User Reviews (1 - 11 of 34)

Show these reviews first:

Highest Rated
Lowest Rated Newest
Oldest Most Helpful
Least Helpful

Under-rated by the professionals, but a great adventure nontheless

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 19 / 22
Date: July 03, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I've never been a fan of movie-based video games. You either play the game before watching the movie, and get yourself spoiled, or the other way around. It's a similar story when I was deciding whether to get Batman Begins. This is especially so when reviews on major gaming sites have unanimously slammed this game as an also-ran. Still, I went with my gut feeling and bought it anyhow, and I haven't regretted since.

If you've watched the movie, you'd notice that the plot in this game follows the one in the movie closely. I won't call it an exact replica, but you basically play through the movie, with variations as to how some objectives are achieved. You begin with a prologue, which takes you through some of the basics of the games. This is then followed by the Himalayans training section, which teaches you even more controls. From then on, you pretty much spend your game in Gotham, and boy, what a beautiful city this is.

Gotham is a sight to behold because the graphics in this game are quite awesome. The game takes you to various locales from the movie, like the earlier mentioned Himalayas, the Gotham Docks where Batman downed Falcone, and the Arkham Asylum where the Scarecrow operates, etc. The characters faces are really lifelike, but this is of course expected, since they are modeled after the actors. You also get to see actual footage from the movie, which is a nice touch that pushes the story forward a little in between the levels.

The controls for the game are quite straightforward. With the PS2, you get to kick using the triangle button and punch using the square button. When your enemy is close to expiry, you can use the circle button to "finish" him off. The X button is used for jumping. The shoulders buttons allow you to equip items and use them, as well as blocking an attack and rolling on the ground. It's all quite basic, and overall adequate in undergoing the various missions.

The game itself has several elements. You can call it an action game, but it's also a stealth game. Since an unarmed Batman is often easily wasted by an opponent with guns, you will need to sneak up on these opponents by patiently waiting for your chance, before performing a stealth kill on them. You can also use fear tactics to scare these dudes into dropping their guns, and these include sending boxes of crates towards them, setting off a security alarm (for a few times) and using a crane to lift a car up in midair. All these sound rather confusing, but the design of the game makes it very easy to achieve, and the linear nature of the game means that you're almost always told what to do so you won't get lost.

The game also feels like a Prince of Persia game at times, what with all the jumping around. Finding a way from point A to point B requires a careful scrutiny of the environment, and choosing the only right way to proceed. Therefore, it's entirely possible to miss a jump and fall to your dismal death. The good thing is, you always begin at your last save point, so you won't need to backtrack too much. There are a lot of these save points too, so you can safely maneuver without worrying too much about dying.

There are also two levels in the game that turn the game into a racing game, albeit only for these levels. Much like the Burnout series (now wholly owned by EA), you get to control the Tumbler and set off a journey of taking opponents down (Road Rage), beating a time limit to a destination (Time Attack), and even finding a "boss car" to destroy using the Batmobile's weapons. Way cool, if you ask me.

The audios of this game are also awesome. Having voice-acting from the actual actors from the show is one thing. Making them sound like they actually care, and belong, to the game is another. The soundtrack is also dynamic, providing a really neat tribute to the dark nature of the movie.

My main complaint for this game is the quite frequent slowdown in frame rate. It almost always happens when I'm moving when a conversation by opponents is going on. It's quite frustrating because here you're trying to move quickly without getting noticed, yet the game doesn't let you. The camera angle is also quite clumsy at times, even though you've full control of what you want to see. Apart from these, I'm quite satisfied with the game on the whole.

So, here you have it. A review from a fan who actually played through the game twice. Ok, maybe I'm pleased because I didn't have high expectations. But seriously, for a game that provides so much fun, I think the bad reviews are perhaps a little too harsh. Don't trust me for that though. Get hold of the game and try it for yourself. You may end up being a fan too.

you should only rent this game

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 8 / 9
Date: June 19, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I got this game a few days ago, and it has great graphics, and the music is creepy, but in a good way. when i first got this game, i thought it would be like the spiderman games: just action and roaming the city. i was wrong. In this game, there are certain levels where u can roam the streets, but not many. Also, this game is complete stealth. If u try to sneak up on a guy who has a gun, and get caught, 5 shots and your DEAD. Overall, the action is great, but the stealth part is EXTREMLLY hard and if u die, u have to start at your last checkpoint, and there are not many checkpoints in a level. I would only recommend this game to people who are great at stealth videogames, and enjoy waiting 5 fricken minutes for a guy to turn around, so u can use steath on him.

Brilliant game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: June 17, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I've just finished the game and i have to say this is really great!
It really fits in well with the film, using the same actors voices and the characters look very similiar to their real-life counterparts.

As well as Batman, you get to play as Bruce Wayne in training before he becomes batman and also as Bruce in a tuxedo in a level which has the Wayne Manor in flames. Very cool.

The driving bits are great fun as well, very Burnout, with extra racing modes being unlocked after you beaten those levels.

The main gameplay consists of a mixture of combat and stealth. If Batman comes accross a group of heavily armed enemies, he will end up dyingh if he tries to tackle them directly. you need to use stealth to sneak up on them or even beter use your fear-gadgets or a batarang on your surroundings (e.g throw your batarang at a gas-pipe to burst it), to scare them a bit beforehand, making defeating the enemies easier.

The game isn't too difficult (though the combat seems to be a lot tougher in Challenging mode) and took me about 9 or 10 hours to beat in Normal mode.

The graphics are simply amazing. The levels graphics are some of the best i've seen on a PS2 game and the Batman charcater looks very cool in his bausuit and cape.

The game could have had a bit less linear with more ways of solving the situations that you come accross but at least it means you never get stuck for too long.

The controls are pretty straight forward, with 2 butons for combat (punch & kick) as well as another button for soing special finishing moves and other buttons for batarang and fear gadgets.

Batman Begins is a good first step.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: June 22, 2005
Author: Amazon User

First and foremost, this isn't a bad game. I enjoyed playing it very much, but I wanted more.

The graphics are stunning. I loved the dark gritty look of Gotham City and it's inhabitants. The characters were well done and the principle players looked remarkably like their real-life counterparts. The lighting effects within the game were great. Fires, sparks, shafts of light sifting through dusty crawlspaces... it just blew my mind. I'm usually very XBox biased, but this game made me see that the PS2 can produce graphics that can compete.

Beyond how the game looks, the controls were pretty easy to learn and were pretty intuitive. I didn't read the instruction book, and was off and running with very little trouble. The in-game help pop-ups and the training level with Ducard were great and didn't feel like an "Intro to being Batman" course. It fit in pretty seemlessly with the story. Driving the Batmobile was a joy. So much so, that I was disappointed that there is only two levels within the story.

With all that said, there are flaws here. Unfortunatly, the game is very short. I bought it on Thursday and finished it on the following Monday. It took maybe 10 hours to complete the game on the normal difficulty setting. I wanted more! I was also disappointed in the way the game handles all of Batman's goodies. Why is it that I can only throw the bat-a-rang when the game wants me to? Why can I only use the grappling hook in a limited few places? I wanted so much more in this area. Your main weapon is fear, but the only fear you are allowed to unleash on your enemys is that which the programmers set up for you. My last complaint...I wanted more extras. I loved all the movie clips and the interviews with the people who worked on the game. That stuff is always great to see. The alternative costumes are a good touch, too. I just wanted MORE! Maybe, I'm greedy, but I pay 39.99 for a game, I want my moneys worth.

In the end, I felt like I was on a very limited path through the game. I enjoyed the path very much, but I would have loved to be able to step off the path and work out new ways to terrify the bad guys out there.

Rent this game. Or, if movies are expensive in your area, buy it and take advantage of the free movie ticket. Enjoy the game and then trade it at your local game store. That way you'll get a free movie and a chance to play the game, but you'll only spend about the same amount of money that you would have if you'd just rented it.

Note to EA and WBIE: Do another Batman game! This one was fun and beautiful. Next time...Just give us more!

Batman Begins, Only a Begining

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: July 30, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Batman begins is a title i have looked forward to for months. Both the film and the game. I have been a huge Batman fan for years, but always felt in game play, the developers were missing a huge oppurtunity.

When i purchased this game, i was not expecting much. This is for two reason, the poor games batman has had in the past, and also because many movie/game crossovers leave something to be desired for. This is obviously accountable as many games take years to make, whereas a film is done in about one year, and both have to be similar so they need to be made side by side, giving the game developers little time to create the desired game.

However, i now have to say i really like this game. This is a totally new angle to Batman, a secretive and silent stalker that preys on his victims fear. The premise for the game is also a very complex one, making your enemies afraid before you strike. This idea is a brlliant one, but i do feel the game has a lot more potential.

For instance, your trusty batarang. There is one real problem with it, its considered a swiss army knife, it is used for everything. It can be used in this way in real life i know, but it does make the game a very predictable one at times.

I also felt that creating the fear was not developed enough. I felt that the game gives you one chance to scare them. For instance, in one room you knock down a dinosaur statue. This scare four or five thugs and then you go and finish them. Unfortunatly, i think that this idea could be devloped further. If i were designing it, i would set Batman into a very open environment, allowing the gamer to follow his own path around obsticales. I would also make the fear factor lengthier, by gettin rid of the one big fear maker and replace it with having to introduce many small explosions and sounds, from a variety of places.This is what happens in the film and in many horror films.

One real plus is the batmobile levels. Theu were so well enhanced and were the funnest part of the game, giving a break from the slow secretive gameplay and breaking out into a faster mode. It was so good that the developers added another level, unheard of in the film, just to keep it in there for longer.

Overall, it is a good game that will be enjoyed thoroughly by Batman fans. However, more neutral parties will be disappointed and will compare it to more impressive games, such as Metal Gear Solid and Splinter Cell.

ONE WAY TO DO IT BATMAN

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 7 / 10
Date: November 30, 2005
Author: Amazon User

A few years ago, the coolest thing to ever happen to gaming came to the playstation 2. Wide open game playing. Give the game player a city and let them go. Give them a story to follow, but also give them some room to play and create their own story. Give the gamer multiple ways to accomplish the goals.

This game IS THE EXACT OPPOSITE!!

Time after time while I was playing BATMAN BEGINS I kept going from level to level and situation to situation and there's is only ONE WAY or VERY FEW ways to accomplish each thing. If you don't do things a certain way... you are riddled with bullets and killed in seconds.

THERE IS NO ROOM FOR CREATIVITY!! You have no choice but to defeat the bad guys in the EXACT SAME WAY that the GAME-WRITER planned it.

This gets very old... very fast.

Of all superhero games that should adapt a wide-open theme. BATMAN IS IT!!! Come on GAME-WRITERS!! GOTHAM CITY for godsakes!! Let us have some fun.

Please... give us a BATMAN meets GRAND THEFT AUTO mix and we'll love you for it.

Anyway... this game is a thrown together, repetitive mess. Don't get me wrong, it's a lot of fun playing as Batman and the graphics are pretty good. But, after completing about half the game, and getting killed 10 times everytime you enter a room with thugs... until you get it down the way the game-writer intended it... the game looses its excitement.

After 2 levels of the game, you are all of sudden in the BATMOBILE or the TUMBELER. No explanation. No reason. But all of a sudden you are racing through Gotham chasing after dozens of bad guys in cars and running them down or running them off the road. WHY? I don't know. There's was no story to it. Or reason. Just... do it.

Thrown together... pointless... repetitive... promotional tool...

I mean... come on... I can see how hard it would be for someone to actually create a BRAND NEW character like say... RATCHET & CLANK, or Rynn & Arohk, or Claire & Chris Redfield and have the gaming world embrace them... but how do you screw it up when you have an already established character that everybody already loves like BATMAN?

I tell you how... you give them a one dimensional game that is about as fun as figuring out the maze in your local newspaper. Instead of giving them a game that lets the game player use their OWN MIND to figure out the best way to be Batman.

Give us Gotham City. Give us random crimes. Give us a game where is it up to us if his identity is figured out. What crimes we're gonna fight. Who we're gonna save. The makers of Spiderman 2 figured this out.

I won't buy another Batman game until they give us the wide open Grand Theft Auto format. Give us GOTHAM CITY to explore.

This game... actually sort of insults your intelligence as an individual. The game writer is basically saying that he's the only one that knows the proper way to fight each thug and each situation. Keep your creative ideas to yourself.

batman begins a great game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: July 25, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Batman Begins is great, short, but yet real fun! you can enter a stealth mode so that the bad guys cant see you then make an awsome combat move, you can use smoke grendans and a sonic bomb which can summon bats the scare the crap outta the bad guys. But whats fustrating is you have to scare the bad guys so that they drop their guns cause then your dead. you scare then by throwing your bat -a-rang at objects and doing other stuff that makes them frightned. it follows the story line from the movie nothing else. its a great game, i found my self playing it again and again, cause i beat it so quickly since its so short, since it was short i just needed more batman so i kept on playing it new game after new game, if your not a big batman fan rent this game, if you are a big batman fan buy this game other then that peace out...

Tightest batman game ever

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 10
Date: May 29, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This batman game is the bomb,you get to travel around the city by Bat-mobile,bat-jet,foot,and more fighting his evil villians Scarecrow,some kong fu guy and even some thugs.Go almost any where setting fear into hearts of Gothom City.Use batman's martial arts and cool gagjets. Forget Superman games,get The Batman Begins.

BATMAN IS BACK!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 9
Date: March 31, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is it guys Batman is back in a game worthy of his lengendary status. This game will allow you to think and act like the bat, this not your other bat-games. Batman Begins is kinda of resident evil 4 meets goldeneye, but with Batman and those amazing toys you get to play with as the Darknight.The story is like this STOP the SCARECROW and save Gotham City.I have never played a game were stealh is a must playing the shadows is very important here as that is as part of the bat's style then anything else.

Way Underrated . . .

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: June 30, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This game is totally cool! You get to grapple, use cool stealth moves like climbing down pipes or poles, or sneaking up behind someone and knocking them cold! The fighting system is innovative, in a way, and similar to Wolverine's Revenge in that their's a special button for special moves. You can also glide forever with your "memory cloth" cape. And finding a way to strike fear into the hearts of enemies is fun. The only downside is that there is no level select.

Review Page: 1 2 3 4 Next 

Actions