ARKHAM ORIGINS Rises to the Occasion

This post was originally titled "5 Video Games You (Maybe) Haven't Played (But Totally Should)" and was meant to list 5 games that, for various reasons, I felt my fellow gaming geeks didn't give the proper attention they deserved.

My intention was to start with the best known games at the top, with each game becoming more obscure as the list went on.

While writing my first entry, "Arkham Origins," I came to realize this section had morphed into its own post.

You may vaguely remember "Arkham Origins."  It's that one Batman game you decided to skip when the reviews were best summed up as "Eh, it's alright, I guess."

Well I'm here to tell you why those reviews were a big steaming pile of doggy poo.

Screw Metacritic!  Clearly the opinion that matters is that of some random well dressed geek blogger.

Don't believe me?  My last post had over 90 page views!  That's almost a hundred! Clearly I'm reaching celebrity status here, and everyone knows you should buy something once it has a celebrity endorsement.

Batman: Arkham Origins
Buy on Amazon

“Arkham Origins” is the follow-up to “Arkham City,” wildly regarded as the “Citizen Kane” of the superhero video game sub-genre. Following the release more or less every geek and his sister shat themselves with excitement and anticipation, and with good reason. An open world, top of its class melee combat, and engaging storyline which weaved in TONS of Batman's rouge gallery combined to… you know what? Forget it. The game made you feel like you were “The Goddamn Batman!” and that's all that mattered. If you had a significant other in October of 2011 you were either putting out an APB on him/her, OR you were trying to wrestle the controller out of his/her bloody hands because screw you I want to be Batman!

The world collectively gave the middle finger to life as people stopped whatever wedding, birth, or new job they had planned. Anyone who was obsessed with Batman OR video games was playing this, and that includes pretty much anyone who is not my Mom.

But seriously Mom, you need to check this game out.

Because Batman totally stole this move from my Mom.
Trust me, I never skipped school again.

A new series entry was only a matter of time, and during the wait the internet went wild with anticipation. That day finally arrived in October of 2013, and once again every self-respecting geek dropped what they were doing so they-

-they took a collective sigh. Then shrugged.

"Bruce... *cough cough*.... Your parents...
Would be so disappointed."

Arkham Origins currently holds a metacritic score of 76, so while not a disaster, it pales when put up against “City's” score of 96. Sales were approximately half of the previous game. Those numbers would be absolutely dreamy if your game is, say,"Costume Quest," but for a highly anticipated prequel to one of the best regarded games of the last generation that's an epic fail.

"This is worse than that time you let us die!"

It's a shame, really, because Arkham Origins is a damn good game.

The reviews are not shy about the game's supposed short comings. It rarely deviates from “City” and the new features are “win” buttons. The melee system takes a small step backwards. Neither long-time Bat veterans Kevin Conroy or Mark Hamill provide the voice work. The online component is a waste of time. The storyline seems “padded out.”

And you know… fair enough. It's not that the any of these particular criticisms aren't valid, it's just… they're really nitpicky.

“Arkham City” has a renowned combat system that lets you use a wide variety of bat gadgets to engage dozens of foes in combat- all the while maintaining a steady flow and making what's a complicated process feel seamless. It's not necessarily easy, but it's fair- every problem has a solution which can resolve in you avoiding being hit, but you better have lightning fast fingers to pull it off.

In contrast, “Origins” attempts to nod to its prequel roots by slowing down some of Batman's reaction times. The result is that on occasion you find yourself in a position where you can't avoid taking damage. It's a step backwards, and I'm going to completely concede, right here, that as a result, “Arkham Origins” has only the 2^nd best melee combat system of any video game ever.

"This combat is a joke!"

The games “big” new feature is an improved version of detective mode. Detective mode was already a sore spot in “Arkham City.” It's a pause from the normally frantic pace of the game, and while it's incredibly cool the first time you play through, it fails to hold up on replays. It ends up being a quick but annoying video game chore.

The new system does little to improve that, though maybe makes said sections of the game slightly more tolerable during a second or third go around. It's neat but it's not an exciting or interesting feature. But when the biggest gripe about a game is it plays exactly like that other game you dropped over 100 hours into on Steam- you know, actually, is that even a complaint? I mean, hell yeah, don't touch this, I still feel like Batman!

"We will fight injustice, but we will never fight
self-absorbed fan-fiction!"

The online component, on the other hand, is a mess. The biggest issue is that the developers…

Wait, you know what? WHO CARES? The last two Arkham Games didn't have a versus mode. The “Arkham” series was never about online play. I tried “Origins” online play once, shrugged, and then pretended it just plain did not exist. You should too.

The voice work is actually quite stellar. Roger Craig Smith pinch-hits for the legendary Conroy and attempts to mimic a younger, somewhat less detailed version of the original performance. Actually, I take back attempts, because overall he succeeds in what is a very challenging balancing act. Yes, there were times where if I listened very carefully I'd think “I miss Conroy!” Not once, however, did Smith's interpretation ever take me out of the game. I mean, are you really going to tell me this doesn't sound like Batman?

As for Mark Hamill's absence? First of all, Hamill publicly retired from the role, so let's cut the developers a break. Did we really expect no one would ever use the Joker again in an animated medium? More importantly, Troy Baker takes over the role, and he nails it. As in full on grand slam.

Baker's interpretation is some of the smartest voice work ever to grace the Bat-Universe. He was given a seemingly impossible task- take the reigns from an actor whose performance is nothing less than iconic. If you grew up in the 90s, then Mark Hamill is the Joker to you.

On the surface it looked like he had two options, and both options just plain sucked.   He could try to imitate the original and be called out as a second rate copy cat, or he could make the performance his own and undoubtedly irritate millions of fans who have become accustomed to the Joker sounding a certain way.

Baker intelligently sides-steps this catch-22 by pulling a little bit from each approach. Baker correctly doesn't try to reinvent something that's worked so well. He starts with an imitation- his Joker's voice shares the same DNA as Hamill's- but then adds small, but perceivable, personal touches.

Casual listeners would probably never even know the voice actor had been changed. Baker's work is that good. If, on the other hand, you're the type of guy whose fridge is covered in Batman magnets and sometimes hears Mark Hamill's laugh in your sleep? The change is noticeable.

"Does this even NEED a caption?"

Which is all to say that Baker leaves the interpretation of the character intact, but makes changes to the nuances. He adds just a hint more sinisterism to the voice. Notably he doesn't over do it. Other non-Hamill voice actors have attempted to give the Joker a raspier voice, likely in an attempt to pull out the darker shades of his personality, but instead only masking the ironic lighter sides of his persona that make him such a compelling character in the first place. Baker manages to avoid this trapping completely.

The final result is a voice that's somewhat more attuned to the grittier Arkham universe than Hamill's, which originated on the mature but still kid-friendly Batman: The Animated Series. Baker amazingly manages to not only equal, but- and I can't believe I'm saying this- somehow improve upon Mark Hamill's classic performance.

Check out this video in which Baker does a line reading of Alan Moore's iconic “The Killer Joke.” Baker hits every word just right. It's chilling.

The storyline starts off with an incredibly interesting premise but does admittedly tend to go off track in an attempt to both pad itself out and work around the pitfalls of combining story with interactive entertainment. In other words, interesting plot points often diverge into three less interesting plot points that require hours of gameplay to resolve. I.E. Batman can't get to the next floor of a building without a gadget, so he better go through a completely different building with its own boss on the other side of the city just to retrieve said equipment.

To attribute this issue to “Origins” alone is unfair. Even the renowned “Arkham City” suffers from this frequently- arguably more so than “Origins.” More importantly, ANY video game which is not named “Chrono Trigger” suffers from this at some point. This isn't a problem with “Origins.” This is an issue with gaming being a still young medium and writers not quite yet tapping the outline for basic story structure.

It's also worth mentioning that “Origins” does manage to improve upon its predecessor in a couple ways. For one, the developers spent a lot of time trying to create more engrossing boss battles- an unfortunate weak spot of both “Arkham City” and its predecessor “Arkham Asylum.” They don't always succeed, but at its worst “Origins” bosses are no less than the equals of the series' previous games. At its best the game actually manages to implement a few exciting and intelligently conceived final rooms.

Best of all there's an incredible portion of the game focusing on the Joker's past- believe me, you'll know it when you see it. It's the best moment of the series. Hell, it's one the best moments of any Bat-Media at all. Aided, no doubt, by Baker's marvelous voice work.

All coming from a game with a 76 Metacritic score.

The only real flaw of “Origins” is it bares the unfortunate cross of being the follow-up to one of the best designed video-games in the last ten years. Instead of being judged on its own merits, the game was judged against the sky-high ceiling of its predecessor, and it didn't quite hold up. But you know what, it came close. Really close. And occasionally, in a few moments of brilliance, it even surpasses “City”. 

If you've avoided the game do to the lukewarm reviews, I promise you you've been misled. “Origins” is another stellar game in the Arkham universe. You're missing out.

If this game had been released in 2009- before “Arkham Asylum” was even a thought on anyone's mind- the Bat fans of the world would have broken twitter in a giant nerdgasm. Instead the game is only remembered as “Not as good as the last one.” It deserved better.

"Mom get off my Steam account!
...I've made a huge mistake."