Tell me you’re making a 2D sidescrolling beat-em-up starring Batman, and there’s a good chance that I’ll be interested. If you add in full co-op play, I’m likely to call up my friends and let them know to be ready. But if you add in cameos from tons of DC Comics characters, both popular and obscure, and even allow me to play as many of them, you’ve basically got at least one guaranteed sale. Such is the case with WayForward’s Batman: Brave and the Bold.
The latest attempt at a Batman game, based off the current Cartoon Network animated series, eschews the seriousness of last year’s hit, Arkham Asylum, but replaces it with some really sharp humor. Some of the game’s between-mission cutscenes include original animations from Warner Bros. The ones without these feature still images, but they manage to remain entertaining thanks to the two feature film lengths worth of hilarious voice-over that the game contains.
At the outset of each level, you choose to play as Batman or whoever the current level’s team-up hero is. In some cases this is Robin, but depending on what’s going on in the story, it could be virtually any hero from the DC universe. In one particularly awesome set of levels, I was able to play as Guy Gardner, a lesser-known but lovable Green Lantern. In his story arc, Gardner has unwittingly unleashed Starro, a starfish-esque alien creature that seeks mental control over all life on Earth.
The first team-up with Gardner is like most of the game: a 2D sidescroller where you punch, kick, and throw enemies across the screen and perform some minor platforming and puzzle-solving to move forward. Batman and his allies have many tools and special moves at their disposal. Most interestingly, in addition to having a co-op partner, Batman is able to choose a special buddy that can be summoned to help out when needed. In my case, I chose personal favorite Booster Gold. In his summon animation, the egotistical hero flies onto the screen and poses for pictures while his futuristic robot Skeets actually helps take down enemies. This attention to detail and characterization in the fan service is almost certain to make Brave and the Bold a hit with comic nerds such as myself.
The game will also occasionally mix things up with a less traditional level. Batman and Gardner’s final encounter with Starro takes place in space, meaning that for one boss battle, the game changes from sidescrolling beat-em-up to sidescrolling shooter. This shift in style is in keeping with the manic but fun tone of the game’s writing and the show it’s based on.
The handful of levels I played at E3 already has me convinced: Brave and the Bold is going to be good, pure fun. If you’re even a slight fan of DC Comics or well-done old-school gameplay, you owe it to yourself to look into the game before its September release.
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