The game that almost took me away from VR.
I had been playing Horizon Zero Dawn and then torn away from that by my shiny new VR (review to come) and then I started playing Injustice 2….
I loved the first Injustice game, a fantastic beat em up with MK mechanics and a brilliantly put together alternate DC universe story line ( I even read the graphic novels) and to be honest this just builds upon the great groundwork established in the first one.
STORY
I think I’ve just popped the trophy for being half way through the main story line so still plenty to paly, that said I’ve not spent hours on the story mode. Anyway It’s very enjoyable, I kind of feel there are parts of the story I’ve missed out on as I didn’t read any of the comics related to the second game but it quickly fills you in, Batman has taken down Superman’s regime and is controlling the world with a super intelligent program, chaos ensues and you have to beat the baddies. There are some really amazing cut scenes (I think a super nerd has cut together all 2.5 hours on YouTube) and enjoyable moments. It also has chapters where you can choose between 2 fighters which is really fun (for example green arrow and black canary). It’s really obvious this has been written by someone who cares for the characters and has great comic book knowledge. I’d say I’m not enjoying the story line as much as the first but it keeps me involved enough to enjoy it.
GAMEPLAY
The gameplay is very enjoyable. I’ve bounced around a few favourite characters but seem to be best with Green Arrow and Batman (and anyone can button mash with Gorilla Grod). It feels very different to a Tekken game where it’s not all about mastering long combos and blocking. It’s mostly about inflicting the most damage, using special & supermoves and your environment to your advantage. I do think the super moves are very cool but the game would definitely benefit from giving each hero or villain more than one supermove, it would make it slightly more badass. The arena transitions are as fun as the first game also, it’s very satisfying smashing your opponent through a wall or into a pipe into a different area. As you get better you start to learn to string together a medium combo with a special move but I’d say my max combo is 7 or 8 hits. Like any beat ‘em up the more you play the better you get (hopefully).
One amazing feature they’ve built in to this game is the multiverse, if you’ve read or watched anything DC you’ll know all about it. This is where I’ve spent most of my game time. They set up alternate realities which have their own unique challenges which can help or hinder you, so far I’ve experienced meteors, help from gorilla grodd, slowed down time, temporary armour, penguins with rockets and many more crazy situations. The set up is usually 3-5 towers with varying numbers of opponents and challenges, and a recommended character level. Each tower has its own rewards as well as added overall achievements for added bonus in game credits and gear (read below) Most of them are only for a few hours. They are super fun, but super tough, I’ve actually yet to complete a whole multiverse challenge as the last tower is a ‘boss’ who I would say is tougher than your normal arcade boss and usually has some crazy health, but it sets an amazing goal to reach. To defeat them you need to level up your character and your gear……
GEAR…. The gear is immensely fun and adds massive replayability, especially for hoarders. As you fight matches you’ll earn gear and motherboxes (which unlocks gear) it’s usually random and not related to who you’re fighting with and sometimes you’ll unlock a level 20 item for your level one character but each piece generally adds some sort of bonus. As you level up a certain character the gear starts to massively change the way you look, level up your attributes such as strength and defense, and some has added bonuses like added environmental damage. It’s a very cool RPG kind of element in a beat em up and it makes you slightly addicted to getting cool shit for your favourite comic book characters. You can even unlock a staff weapon for Robin so he fights like nightwing from the first game. So it definitely gives you an extra overall aim.
GRAPHICS
I’ll quickly talk about graphics. They are awesome. They’ve made all of the characters look very realistic. I also really like how they’ve not made any of the character models look like any of the actors who have played them. A really great comic feel whilst looking as realistic as possible. I am in the belief that beat em ups Should always have the best graphics due to the limited stages and characters and this is definitely one of the better looking games I’ve played
Overall : I’d give this 9.5/10. It’s a solid all round beat em up with a lot of replayability and a lot of fun to be had. Definitely worth the price tag, especially if you’re a comic nerd. I may change this score after playing longer but at the moment I can’t see me putting it down.