Batman: The Brave & the Bold review

When it comes to the dreaded licensed games, Batman has had it better than most. While he does get lumbered with the odd stinker, such as the criminally bad Batman Forever, his games are usually of a higher quality output. Games such as Batman on the NES and Adventures of Batman and Robin on the SNES have stood the test of time really well, and of course last year there was Batman: Arkham Asylum, a game so good it was very nearly our Game of the Year (only Uncharted 2 beat it, and it really was hard to decide between the two). So with that in mind, how does this more light-hearted look at one of the greatest comic-book heroes ever hold up?

Our experience with the cartoon this game is based on (and the comics the cartoon is based on) is limited, but the general idea is that Batman teams up with other characters from the DC universe to fight crime and tackle supervillains, all of it presented as a love letter to the gloriously silly Silver Age of comic book superheroes. Think Adam West rather than Tim Burton, and you’ll have an idea of what we mean (and no doubt will be crying “Blasphemy!” by this point).

There’s no overarching narrative to the plot of the game; instead it’s more like a series of interactive episodes of the cartoon, complete with prologue boss fights before each “episode”. You choose to play as either Batman or the hero he’s teamed up with for the episode; either Robin, Hawkman, Guy Gardner or Blue Beetle. The objective’s simple; fight your way through armies of goons, negotiate some platforms and beat up the supervillains.

As evidenced by both Contra 4 and the remake of A Boy and his Blob, developer Wayforward clearly know what they’re doing when it comes to 2D gameplay and graphics, and with this release they have once again played to their strengths. The controls are easy enough to get to grips with; one button attacks, the other lets you jump, and various combinations of the control stick, the jump button and the attack button open up more moves such as uppercuts, rolls and backflips. Shaking the Wiimote is only used to access stronger attacks. Each character also as a variety of gadgets at their disposal (all of which you can buy upgrades for), some of which (like the batarangs) can be aimed manually using the pointer. Overall, the controls feel tight and responsive.

The presentation throughout is absolutely brilliant. The graphics are superb, with some of the best 2D animation we’ve seen for a while. It really captures the look of the cartoon so well, with some very clever techniques used throughout, especially used in the excellent level design which keeps the game looking fresh and exciting. The wonderfully bombastic musical score suits the game really well. The script is also surprisingly sharp and witty, with the voice-acting revelling in the silliness of the proceedings and making everything that much more enjoyable. There’s a real sense of polish to the presentation, with a superb attention to detail that makes this a treat for fans of the cartoon.

If presentation was everything this would be a classic. Alas, the gameplay is considerably less special. Games of the roaming beat-‘em-up sort always seem to have the same flaw; they just end up being too monotonous. Even the best examples of the genre (such as Streets of Rage 2) suffer from this, and unfortunately Batman: The Brave and the Bold is no different. While it feels satisfying to destroy armies of goons and other monsters at first, it repeats itself so often it can get tiresome. The game does try to mix things up a bit, such as offering alternative pathways, throwing in some simple switch-based puzzles or mixing in other genres such as rail-shooters, but most of the time it all boils down to beating up all the bad guys to advance. There are also rare moments where leaps of faith are required, but thankfully the game doesn’t punish you too harshly for messing them up (like the Lego games, you have unlimited lives). It’s also a bit on the easy side and rather short, though each level does have hidden areas which encourages some replay value.

As with all games of this type, the game is best played with a friend in tow. The game offers drop-in-drop-out co-op play (when you’re alone, the CPU takes over the other character), and the proceedings become immeasurably more satisfying with another human being playing.

In the end, Batman: The Brave and the Bold is all about simple, uncomplicated fun, and it makes no pretence of being otherwise. The monotony really drags it down, but the magnificent presentation, solid controls and excellent co-op play just about saves it. It’s another one which we couldn’t recommend paying full-price for, but if you take it for what it is – an almost-mindless beat-‘em-up, which looks and sounds fabulous and is best played with a friend – then you’ll have a good time.