Batman: Arkham City Catch-All

Chaz wrote:

Huh, I got a GFWL update, but there wasn't anything as obvious as a giant Directx 11 Features thing. Starting to strongly suspect that I'm missing a patch. I'll have Origin look for updates when I get home.

I really don't think you could be. GFWL works kind of like an Xbox game in the way it nags you at the start if you don't have a patch. So if you're logging in to Live, it verifies your version.

But worth checking into to make sure.

I'm close to beating the main story for this but I don't know what it is, but I just struggle to click the play button. It's so much easier to play something else. I think it's my inner achievement whore coming out. I see all the things I need to still do and I just get a case of the "meh". It feels like work. I enjoy it for the most part and when I get into it, it's great fun. But there is still that overwhelming feeling that just keeps me from going back to it so readily.

It's like many of us have said before - they put in a crapton more of the side-missions and extra activities vs. the amount in the first game, and a lot of them just aren't any fun. It's one thing to have, say, a gadget-puzzle that has a tricky solution and results in moving the story forward. It's another to have one that doesn't do anything than increment x of 20 tasks by 1.

Specific to your situation, I'd guess it's something to do with the notion of "oh no, when the story goes away, I've just got all this...stuff...to do!". That's a crappy feeling when there are a lot of aspects of gameplay and window dressings that are pretty well-done.

Yeah that sounds about right. It's weird when you find yourself playing a game and thinking that you actually want less of it. I know I can do it, it's just that I feel like it's not fun. Gliding off a building into a symbol and then bouncing off to the next one and then throwing a batarang at some stupid angle to get a riddler trophy just doesn't sound like a fun thing to do. Especially when you've gotta try it 20 or so times just to get 1. Then to think that there are something like 400 of those and it's just... oh really?

Yes, I know, you don't have to get them all and you can just play the main story, but I'm a completionist. I like to know that I've done everything in my game, well for the most part anyway. I know I'll finish this, I just don't quite know to what extent I'll finish it.

BlackSabre wrote:

Yeah that sounds about right. It's weird when you find yourself playing a game and thinking that you actually want less of it. I know I can do it, it's just that I feel like it's not fun. Gliding off a building into a symbol and then bouncing off to the next one and then throwing a batarang at some stupid angle to get a riddler trophy just doesn't sound like a fun thing to do. Especially when you've gotta try it 20 or so times just to get 1. Then to think that there are something like 400 of those and it's just... oh really?

Yes, I know, you don't have to get them all and you can just play the main story, but I'm a completionist. I like to know that I've done everything in my game, well for the most part anyway. I know I'll finish this, I just don't quite know to what extent I'll finish it.

I found getting all the extras to be really fun in AA and I'm not a completionist. In AC I get a similar feeling where it just doesn't seem that fun.

SixteenBlue wrote:
BlackSabre wrote:

Yeah that sounds about right. It's weird when you find yourself playing a game and thinking that you actually want less of it. I know I can do it, it's just that I feel like it's not fun. Gliding off a building into a symbol and then bouncing off to the next one and then throwing a batarang at some stupid angle to get a riddler trophy just doesn't sound like a fun thing to do. Especially when you've gotta try it 20 or so times just to get 1. Then to think that there are something like 400 of those and it's just... oh really?

Yes, I know, you don't have to get them all and you can just play the main story, but I'm a completionist. I like to know that I've done everything in my game, well for the most part anyway. I know I'll finish this, I just don't quite know to what extent I'll finish it.

I found getting all the extras to be really fun in AA and I'm not a completionist. In AC I get a similar feeling where it just doesn't seem that fun.

I found the amount for Riddler Trophies, for example, the be right in AA and I was really happy when I found them all. The amount in AC left to find after completing the main story and spending a few hours scouring the city still seems really daunting and kinda puts me off.

I solved my missing dialog issue yesterday. I realized I'd forgotten to change the speaker config setting from 5.1 (at the desk) to stereo (when connected to the TV). Apparently dialog during cutscenes comes through the center channel and only the center channel.

Now that that's sorted, I was actually able to start playing. I'm impressed with how well my old GTS 250 is handling it. I've got it running at 1920x1080 at max settings, and I only get some occasional stutter while it's cacheing a new area or big vista. Otherwise, it looks great. This game was made for couch gaming.

Not sure about these AR missions though...

BlackSabre wrote:

They look pretty cool.

I want this one though.

Was that the Harley Quinn and Scarface figure? I have that one also!

Yeah, I didn't finish the AR misions or the Riddler missions but all the other side stuff was quite fun. These games really fit with how I think of Batman. Villains aren't as afraid of jail (heck they escape all the time) as they are the physical nature of him.

You'll want to complete the first 4 AR missions to get the grapple boost.

Did that, and they weren't so bad. Haven't tried the later ones, just vaguely remembering people complaining about them when the game first came out.

Chaz wrote:

Did that, and they weren't so bad. Haven't tried the later ones, just vaguely remembering people complaining about them when the game first came out.

They sucked. Badly. Swooping through a tunnel by pulling up at exactly the right second was about as fun as sticking a firecracker up your butt.

karmajay wrote:
BlackSabre wrote:

They look pretty cool.

I want this one though.

Was that the Harley Quinn and Scarface figure? I have that one also!

Nope, it was this really awesome Batman figurine, but apparently they aren't selling it any more.

Stele wrote:

Reminder for Calendar Man today.

You mean people just didn't play with their system clocks and unlock it all already?

And finally beat it. I decide that while I was waiting for the Battlefield patch to download I can use that time and finish Batman. Glad I did because it was nice to see the story to the end. There are things left undone and I'm not sure when I'll sum up the courage to go back and do them. To be honest, I think I'm happy just leaving it there.

I've been thinking a lot about the Wii U version of this. I know the general consensus is that it's a shameful ripoff, but I think it has some real potential to improve some aspects of the game.

One of my biggest complaints about this one was that combat felt over-stuffed. I don't know what the controls were like on the PC, but on the console I think they really failed to find a control scheme that matched the number and type of inputs available. I found myself kinda forgetting about some of what Batman could do because of the weird button combinations for special attacks, quick gadgets, and so on. In particular, the combo moves that required two buttons to be pressed at the same time perpendicular to my thumb (Y + X on the 360; triangle + square on the PS3, I think) were really awkward.

If they could move some of those abilities to the Wii U's touchscreen and situate them along the edges so you could tap them without moving your hands (some DS games do this), I think it could improve things quite a bit.

Wouldn't do anything for the heaping overload of collectibles, of course.

PC controls were quite good. Mouse really worked for me and the combat moves were dead simple to pull off since it was mapped to e,r,t and y on the keyboard for the special moves. Which is funny since the majority of the time I'd alternate between e and r as they were the most effective.

I'm a filthy skimmer and just jumping in here with a question:

I have my original 360 version and have been looking for the Harley DLC to go on sale. Just picked up the GOTY for $15, which includes Harley plus all the other DLC. Harley's also on sale now for half price, coupled with the half price MS Points I scored, it's effectively $2.50. I could probably take or leave the Robin and Nightwing DLC, so the main factor right now is the Year One movie - how good is it?

Awesome. Not so much for Bruce Wayne/Batman (he's no Kevin Conroy) but Bryan Cranston is a great Gordon.

Sorry, I'm a late comer, and a filthy skimmer to boot, but I have a question about the Catwoman DLC. Kinda spoiler-y since it concerns the third act of the Catwoman DLC:

Spoiler:

Someone please tell me I'm not the only one who walked out of the vault saying "he's Batman, he doesn't need me to rescue him"... :D

Just beat it today, and it was a decent enough game, but, like a few of you, I'm not sure I'll go back to tie up the loose ends I left (Zsasz, Identity Thief, Riddler).

Spoiler:

I did it as well and really enjoyed how they started rolling credits with all the news of Batman's defeat hinting what happens, then rewinding back. I felt it a nice touch.

I don't remember how Zsasz's mission ends, but Identity Thief hints into what the next Batman game may end up being about. I just used Google to help me figure out where the different bodies were.

I've had enough time away from the game now to actually possibly think about maybe going back to finish off some of the side stuff I missed. The riddler puzzles not so much, but the others, maybe. Not sure yet. It's still early in the day. I may be suffering from poor decision making due to insufficient coffee.

BlackSabre wrote:

I've had enough time away from the game now to actually possibly think about maybe going back to finish off some of the side stuff I missed. The riddler puzzles not so much, but the others, maybe. Not sure yet. It's still early in the day. I may be suffering from poor decision making due to insufficient coffee.

I took a break between my first playthrough and 2nd - and the game really benefited from it. I thought my 2nd playthrough was way more fun.

Hmm, well once I finish up Assassin's Creed 3, I may actually go back and play some more.

ccesarano wrote:
Spoiler:

I did it as well and really enjoyed how they started rolling credits with all the news of Batman's defeat hinting what happens, then rewinding back. I felt it a nice touch.

I don't remember how Zsasz's mission ends, but Identity Thief hints into what the next Batman game may end up being about. I just used Google to help me figure out where the different bodies were.

Yeah, I listened to the podcast's spoiler section, and apparently, it hints at the sequel... Maybe I'll go back and finish those two threads, but... *shrug*

SallyNasty wrote:

I took a break between my first playthrough and 2nd - and the game really benefited from it. I thought my 2nd playthrough was way more fun.

Really? I'm not sure I can "afford" a second playthrough, my pile's just too big, and I need to commit to shortening that list.

So really, am I the only one who did that in the Catwoman DLC?

Spoiler:

Walking out and not helping Batman? It seemed more in character, but when you think of it, even the floor and big arrows, red to the right, and green to the left, as if to say "HEY PLAYER, you MUST - TURN - LEFT"! Still seemed to make more sense that she would take off to me!

Eleima wrote:

So really, am I the only one who did that in the Catwoman DLC?

Take another gander at my spoiler tag.

As for not being able to "afford" second playthroughs, I've been going back and replaying some Kid Icarus, Resident Evil: Revelations and tonight just restarted Dishonored. Note I'm going at it like when I was a kid, where I didn't always finish a game I restarted (I am much more familiar with the beginning of games like Final Fantasy 4 and 6, EarthBound, Donkey Kong Country 2, etc. because I restarted them more often than finished them). I'm just spending some time to experience the games again, especially since game of the year discussions are coming up soon.

As a result, I had more fun replaying the beginning of Dishonored than if I tried to push myself through a mission solo in Borderlands 2. So postponing pile progress seems worth it to me.

EDIT: In a state of sleep delirium I thought this was the 2012 Pile thread.

I also did what you did as Catwoman. It just seemed more in character.

Also-- that was DLC? I thought it was part of the regular game, since the story jumped between the two stories pretty regularly. I bought Batman: AC during the summer sale, as part of the Batman bundle-- it wasn't the GOTY version, but I thought the regular one came with the different Batman skins and Catwoman's part regardless. I only realized the other night that what I bought included the Harley Quinn's Revenge DLC. Also, isn't there Nightwing or Robin DLC out? Or were they just supposed to be "fun"/pointless cameos in the main arc?

The Catwoman DLC was included with all new purchases. So... for the vast majority, it was part of the regular game.

ccesarano wrote:
Eleima wrote:

So really, am I the only one who did that in the Catwoman DLC?

Take another gander at my spoiler tag.
As for not being able to "afford" second playthroughs, I've been going back and replaying some Kid Icarus, Resident Evil: Revelations and tonight just restarted Dishonored. Note I'm going at it like when I was a kid, where I didn't always finish a game I restarted (I am much more familiar with the beginning of games like Final Fantasy 4 and 6, EarthBound, Donkey Kong Country 2, etc. because I restarted them more often than finished them). I'm just spending some time to experience the games again, especially since game of the year discussions are coming up soon.
As a result, I had more fun replaying the beginning of Dishonored than if I tried to push myself through a mission solo in Borderlands 2. So postponing pile progress seems worth it to me.
EDIT: In a state of sleep delirium I thought this was the 2012 Pile thread.

I'm going to plea sleep deprivation delirium as well for missing you spoiler tag!!! So sorry! Glad to see I wasn't the only one, though.
I thought it was a nice touch, what they did after that.

And yes, the Catwoman is DLC included for people who got the game new, but I thought it felt very organic, it "fitted" very well onto the main game. Didn't feel like DLC at all. In fact, I have a hard time imagining the game without it. Just don't ask me how I feel about her suit, and how they animated her movements. :p (Her, Tali, or Harley; in fact, the portrayal of women in this game really, really bugs me)

Eleima wrote:

Just don't ask me how I feel about her suit, and how they animated her movements. :p (Her, Tali, or Harley; in fact, the portrayal of women in this game really, really bugs me)

You're not alone. There are a lot of words on the Internet discussing this little fact.

ccesarano wrote:

You're not alone. There are a lot of words on the Internet discussing this little fact.

Yeah, I've been seeing a lot of it. I've actually been going back and listening to the GWJ CC podcasts from last year, when the game came out, and that's exactly what the guys were saying. No idea how this game got the "T" rating, utterly baffles me... I mean, I'm no prude, but this is just sooooo over the top, it's actually a bit offensive. I still enjoyed the game, granted, but it's bit disappointing to see a game do this.