sees Batman use the Batwing. There are a few catches, however, as the Riddler has hampered this mechanic, meaning players will have to hack his own special jamming towers before being able to fast travel into that specific district.

The open world is filled with various groups of thugs, which are completely optional in terms of progression. There are random Crimes in Progress encounters, which give players the choice of pursuing them and earning bonus XP, or ignoring them for other, more vital goals.

There are plenty of other distractions and side missions, some giving players bonus XP during the single-player campaign, and others bringing extra gear for the multiplayer one.

When players want a break from traditional crime fighting, they can visit the Batcave and indulge in other experiences, such as the Challenge Rooms or the Training area, where the hero can work on his skills. For the first time in the series, Alfred also makes an actual appearance and Batman can talk with him while in the Batcave.

As usual, there's a New Game + mode, which restarts the story with all the past upgrades unlocked. Those eager for a true challenge can also enable the I Am The Night mode, which doesn't save their progress and gives them just one life.

There are, however, quite a few glitches and moments where you might get stuck. Sometimes you'll find that you lack the necessary unlockable gadgets, while other times you need to turn on Detective mode in order to detect a special object with which you can interact. Other times, however, there are some actual glitches, as Batman can get stuck in certain elements from the environment, requiring a restart from the latest checkpoint.

Review image
Review image
Defeat common thugs ...
... and battle big bosses

Multiplayer

As a first for the Batman Arkham series, Origins features a special multiplayer mode called Invisible Predator Online, which was developed independently by UK-based studio Splash Damage.

The mode puts eight players into different roles on a single level. Two of them control Batman and Robin, while the other six are split into two teams, one working for the Joker and one for Bane.

The three-way struggle that results is measured in different ways. The heroes win by increasing their intimidation score up to a certain threshold by performing varied takedowns and hampering the efforts of the villains, while the criminals win by eliminating the opposition's respawn tickets, in a similar way to the Battlefield games.

While the scope of the multiplayer action is a bit large, once you start going through several matches, you begin to really comprehend the play style of each faction, their custom weapons and powers, as well as their ideal strategies.

During a match, players can also summon Bane and Joker, who can both turn the tide of a battle in various ways.

While there was a bit of lag from time to time, the online action was pretty fun, although it needs a bit of dedication, especially at the beginning.

Graphics and Sound

In terms of visuals, Batman: Arkham Origins once again doesn't bring that big of an upgrade over Arkham City, but it still looks pretty good, especially on PCs powered by Nvidia graphics cards, as it has a suite of optimized features for them. PhysX once again shines, although it can cause some weird glitches from time to time.

In terms of sound, while the voice of Batman (Kevin Conroy), and that of the Joker (Mark Hamill), have been replaced in Origins by Roger Craig Smith and Troy Baker, the new actors do a great job of replicating the more iconic tones of the two characters.

The rest of the cast is also quite impressive and the orchestral score really amps up the action on the screen.

Review image
Review image
Upgrade your skills and gear ...
... and surprise enemies

Conclusion

Batman: Arkham Origins may tell a new prequel story to Asylum and City, but it doesn't bring that many new features in terms of gameplay or graphics. Sure, the multiplayer is a pretty fun experience but, besides that, there aren't enough new things to really impress players.

Even so, it's a good game that will certainly fill the void until Rocksteady's mystery project finally appears in the near future.

Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
Review image
story 9
gameplay 8
concept 8
graphics 8
audio 9
multiplayer 8
final rating 8.5
Editor's review
very good