Loading screens and lobbies rarely resonate in these games, but here the animated characters, grungy backdrops, and tongue-in-cheek hint popups are legion and lulz-worthy. GCI's sense of humor is worth mentioning one more time, both because it's one of the game's greatest assets and because it's a major differentiator from the rest of the genre. And if all that is somehow not enough to keep you busy, the game features over 400 Steam achievements as of this writing. My first project is a melee build that features a samurai sword, a sword damage passive ability, a grappling gun, and various other niceties. Most of these are also available in the cash shop, which seems to be completely optional given that I've unlocked a ton of both gameplay and fluff items without spending a dime thus far.Ĭharacter progression is similarly deep. Weapons, gadgets, biography text and calling cards (which display to your victims before they respawn) are all here, as are hundreds of costume parts and customization tweaks. There are so many unlocks that I don't really know where to start. GCI's avatars are hi-larious, as Monolith abandons realism and gives us burly linebackers with cardboard Bat helmets and bathroom towel capes, crazy-cute Harley Quinn rollergirl analogues, and more crusty costume options than you could collect in a lifetime. Movements are precise and responsive, and the weapons I've sampled so far feature enough recoil to make it challenging without venturing into simulation territory. It might take you a few minutes to get the hang of dive-bombing from your glider or timing a skate jump, but there's no sloppiness here. If you don't feel like getting your arse shot off while you learn the maps, Challenge is your friend. Bounty Hunter involves picking up dropped coins after killing enemies (and preventing others from picking them up), while Fumigation tasks players with capping and holding three command points.įinally, there's a tutorial mode called Initiation, which susses out GCI's particular control quirks, as well as a Challenge mode that's effectively a single-player obstacle course. If your team can hang onto it long enough, you get to brainwash the other team with propaganda and leave them basically defenseless. The game's answer to capture-the-flag is called Psych Warfare, only instead of a flag, you're holding a battery. Team Deathmatch is exactly what it sounds like. Game types are standard shooter fare, but fortunately there are a few twists, again infused with GCI's irreverent sense of humor. There's also a skyscraper map that I particularly enjoyed, though there's never enough time to skulk around and perch on the gargoyles, brooding over your parents' untimely demise and practicing your best "I'm Batman" voice. You'll find yourself doing battle in and around Arkham Asylum, Gotham's East End, Ace Chemicals, Crime Alley, and other iconic locations ripped from the pages of Batman's rich backstory. When they're combined with the dynamic movement modes and the weapon variety, there are a lot of gameplay choices and a lot to love for casual shooter fans and jaded aficionados. Sniper perches abound, as do choke points and narrow corridors. There has to be since you can hang-glide, use trampolines, and rollerskate up ramps that fling you across great swaths of cityscape with reckless abandon. Even though this is a smallish lobby title, there's plenty of space on most of the maps. Monolith's Gotham is a madcap funhouse, and the general ambiance is much closer to Tim Burton (possibly even Adam West) than Christopher Nolan. Story setups in multiplayer shooters are pretty unnecessary, I know, but this one is great fun and good for plenty of chuckles when pared with the title's frenetic action and tongue-in-cheek violence. Heck, DC even canonized it (sorta) via an inspired-by story arc that starts in Detective Comics 867. If you've any sort of affinity for Batman, I daresay it's required playing (did I mention that it won't cost you anything?). It's got a mischievous sense of humor a mile wide, and it's a refreshing change of pace from the why-so-serious stylings of the genre's Battlefield and Call of Duty staples. That said, it's very well-executed and frankly a ton of fun in small doses. This is a loud, lobby-based game that's pretty much a one-trick pony. Unlike Monolith's MxO, Impostors doesn't have any virtual world leanings. As it turns out, I found a title that's pretty hard to put down. While my Bat-obsession compelled me to log into the Xbox 360 version at launch, I didn't stay long, and I figured it would be worth revisiting on the PC since it's no longer behind a paywall and I was itching for a disposable shooter. GCI debuted in February of 2012 on PCs and consoles before dropping its client fee and landing on Steam as a free-to-play title late last summer.
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