Batman Arkham Knight Review

There’s certainly a lot of pressure when it comes time for a beloved saga to end.  Ideally you hope that every plot thread is tied up while also delivering a satisfying conclusion to the story. Going into Batman Arkham Knight I had some doubts about whether or not the series would wrap up well.  Rocksteady looked like it was going to take everything from Arkham City and continue to add even more to it’s gameplay with additions like being able to drive the Batmobile.  I was worried that all of this would have been too much and the whole game would suffer as a result.  Thankfully a lot of my doubts were alleviated once I started playing.  If you thought Arkham City was expansive, Arkham Knight definitely takes it to the next level.  Rather than being limited to a small area of Gotham, you now have the entire city at your fingertips.  You can glide across the vast cityscape as accustomed to in past but you can also take to the roads with the Batmobile for the first time in the series.  While there have been debates on how heavily armed this particular Batmobile is, I certainly had my share of fun driving around in it.  The controls take a little getting used to since L2 is used to shift into battle mode as opposed to breaking and reversing.  It also takes time to get the hang of being able to pull off sharp turns during high speed choices.  Regardless I certainly had my share of fun driving around Gotham.  It definitely feels like driving the Tumbler from the Nolan Batman films.  Aside from that there’s been very few gameplay changes.  Most of your gadgets are carry overs from the last game with slight modifications.  In addition there have been additions to the combat with the ability to pull off environmental takedowns now.  There’s also the new fear takedowns which allow you to take out a considerable number of enemies in a short amount of time.  Finally there a select few missions where you can team up with an ally.  These missions allow you to switch control between Batman and your ally at any moment with the benefit of also being able to perform team takedowns.  As for the story I feel it is a satisfying conclusion to the story that Rocksteady has weaved.  I don’t want to divulge a lot of details  as there are plenty of shocking moments.  As a matter of fact if you’re playing this game on PS4, like I am, there are moments where it stops recording your gameplay thus preventing you from sharing spoilers.  This may be annoying if someone is streaming the game for a live audience but if it means some jerk won’t be able to post the Arkham Knight’s identity on Facebook or Twitter then I’m alright with it for the time being.  There are a few issues here and there but Batman Arkham Knight is definitely a satisfactory conclusion to the Arkham series.  Warner Bros. are probably going to continue making Batman games without Rocksteady but it’s going to be interesting seeing what Rocksteady does next.

Most Anticipated Games of E3 2015

You guys know the drill by now. It's time for my most Anticipated Games of E3 2015.  I had a little trouble finding 10 games this year but in the end I was able to do just that.  Some of the games I'm not as excited about but as we continue to climb up the list so will my excitment. Without further ado let's begin.

10.  Assassin's Creed Syndicate

I was fully ready to leave Assassin’s Creed in the dust after last year’s disappointing Unity.  I felt it took a huge step back from everything that Ubisoft did and it had an undercooked vibe to it.  However after seeing preliminary footage I am willing to give Syndicate the benefit of the doubt.  Multiplayer and companion apps have been cast aside and we can hope that this means there will be a greater emphasis on the story.  In addition the presence of a secondary playable character in the form of the protagonist’s sister is a welcome addition.  I’m not entirely ready to forgive Ubisoft over Unity but I will admit they’re building some good will.  I’m still going to be trepidatious about this though.  Fool me once after all.

9. Mad Max

Have you seen Fury Road? If you haven’t you should go see it ASAP.  With that out of the way let’s move on to the Mad Max game.  For the longest time I thought this game was probably going to become vaporware and fade into nonexistence.  I was happily surprised to see that the game is alive and well a few months ago.  With the success of Fury Road, the Mad Max game is going to be attracting more attention.  Avalanche Studios has a notable pedigree with the Just Cause games so while it’s a safe bet that the gameplay will be great I have my doubts that the story will be up to par with Fury Road’s.  Also if Avalanche Studios is reading this, please have an alternate skin for Max that allows you to play as Furiosa. 

8. Battleborn & Overwatch

I admit that I’m bending the rules a little bit by listing two games at once but I have my reasons.  In my personal opinion both Battleborn and Overwatch are incredibly similar in both style and gameplay.  Let’s do an experiment right now, I am going to post trailers for both of them following this entry, then I’m going to describe a game and you tell me which one it applies to.  A first person shooter that features a diverse range of colorful characters with an emphasis on multiplayer.  You see?  Pretty similar am I right?  What I’m hoping is that maybe E3 will give these two games the opportunity to distinguish themselves.  While both games have a right to exist and have their own minor differences I’m not going to be getting both right off the bat and I have to start somewhere.  Right now it’s best just to sit back and observe.  Both games are probably going to be good and hopefully each game will have their own subtle differences. 

7. Star Wars Battlefront

2015 is shaping up to be a huge year for Star Wars.  Obviously there’s the upcoming release of The Force Awakens but there’s also the first Star Wars game coming out after a three year absence.  I think it’s really appropriate that this game is a new installment in the Star Wars Battlefront series.  While I’m a little excited for the game there are plenty of concerns to be had.  Compared to previous games the map and vehicle count is remarkably low.  While this can be hand waved by the fact that EA is choosing to focus on locations from the original trilogy there’s still a lack of other features as well.  The amount of modes the game has is also lacking and limiting dogfighting to the planet surface is disappointing to say the least. I’m hoping the game can prove to be fun regardless of the subtractions but the reasons to get excited are dwindling.

6. The Legend of Zelda (WiiU)

I don’t even have a Wii U and I’m excited to see this.  Early footage makes this look like it can be the biggest Zelda game to date.  There’s still a lot of unknowns when it comes to this game though.  We don’t even have a subtitle yet.  I’m hoping it’s as expansive as some other Fantasy RPG’s like The Witcher and Elder Scrolls games.  While I don’t know if I’ll get a Wii U just to play this, I’ll be watching this with curious eyes.

Alright. Those games were alright but let's move on to the ones I'm REALLY excited about.

5. Doom

Wolfenstein: The New Order was one of my favorite games from last year.  Bethesda took a dormant franchise and pumped new life into it.  It felt unique from the usual Call of Duty or Battlefield title.  It was fast, chaotic, and most importantly fun.  While only briefly teased last year and shown in private, the world at large will finally feast their eyes upon Doom.  I’ve heard good things from the private showing indicating that like Wolfenstein it’s going to be fast, chaotic, and fun.  It sounds like it’s going to be vastly different though.  There’s no cover mechanic, no reloading, and plenty of ways to finish off the demons invading Mars.  Here’s hoping lightning can strike twice and resurrect another legendary franchise.

4. Uncharted 4

The first Uncharted game proved to be one of the reasons to own a PS3 back in its earliest days.  Now I’m hoping Naughty Dog can work some of its magic again for the PS4.  It’s a little jarring to see them go from the desolate cities of The Last of Us to the lush jungles that the Uncharted series is all too familiar with but that’s not a bad thing.  While I’m sad that this is most likely going to be the last Uncharted game I’m hoping Naughty Dog will at least go out with a bang.  If anything I hope they’ll find a way to top the impressive train chase scene from Uncharted 2. 

3. Metal Gear Solid V 

It’s bittersweet putting this game on my list.  With all the behind the scenes drama happening at Konami this is probably going to be the last time we see a Hideo Kojima helmed Metal Gear game on preview at E3.  Even if Konami continues to make Metal Gear games I doubt I’m going to pay attention to them seeing as Kojima is most likely parting ways with Konami soon after MGSV is released.  Yet I’m still eagerly anticipating this game.  After getting a brief preview of what we’re in store for with last year’s Ground Zeroes I’m excited to see the culmination of Big Boss’ story.  Everything we’ve seen has been impressive from the expansive world to the innovative take on the traditional Metal Gear gameplay.  I’m ready to be excited one last time and see this to the end.   

2. Ratchet and Clank

The upcoming remake of Ratchet and Clank is certainly a curiosity.  It’s drawing heavily from the upcoming movie, itself being based upon the first game.  So is this really a remake or a movie adaptation?  Well as long as the game is fun I feel the question is irrelevant.  The Ratchet and Clank games are certainly fun but the earlier ones are beginning to show their age, especially the first one.  While Ratchet and Clank managed to cement several ideas such as the focus on ridiculous weapons the gameplay is not as smooth as later titles and Ratchet’s characterization is really poor.  Ratchet honestly comes off as a dick in the first game and I’m surprised he managed to evolve into a better character in the later games.  I have my fair share of concerns given some of the more recent Ratchet and Clank games have tried to unnecessarily update the status quo such as All 4 One and Full Frontal Assault although thankfully the series has gotten back on track with Into the Nexus.  I’m definitely wondering what’s going to be different and what will be the same.

1. FALLOUT 4

When Bethesda announced that they were going to be holding an E3 Press Conference this year for the first time, many people began to wonder what games they would show.  While Doom was almost a certainty everyone was hoping that Fallout 4 would finally be revealed.  Everyone was hoping that Fallout 4 would take advantage of the many strides that Skyrim made.  There were plenty of hoaxes about the game, so many I even had reservations about the game even being announced at E3. I have never been so happy to be wrong.  Bethesda finally announced Fallout 4 just a few days ago and it looks amazing.  As speculated the game is taking place in Boston and there are some familiar assets such as the Brotherhood of Steel Armor, a Ron Perlman voiceover, and the canine companion Dogmeat.  The trailer has already whetted my appetite and I am eagerly awaiting to see how the game plays at Bethesda’s conference.

Mad Max Fury Road Review: SEE IT NOW!

Go see this film.  I know you want to read a review first which is why you’re here but trust me when I say you should go see it and preferably with as little knowledge of the film going in.  Trust me, it’s worth it.  But if you really want to read a more in depth view of the film I will gladly oblige.  Mad Max Fury Road is the fourth film in the Mad Max series but thankfully you don’t need to watch any of the preceding films to enjoy this one.  Fury Road almost acts as a reboot of the Mad Max series but the important thing to note is that it doesn’t overwrite any of the events in the previous films. The story begins as Max himself is captured by a group of War Boys commanded by Immortan Joe.  Joe soon finds out that one of his Imperators, Furiosa, has betrayed him and is driving away with his sex slaves in tow.  The film begins to ramp up the action from there and rarely slows down.  Another important character is Nux who brings Max along for the chase as he is dependent on his blood to help aid him.  As you’ve most likely heard is that all of the female characters in the film are written as actual characters with their femininity not weighing them down.  Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa is definitely the stand out as it’s clear that she has committed numerous atrocities under the command of Joe and now we see her on a path to redemption.  That’s probably one of my few complaints with the film, we don’t receive a lot of backstory.  It would have been nice to see some more insight into the lives of Furiosa, Joe, and even Max himself.  While the audience only gets the scantest of hints it doesn’t hold the movie back.  Backstory could have made the movie better but it’s not necessary since the film is self-contained.  Few people have also complained about how Furiosa is the main focus of the film but I find it to be a weak reason to not like the film.  Max still has a notable presence in the film and has just about the same screen time as Furiosa.  While he doesn’t have as much dialogue I feel it’s important to keep in mind that Max isn’t exactly the most sociable person.  The film is called Mad Max for a reason.  Max is a man who has had everything taken from him and the world around him never unresents as he fights to survive in the wasteland.  Lastly one of the best things about this film is its message: people aren’t things.  At first glance you might think it’s pretty obvious considering the whole film is about rescuing several sex slaves from Immortan Joe but it goes further well.  We also several older women towards the beginning of the film hooked up to grotesque milking mission.  It’s clear that if you’re a woman in this society your only role is to breed more War Boys for Joe and provide them nourishment.  In addition there’s also the War Boys themselves who view Joe as a Godlike figure and are ready to give their lives to him.  While the War Boys view themselves as something more they’re just cannon fodder for Joe.  That’s why it’s satisfying to see one of the War Boys, Nux, go through a great character arc where he begins to realize how much worth Joe has in him.  And now with my more in depth look at the film done please go see this film. I want Fury Road to be successful so we can see more tales told within this world and I want to see stories of a higher quality as well.  Maybe we can even get a film about Furiosa.  Honestly there’s not that many films of such high quality out right now.  And yes while I like Age of Ultron as much as the next guy it honestly depends on the fact that the audience has seen the previous Marvel films and even then it has some minor grievances here and there.  So go see Fury Road.  It has a guy playing a Flamethrower guitar what more could you want?

The Dustier Dust

To say I’ve been neglecting this blog again would probably be an understatement.  When I first started the Robotic Cinematic I was hoping that it would continuously evolve as I continued to deliver more and more content.  That did not happen.  To put it frankly I’ve been devoting my time to my school work.  Since I decided to major in English, I’ve been having to do a lot of writing for various classes and as a result the blog had to be put on the backburner.  But seeing as I’ve graduated a scant few days ago I think it’s time to get back to doing this.  I have a few ideas of what I want do going forward.  I’m currently figuring out how I want to report on E3 as always.  One idea I had was going through the Michael Bay Transformer movies and watching how my expectations (and sanity) manage to keep going deeper after every film.  Heck if you guys enjoy that I might talk about some other Transformers series.  I’m going to attempt reviewing video games again starting with Wolfenstein: The Old Blood and again we’ll see where that goes.  One last thing I’ve been considering doing is something I like to call “Stuff I Like.”  Basically in between major releases of games and movies I’ll do a write up on older games, movies, etc. explaining why I like them.  I have some other ideas I may want to explore in the future but until then let’s see where this road goes.