The worst thing about this game is how it makes you want to play one of the actual Arkham games. And here's the fucked up part: we could've actually gotten one on Vita. There's the Amazing Spider-Man, which is an open-world game with many of the Batman Arkham series' mechanics. And Arkham Asylum wasn't even open-world (not technically, it was a metroidvania), Vita could've easily handled something of that scale. But no, we got this abomination because Nintendo 3DS exists, and publishers are lousy cheapskates, who wanted to capitalize off of two platforms with one game.
This game is neither a good Arkham game, nor good on its own merit. It could've probably worked better if they ditched the superficial similarities. The 2.5D perspective is confusing. In many cases pressing right moves you up, etc. Often you don't know what you can and cannot do on the level, because the game exists in 3 dimensions, but the third dimension is only occasionally accessible. The combat completely lacks complexity, because you can't choose which enemy to attack when two of them are vertically next to each other, again utilizing the third dimension that you have no control over. Because of that it also lacks tension, since it was made easier to accommodate such limitations. The distant camera makes these fights feel detached. The original combat with its animations and mechanics was obviously designed for the third-person perspective, making fights feel personal. For a game with a different perspective, it should've been completely revamped.
In fact, this new perspective messes up pretty much everything the original games were praised for. Because you can't see several feet in front of you and never know when you can access the third dimension, the entire freedom of choice has been completely wiped from the game. Whether it's fight encounters, stealth, detective work or acrobatics, the game is now extremely linear, to the point of almost being one glorified QTE.
The good thing about it is that it's not frustrating or anything. While mechanics are oversimplified and drained of any fun, at least they work. This makes the game feel rather boring than frustrating. Which in itself is a small victory, I suppose.
The developers should've taken cues from Castlevania: LoS - MoF. Now that is a game that brilliantly adapted a home-console title into a small-budget 2D metroidvania. But that game was apparently too good to be ported to Vita. So we're stuck with this crap.
This game is neither a good Arkham game, nor good on its own merit. It could've probably worked better if they ditched the superficial similarities. The 2.5D perspective is confusing. In many cases pressing right moves you up, etc. Often you don't know what you can and cannot do on the level, because the game exists in 3 dimensions, but the third dimension is only occasionally accessible. The combat completely lacks complexity, because you can't choose which enemy to attack when two of them are vertically next to each other, again utilizing the third dimension that you have no control over. Because of that it also lacks tension, since it was made easier to accommodate such limitations. The distant camera makes these fights feel detached. The original combat with its animations and mechanics was obviously designed for the third-person perspective, making fights feel personal. For a game with a different perspective, it should've been completely revamped.
In fact, this new perspective messes up pretty much everything the original games were praised for. Because you can't see several feet in front of you and never know when you can access the third dimension, the entire freedom of choice has been completely wiped from the game. Whether it's fight encounters, stealth, detective work or acrobatics, the game is now extremely linear, to the point of almost being one glorified QTE.
The good thing about it is that it's not frustrating or anything. While mechanics are oversimplified and drained of any fun, at least they work. This makes the game feel rather boring than frustrating. Which in itself is a small victory, I suppose.
The developers should've taken cues from Castlevania: LoS - MoF. Now that is a game that brilliantly adapted a home-console title into a small-budget 2D metroidvania. But that game was apparently too good to be ported to Vita. So we're stuck with this crap.