April 7, 2014 by

I recently picked up Just Cause 2 and Deus Ex: Human Revolution during the Square Enix publisher sale on Steam. I got Batman: Arkham City on sale as well due to the 75th anniversary. All three games cost a mere $16. Steam sales are a great way to play quality games that you may have missed out on when they were initially released.


Just Cause 2 (2010)

Hours played - 28

JC2 is a massive open world game in which you essentially play as a terrorist. You are rewarded for damaging government property while aiding various factions in an effort to destabilize the local fascist regime. Every vehicle in the game is able to be driven or flown from the outset and the character is equipped with a grappling hook that allows you to access almost every point on the map.

The scale of the game dwarfs most modern day open world experiences even though the game is 4 years old. I've completed 46 side missions and still have a mere 26% completion rate. The environment puts Far Cry 3 to shame.

A few bugs mar the experience. For example, I once spent 40 minutes trying to destroy an oil rig before I did a Google search and figured out that it was impossible. I had to restart the game after falling through floors and bridges and becoming stuck. These flaws are negligible considering the size of the map and the near perfect physics.

Controls are sometimes an issue during combat. To aim you must toggle the right stick because the left trigger is the grenade button. I blew myself up more than a few times because I'm used to aiming with LT. There is also a lack of a cover system that leads to some frustrating deaths. Checkpoints are few and far between, but the challenge is welcome for the most part. Even though many of the faction missions follow the same blueprint the combat keeps things from getting stale.

The story is interesting and the tone is humorous at times. Your enemies and allies provide comedic relief in an otherwise violent and brutal world. Just Cause 2 is an underrated GTA-style game with more substance and scale than it's contemporaries. The size of the game is almost frustrating when trying to reach new areas, but exploration is rewarded with new opportunities.


Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Directors Cut (2011)

Hours played - 19

I found HR to be a difficult game from a combat standpoint, but fortunately the player is given several options on how to complete tasks or even fight bosses. Once I stopped trying to play it as a shooter and began to rely on stealth and hacking, I began to appreciate the game in a different way.

The inventory system was a constant source of frustration as I found myself having to stop playing and re-arrange it several times. You end up grabbing ammo that you don't use and it takes up several slots. Of course, you can use upgrade points to expand these slots, but it seems like a waste when you could be upgrading your damage resistance or hacking skills. As a a result, I ended up carrying very few weapons and used stealth and takedowns to pick off enemies. You find yourself outnumbered and outgunned with a very limited amount of ammo, but the game is so well designed that there is always another way to win.

I used brute force to take down the first boss, but for the others I hacked terminals and used the environment against them. Although initially frustrated by the unforgiving combat mechanics, I began to appreciate the fact that the game forces you to use strategy. The answer is not always obvious.

The controls are a bit awkward, but this game is at least 3 years old. The left trigger has to be held down to remain in cover and it is difficult to look down your sights and aim at enemies. I used a shotgun for the majority of the game because it was easier to shoot from the hip.

The story was interesting and actually plausible. You are forced to consider the moral implications of technology and the player is forced to make difficult decisions throughout the game. These decisions have lasting consequences. The dialogue choices also raise the bar for conversation in games. You are given options that shape the way NPCs react to you and it forces you to pick your responses carefully.



Batman: Arkham City GOTY (2011)

Hours played - 20

I intentionally skipped Arkham Origins and bought it's predecessor after reading a few reviews. I think I made the right choice, as Arkham City is a fantastic game that made me appreciate the fact that Rocksteady is coming back to develop the next Batman game.

Everything was an improvement over Arkham Asylum, must notably the open-world exploration aspect. I remember the frustration of not being able to access certain areas in AA, but Arkham City allows you to enter areas at will and either progress the main story or take on dozens of side-quests. Although not all the side-quests are rewarding from a gameplay standpoint, fans of Batman lore will enjoy encountering villains and characters from the comics.

The Catwoman segments felt a bit tagged on and I didn't really enjoy the interruption. I did like the fact that players are given a choice whether to save Batman or escape with stolen loot. I chose to walk away with the money and leave Batman to his fate and was shocked when the game credits began to roll, but thankfully the game rewound and allowed me to make the right choice.  Based on this segment of the game I assumed that moral decision making would come into play later in the game.


The final boss fight was intense, but I thought fighting Clayface was somewhat anticlimactic. I defeated him easily by tapping a button and throwing Freeze Bombs. I realize that Joker is not known for his combat prowess, but I felt like even the Solomon Grundy battle was more interesting and difficult. For a moment I thought the game would give me the choice of saving the Joker or destroying the cure, but the Joker jumped out of the shadows and sunk a blade into Batman's shoulder, forcing him to drop the vial. This was a bit of a letdown for me. I planned on curing him. If you spend enough time in Batman's universe, you realize that not killing is the thing that separates him from the psychopaths he is constantly embattled with. The Joker was too insane to allow himself to be saved. I actually felt bad for him in the final cut-scene when Batman carries his corpse out of the theater. I did appreciate the fact that Batman ignored Gordon when asked "What happened in there?" and continued to walk away. Batman is the ultimate vigilante, and ultimately he is accountable to his own demons.

Arkham City is the best Batman game yet and Rocksteady has set the standard for superhero adaptations. I can't wait for Arkham Knight.

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