Batman Beyond Bad (Batman of the Future - Return of the Joker (N64))

Member Name: scream4bruce

Product:	Batman of the Future - Return of the Joker (N64)
Date:	23/07/07 (122 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Different Batman suits

Disadvantages: Bland graphics, horrible music, lacking play, short

In Batman of the Future (or Batman Beyond depending on where you are) the identity of Batman is assumed by Terry McGinnis with Bruce Wayne having retired from the role. The animated film Batman of the Future: Return of the Joker - which this beat-em-up was released to coincide with - sees a comeback for Batman's archenemy of old, though Bruce is certain it cannot be him so it is up to Batman to investigate.

Before a level begins you get to choose from one of four Bat Suits: Standard, Defensive, Offensive and Nimble - each with their varying abilities as well as unique moves. You can put some moves together but unfortunately a severe lack of balance has meant that a number of attacks are near useless. Ironically, it is the Defensive outfit which edges it in terms of dishing out damage.

As a beat-em-up the combat is far from satisfying. Batman goes down easily whereas the villains don't which is a problem when surrounded, and this encourages Batman to hit and run as well as resort to using just a single attack repeatedly despite having multiple attacks. It is not difficult to see where the game is failing here. The areas in which you fight feel restrictive and some of the villains seem reluctant to hit Batman.

The controls for the N64 could have been managed better; the directional-pad is for changing suits which, during a fight would call for a third arm - something which not even Batman himself possesses. Then there are the levels which all feel similar with some weak platform sections thrown in. One particular level sees Batman having to make his way past moving obstacles which are set out to push Batman off to his death.

There are infinite continues should those deaths prove troublesome but the game only has five levels, which is no laughing matter. Actually, I can smile about that as this means the game will last me not even half an hour. It wasn't until my second attempt however that I did finish it - my initial impression of the game was that poor. Batman of the Future: Return of the Joker does provide a challenge on the harder difficulty setting but there is nothing to unlock even if you are quite the superhero.

Graphically it's bland, the music is downright nasty, the necessary hooks to keep you playing are not there and the game is devoid of replay value - where is the high score system? Not that it would have saved the day in any case. If there are any positives then I wouldn't mind seeing the film even if I do know what happens, but the game itself should never have seen the light of day.

Summary: Batman of the Future: Return of the Joker for N64