Do not go any further if you haven't played all of Batman: Arkham City (not including Catwoman DLC). Might contain spoilers.
Something feels lacking.
Both my boyfriend and I played the game while I was at his house, though he played it more than me. I.e. he beat the game, unlike me. I didn't use the Catwoman Online Pass code yet because I've never gone through the hassle of Online Passes, so I didn't know how it would work out, and it wasn't on my 360. It was on his.
We both agree that there's something missing. Maybe it has something to do with Catwoman, maybe it doesn't. Don't know yet. So I could be basing this gut feeling on nothing and it's just a hole in the storyline.
Just, I don't know. Something about it felt like it was nothing but an empty shell if you don't use her. You start off with Batman getting punched in the face and tormented in jail. You meet Penguin and move along to figure out what's going on. You have to find Catwoman, who is held up with Dent (Two-Face). They say when you use the Online Pass, the beginning will be a bit different. I don't know how different, or how much it effects it right away as I haven't used the code yet, which I will be doing later today, as long as I get the other things I need done first.
I mean, that's pretty much it for Catwoman when you rescue her. You really don't see her for most of the game.
While finding Joker, you can take side missions. One of the side missions is Edward Nigma (Riddler), and you have to save the hostages that are from the Cathedral. Now, when doing this, it gets tricky. You can't complete all of it unless you have Catwoman, so if you're a completionist, well, you have to use the code to do it.
And what I mean by all that, Catwoman has her own set of trophies. You can't touch them. If you touch them, it'll ask you to download the pack bundle in order to pick them up.
All throughout the game, it seems like they overwhelm you with characters. Because of that, half way through the game my boyfriend asked what I'd give the game based off what I experienced so far. I told him around 5 or 6. Yeah, like he said, it's a bit harsh, but I was taking everything in to consideration. Plus the thugs completely spoil that Catwoman is working with Poison Ivy.
Great, huh?
(Note: If anyone gets upset that I said that, please remember that in the title AND at the beginning, I said there might be spoilers, so you read this on your own will, knowing there would be spoilers)
Some of you might not see it as a spoiler, but I can understand it not being so if we weren't promised you could play as Catwoman and she has her own storyline you can go through. I'd get it if she was a secondary character in the game, just like all the other characters. That would be something key interest to know. However, that whole thing has nothing to do with what you, as Batman, have to do. You don't meet up with Poison Ivy. You don't do anything that might hint at what Catwoman's up to.
Again, you don't see her for pretty much of the whole game until the point with Ra's.
Up to the point with Ra's, it feels a bit rushed. You're thrown into each character so quickly, it comes to the point where it gets a little overwhelming. Doing side missions, you sort of thrown in to more characters.
You might say the first game was like that, but I played a bit of the first before playing this one. It didn't feel like that to me.
Now, don't get me wrong, the game is good, but it feels like you're playing an outer shell--freebie kind of thing until you download/buy this certain content to enjoy the full game as it should be enjoyed.
You can say, "Well you bought the game new, didn't you? Why are you complaining?" or "Why does it matter if you bought it new?"
I just feel like it's not fair. What if I don't want to play as Catwoman right off the bat or don't want to use the Online Pass right away? It's my choice, and I want to enjoy the game as it should be enjoyed. Yeah, I know you can play it without Catwoman and beat it without her, but that's not the point. Initially, the reason these Online Passes started was for multiplayer servers. Buy a used copy, okay, then you have to pay a little extra to get online and play multiplayer.
Alright, fine. Whatever. But this is for singleplayer and not for a server or anything. It's for content that you can tell was part of the game before they decided on the Online Pass. Not to mention that even if you buy it new, those who can't access the internet with the 360 won't be able to play as Catwoman, anyway. How is that fair to the consumer who bought it new for $60? It might not have been me, but it's still not fair because they don't have the full game to begin with. They can't play the game and complete it like everyone else who has an internet connection. Again, it's like an empty shell that is given for free, but you have to have an internet connection/pay more to access the other features. It lacks in game content that should already have been there and should be there without an Online Pass.
Is this missing content, this lacking feeling, because of Catwoman missing? I don't know. I'd have to play as her and find out myself, which I will. And I will blog about whether or not it's the cause for this lacking feeling I have when playing the game, like something is being withheld from me until I give them what they want (or put in an online code). Until I play, I can't give a rating of the game. If it's not Catwoman that makes it feel lacking? I will give it at least an 7.5, mainly because of how they presented the Online Pass after telling everyone they can play as Catwoman, because not everyone can play.
That's the thing. It doesn't matter if you buy new or used. If you don't have an internet connection, you can't play it as her, anyway.
Also? If you want to play the game in five years or buy a new copy then? Better read the back of the case to make sure what the expiration date for the Online Pass says. Mine says, since I bought it the day it came out, October 18, 2016. That's five years. If I don't use the Online Pass in five years, it becomes worthless and I won't ever be able to play as her.
Kind of ruins the value price of the game, too, if you ever want to sell it in five years, still sealed. Because of that, with it still in the factory shrink wrap, it's the same as a used game.
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