Batman: The Animated Series DS Review

[Phantom123]

Anyone remember the Batman animated series, from the 90's? I do. Loved it to death, almost as much as the Superman animated show. So, when I heard there was something coming down the line from that TV show, I was nervous. A DS game, for Batman. This would be the Dark Knight's first foray into handhelds in a while (What, 3 years by now?). As well, Batman hasn't had history's most famous golden record for good videogames. However, this wasn't attached to the movie coming out this summer, so I had some golden hopes. Therefore, I present, Batman: The Animated Series DS


Early artwork for Box-art (Can't find the regular box-art online, this has already become a surprisingly rare game)

Players: 4 (1 cart or 4 cart, no WFC)
Developer: WBgames (In conjunction with Lucas Arts and DC games)
Publisher: WBgames (In conjunction with DC games)
Online: No
Controls: Default (Buttons), customizable. Touch, non-customizable
=====
The Story
=====
Well, my first topic is the story, and I have to be honest, for once, it may just be the spotlight in the game (Rather uncommon for a licensed game). The story comes in 12 Chapters. Each covers an arc of story, all highly connected, but each seperate. I won't spoil a single one, but I will say, all of your favorite baddies and such appear, and the story is actually quite ingenious... Actually, all this hinting is making me desperately want to talk about it, so I'll give you the basics of Chapter 1!

The game starts with Bruce Wayne, the playboy billionare alter-ego of Batman, hosting a party at his mansion. Needless to say, things go sour when a toxic gas (Joker's laughing gas) leaks in, and almost destroy the entire group. The action starts on the roof, with batman searching for joker....

Needless to say, the story gets much more complex. How? Multiple options. The entire game, you get endless options of what to do, which changes a good deal of the future. Having played through twice, so far, I've gotten 2 different endings, despite playing similiarly, leaving me to wonder what happens if I.... Well, if I were a less friendly caped crusader ;) The dialogue is genuinely funny at times, but, above all, is very gripping. It got my attention.

The real treat of this, though, is how the story is presented: Animated cutscenes from the original artists and (most) of the original voice actors from the show! I'd hazard there are over 60 minutes of animation there in the 2 endings, and, considering that I don't know how many endings there are, that means 60 MINIMUM! They are all quite faithful to the show, and you are able to view them all in a menu upon unlocking them (Which, I admit, I've done many times!)
==========
The Controls
==========
This is a good game, in that it has 4 kinds of controls. It has regular buttons only (And South-paw on buttons) as well as Touch/Southpaw touch (Which, I believe, is the first game to feature a lefty-version of touch gameplay). The touch screen is the only one requiring much explaining, thus, I will explain it (Duh!)

On the touch screen, you control running by clicking batman, then dragging in the direction you want, much in the way of LoZ DS: PH. Poke the screen near batman, and he'll punch. Various kinds of slashes and shapes make up comboes you learn. Poke away from him, and he'll throw a batarang. That is the basis. The rest is combos or new weapons, which I'd spoil if I explained...
==========
Gameplay
==========

The beginning of the second boss battle VS. Joker

This game has 3 sides to it, which I'll cover. The first is a sort of point-and-click investigation mode. The second, the main Action/platforming mode pictured above. The third are the minigames (I classify them as a mode because of their importance and availability). Let me first mention, this is an incredibly long (though not draggy) game. Each chapter takes about an hour and a half, which means around 18 hours. Remember, this is an ACTION game, for a HANDHELD. Because of the length of each chapter, each chapter is split into 5 levels, each with a miniboss at the end (And on the final level of each chapter, a boss). Given the 1.5 hour assumption per chapter, that puts each level at about 18 minutes, which is still quite a bit for a handheld. This is balanced by the save system, which allows you to save almost anywhere. This, of course, would make the game very easy, if it weren't so hard (pardon the horrible pun).

The action sequences are all quite complex. Roughly 4 of the 5 segments per chapter are action levels. The game features a robust combat system. Actually, when I first played it, I thought I was playing Jump Super-stars meets Batman, considering his combat. The gameplay is a bit more fluid though, and with much more combo-material. I will try not to babble about it, there is a lot to say ;)

The system, while it does include health for enemies and the like, has a few points of interest. Typically, if you fail a combo, the enemies will be quick to punish you. And because the health systems in this game are reasonably forgiving to you (You heal if you aren't fighting), it does the same to the enemy. Thus, you have to either entirely avoid combat (The game has an excellent stealth system, but I can't cover it given the time), or do it just right. There are many combos, none of which are painfully hard to perform. However, each action generally links with the next, meaning it's quite likely that if you aren't linking, the enemy AI will notice and counter-act. All of this leads to a very rewarding feeling when the enemies go down.

The investigation levels play rather like Phoenix Wright, but with the addition that generally, if you touch something, it will change. To define that, if you pick up a book, the dust on it will clear. If you don't find something useful, that sucks, because if you think enemies are coming, they will likely noice the book, realize you're there, and your cover is blown. Because of this, investigations must be handled precisely, and covertly, to avoid blowing any cover you may have. Fortunately, you can typically fix these blunders. You learn most of these in the earlier levels, where it's not at all punishing to do this. However, if you made this sort of mistake in one of the last investigations, you'll be very sorry (And very screwed).

The minigames are how you fix the blunders. There are a load of minigames (Probably 10-20), all very well constructed. There are the usuals, such as bomb defusals, various investigative things, there are some situational ones (I've found at least 1 minigame solely to one ending, not found in the other play through), and a host of others. It goes without saying, all of these are available in a given menu upon unlocking, and most are quite satisfying. There was only one I actually disliked, which was a lock-picking game. Unfortunately, it was a bit difficult (Challenging timing on button presses, sometimes you aren't sure what button TO press), but it was not the most common minigame, so I had no qualms with it.

As mentioned earlier, this is a long game. However, thanks to the cunning of the story and the excellent combat/stealth systems, it is very fun and you want to play through again and again. As well, because of the multiple endings, I felt quite compelled to relive the fun ride over and over. High replayability value. I'd put this on par with score-driven games, which is a LOT, considering there is not a score here (Except in certain minigames). The only thing missing was a drive in the Batmobile, and that was featured in cutscenes, so I accepted the loss with dignity (Though it still appears in a few minigames anyways ;) ).
========
The Dual-screen angle
========
As a DS game, Batman: The Animated Series DS uses the two screens of the DS, to a slightly sub-par capacity. During action levels, the upper screen is used as a map (In the sense of the New Super Mario Bros. game; it shows how far into a level you are). The bottom screen shows the action. As well, if you are using the Touch control scheme, that is where you control it.

During investigative scenes, the top screen is used. Because many minigames are adjoined to these investigation scenes, the bottom screen controls those. The investigations are always controlled by buttons, because of this.
========
Multiplayer
========
I am avoiding much comment, as I've only done it once, with two people. Modes include some form of Capture the flag (I played it with someone much better then me. It seemed pretty stealth oriented, unless you were a storm-the-base kind, in which case, most of your projectiles seemed to be the main meat of the game).
========
Graphics
========
Acceptable. The game isn't 3d, not even backgrounds, so all I can comment on is the style. The style, by the way, is dark. I mean that in the figurative way. You can tell that Batman is very close to being on the losing end of the fight against crime, that Gotham is a tough place. However, it's very accurate to the TV show, so I had no problems. Feel free to check out the above photo (One of the only ones I could find of the game in play) for a basic idea.

As for the cutscenes, perfect. Seriously, stringing them all together is like watching a Batman movie. I love the work that went into designing the story so much, because this was how it was shown, and in this, it truly pays off.
=======
Sound
=======
The music is average, mostly the stuff from the TV show with a few remixes. However, the voice acting is great. Since I can't really take a picture, I'll give you an idea of a few of the voices, and whether they were the originals from the show:

Kevin Conroy...Bruce Wayne / Batman
Loren Lester...Richard "Dick" Grayson / Robin
Clive Revill...Alfred Pennyworth ("On Leather Wings", "Christmas with the Joker" and "Nothing to Fear")
Johnathan Pink...Commissioner Gordon**

**-Non-original

It's quite obvious that most of these people are the originals. Even Mark Hamill reprises joker (And as most batman fans would agree, he is considered one of the best joker-voices ever).
==============
In Conclusion
==============
Story - 9/10. This is on par with multiple RPG's I've played. Quite frankly, I have no idea where this came from in an action game.

Graphics - 5-8/10. Depends on your opinion of the art. I put it as a 7 average, except when the cutscenes are rolling. Then it's a 10, as it literally IS the same. No frame-loss or lag, even in multiplayer.

Multiplayer - nil/10. I'm not really qualified to comment. No lag, though, and it sounded fun. One match I did have was fun, but I got raped <-<;;

Gameplay - 10/10. This is the first 10 I've given a game in years. It's that good. The fact that no one else seems to have heard of it amazes me. I have no idea why this isn't in the magazines as handheld game of the month.

Overall - 9.5/10 (Not an average).