Batman is, hands down, the most popular superhero ever created.
Certainly there are rabid Superman fans, Wolverine supporters, and so on… But when it comes to the sheer kick-ass vision of the ideal hero, Batman is the foremost in the majority of people’s minds.
Why is this? Because Batman is not so far-fetched from being a reality. He has no super powers, he’s not invincible… He’s nothing more than a normal man trained and educated to fight against enemies that often are more powerful than Batman- yet you always know that in the end, Batman is going to come out on top. Not simply because he’s the hero, but because he’s always able to out-think any situation and overcome any foe he faces. This is why he beat Superman (in their famous comics duel, using Kryptonite-laced gloves) because Batman is a thinking-man’s (or woman’s) hero that we can all directly relate to, unlike an invincible alien in Superman or modified mutant like Wolverine.
So if Batman is capable of coming out on top over overwhelming odds- can he overcome his greatest challenge ever?
His greatest challenge- Joker? No, no. His greatest challenge would be to appear in a comic-book based game that isn’t horrible. To date, the only comic hero game that has been a great success, high quality, and very fun to play was the recent “Wolverine: X-Men Origins” game, which truly did Wolverine justice and provided a definite “keeper” game. Surely Batman provides easier source material to outshine Wolverine?
The answer is a most definitive “yes”.
Rocksteady Studios has finally done Batman proud by providing him a game that is worthy of the Batman brand. There are countless reasons why this game works on so many levels.
Combat
Let’s start with the brightest light that shines through in this game: The combat. After all, games of this nature are going to come down to how fun the combat is- does it become repetitive? Do you groan when another 10 generic goons come around the corner? Are you just hoping that you’re at the next boss fight, already? Never once, in this game, do you wince when it comes time to fight. On the contrary- you will absolutely drool over how much fun you’re having. This is one of the sleekest, smoothest, best controlled fighting systems ever made for a game of this type.
There are no awkward targeting quirks. No health bars (for enemies), no overly-complex button controls. No, the majority of the fighting comes down to using the “X” button for your attacks and the “Y” button to counter attacks. Sounds too simple? Wait until you experience the feeling when you have swooped down from a ceiling hiding spot, landing a gliding kick against one of the foes, then seamlessly begin a stream of kicks, punches, blocks, throws and flips- without ever fumbling over the controls for the right button. By keeping things easy to manage, Rocksteady made the combat so very fun- because a novice can manage to fight and feel like Batman… but a hardcore gamer can truly become as imposing a martial arts expert as Batman is- taking down dozens of goons without a blow landing upon him.
And that just discusses the actual free-for-all fighting. What shines even more is when you go into “predator mode” (not an actual gameplay change, just a concept) where you hide in various places within a room that has five or so guards- and proceed to pick them off one by one using stealth attacks and Batman’s typical bag of gadgets. Pick off the first goon? The others will rush to his fallen (unconcious) body and begin to panic. Using your “detective” vision mode, you can not only see skeleton-outlines of where all the goons are in a room, but what weapons they are carrying, and their heart-rate. Bring enough fear to the goons as you stealthily take out their companions (with Joker humorously taunting his own men over the Asylum’s P.A. system)- and they’ll begin to freak out, firing randomly into corners and generally soiling their pants.
The game simply shines during these moments- you can’t get enough of preying on these helpless goons. But make no mistake- they are not morons, and unlike other generic bad guys in hero games, if you screw up and they get their sights on you, you will pay the price with a side full of bullets. This is what the appeal of Batman is: You can’t just walk up to three armed goons and “win”- guns WILL take you down. Therefore you have to figure out the best way to outsmart them. Perhaps it’s using your tools to whip up to a point behind them, and drop down for silent takedowns, or perhaps you set a trap in front of them with explosive gel, and let them catch a glimpse of you- to come charging into the spot you wish them to be with your finger on the detonator.
Make no mistakes- out of all the combat games out there- Batman has one of the best combat systems ever built to this point. It creates a level of replayability that might not otherwise exist.
“Happiness is just an illusion caused by the temporary absence of reality.”
~Unknown
Imagination and creativity don’t simply apply to only such things as entertainment media and art creation- there are plentiful areas of life in which to imagine the possibilities, ponder the unknown or challenge existing beliefs. It is in performing these acts of brain teasing that keeps one’s mind open and forward-thinking.
For the sake of argument for this post, let’s assume it is a given there is an afterlife akin to the traditional versions described by Christians, that everyone enters: regardless of your normal beliefs on the matter. If you’re so close-minded as to be unable to set aside your own beliefs to consider others, you should skip this post as the content will not make you think. Your mind is devoid of imagination on the matter…
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The traditional Christian view on the afterlife is well known: “Good” people go to “Heaven” and “Evil” people go to “Hell”. In Heaven, everyone is basking in happiness simply by being in God’s presence. You are greeted and surrounded with previously deceased family and… well, bask, apparently. In Hell, you are burned and tortured in flames and agony, perhaps because you had sex with a neighbor’s wife, or ate the wrong food on the wrong day of the week. Of course, let’s not forget both locations are considered eternal.
Let’s ignore the above concept of Hell (another discussion for another time!) and strictly focus on the above interpretation of “Heaven”, since we’re attempting to discuss the notion of happiness in the afterlife… and I’m not thinking many people would find tons of joy doing their best imitation of a permanent campfire human marshmallow.
The question I’m posing here is simple. If the source of your entire happiness within Heaven is simply the presence of family and friends, combined with an Earthly-unknowable love from God, would everyone truly be the same person that they were in life? What of the joys each person holds within life- after all, some of the sources of happiness we grasp to actually form the very basis of our personalities. What of those who do not get along with their family members? How can an eternity in their presence be joyful?
Let me provide an example. Those who know me are quite aware I am an enormous Prince expert/fan. If you insert me into the Heaven we’re describing above, I would never again experience the joy I receive from his music. Instead, I am placed in a state of bliss simply from “hearing God’s voice”, “feeling God’s love” or “God’s presence”. How would my soul be considered unaltered? These are not the means by which I derive happiness here on Earth- therefore if I suddenly obtain all of my joy from the presence of God in this form of afterlife, who I was in life has been fundamentally altered. There is but one term that fits this concept: Brainwashing. Obviously brainwashing has negative connotations, used to insinuate devious motives. At its root though, it simply describes someone having their thought process altered against the fabric of who they truly are to believe something they don’t really believe.
Certainly some people’s greatest joy on Earth is worshiping God, and so this existence would not be an alteration of what made them happy in life. That is not the case for me. My spirituality is more subtle, my belief in God not the one we’re describing, and I’m not Christian. If you take away my Earthly joys-those things that defined me- and force a feeling of bliss upon me, am I still me? I say no- you’ve taken away critical aspects of my personality- and therefore my soul- unique. One of the largest components of my personality comes from the things I love in life- Prince, gaming, creative writing and all the other creative and imaginative outlets in which I hold interest.
In essence the traditional Christian view of the afterlife envisions your existence as a brainwashed member of a cult of identical individuality-suppressed souls. It doesn’t matter what you were like in life, or what you were passionate about- all of your uniqueness is gone, and you become one of a great mass happy for no reason other than bathing in a bliss drug known as “God”.
Given the horrors of such a generic and bland afterlife when examined as above, it reinforces my belief that the afterlife is much more than we can imagine it to be- beyond what seems logical. While we may not take our physical bodies with us when we pass- that is not to say that we will not have access to another form with physical attributes. Leading theoretical physicists are aware of numerous dimensions that exist that we do not know- who is not to say that we simply do not pass over to another dimension that shadows our own where the rules of physics are not quite the same? Where we are spirit energy capable of forming bodies that can concretely interact with our surroundings? That can hold and form matter, touch things, and even build things?
Recently the music world was rocked with the sudden death of a legendary entertainer: Michael Jackson. Only 50 years old, the entirety of the entertainment and news world rushed to share the shocking news, and immediately an obsessive amount of wall-to-wall coverage was seen concerning all aspects of his personal and professional lives on all the news channels. Soon, weeks had passed, and people began to complain that the news cycle was being interrupted from reporting more pressing matters than discussion of his death and tributes to him. Those complaints were flawed- late in coming, and missing the mark over what the complaints should be about.
Certainly Michael Jackson was a major player in the entertainment world, and combined with the sudden surprise of a relatively young death, he deserved a week in the spotlight to be heralded for his achievements. The real issue of complaint is the level of praise upon him became overwhelmingly inappropriate in scale to his talent and legacy as an entertainer, and have placed society- particularly news sources- in an awkward position. They committed a blunder with their excessive attention to the self-proclaimed “King of Pop”’s death…
He’s a pretender to the throne.
Michael Jackson was one of the most legendary entertainers we’ve encountered. Yet what measure of skill did he truly have? And what talents did Michael fully possess? Is what he did truly something no one else could do? There’s nothing wrong whatsoever appreciating the legacy Michael leaves behind as an amazing entertainer. He should be heralded for the trends he set, honored for his fun and amazing music videos he starred in, and it is a loss to the world of music when compared to so many faceless bands and artists that come and go today.
In other words (and let me make this quite clear to stave off the inevitable Jackson-fans-with-blinders-on attacks that have already occurred, without any backing facts) this is not a Michael Jackson bash session. It’s simply an accounting of the facts. I enjoy some of Michael Jackson’s music and videos- so this is not a hate session. It is simply pointing out the backwards reality we’re now faced with after his passing.
By showering him with so many weeks of praise, covering his funeral memorial live on the news while allowing it to last weeks on end, a problematic situation arises in the future for society, and the news organizations…
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