Though I enjoyed playing these games, I do agree that the originals were better. Kratos becomes more of a bastard with each game and the Batman games become less creative than the last. The sequels focused more on combat and less on almost everything else.
BaD Games: Top 10 Most Disappointing Games Part 2
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 On 02/10/2014 at 10:07 AM by Blake Turner See More From This User » |
8. God of War 2 and 3
I actually believe that the original God of War is an intelligent character study and the video game version of a study of Greek Tragedy. The violence had purpose, because it defined Kratos' character, the values of the time, and it served to prove that even the most physically capable beings are susceptible to their own guilt and emotional instability, and it worked, actually allowing us to sympathise with a complete and utter monster. It is a well told tale that was over the top but served as a homage to greek theatre in every form, right down to the literal Deus Ex Machina of a god stepping in at the last moment. It's smart. It's fun. It's awesome.
Then the sequels came. Unfortunately, the creative director wasn't on board to help keep the story and characters from delving into complete farce and borderline self parody. Kratos became completely unsympathetic. He turned from tragic to entitled, ironically mirroring the progression of video game fandom in general. The story became ridiculous, stupid and puerile.
Both games were still fun, and the gameplay continued to improve, but the themes and creative vision of the first one was tarnished, and it turned Kratos from a good character to a character with no value at all, apart from comedic appeal.
7. Batman: Arkham City
Arkham Asylum is simply amazing. It's a masterpiece of gaming. It's well paced, it's fun, and it's atmospheric. Arkham City is only one of those things.
The biggest problem with Arkham City is pacing. There are too many villains, so none of them get enough screen time to actually be memorable. The open world nature doesn't really add much apart from side quests – which are good, but not good enough to warrant breaking up the main story.
The main story is meh apart from the ending, which is the complete opposite of the first game. In the first game, so much of the lore and storytelling came from the environments themselves, whereas here they felt like generic areas you could find in most game. I rarely felt engaged and I actually tired of the game quickly. It simply couldn't hold my interest, and I found it bland and uninteresting as a result.
Going open world was the worst thing that happened to the series.
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