On Trial
Gotham City Impostors
First up, I will concede that technically, TECHNICALLY, this isn’t a trial. It’s a Beta. But I didn’t want to create a whole new column title to fit Gotham City Impostors under and seeing as it’s an XBLA, it will be on trial eventually. So… there. Nyar.
Now to business. The first thing to say is that Gotham City Impostors can be summed up with one word: Wacky. If you were inclined to add another, I would recommend “zany” as well, but this online shooter is definitely not taking itself seriously by any means. Taking the Batman franchise and coating it with big neon colours and ker-azy weapons a la Joel Schumacher, Gotham City Impostors is selling itself as a shooter that will cure any of the usual online shooter frustrations with a thick coat of “WAY HEY HEY!” Put it this way, if Arkham City is Christian Bale, Gotham City Impostors is most definitely Adam West.
This is evident from the moment you start it up. The intro movie sets up our story: Batman is off fighting crime and your average person on the street has deciding to take matters in their own hands. On one side you have the Batz, all grey and blue custom get ups and noble proclamations. One the other, the Jokerz, decorated in greens, purples and make up ranging from Cesar Romero all the way to Heath Ledgers dirty stylings. Both sides have their home-brewed weaponary, ready to take the other down in the most inept, but fun, way possible. The wackiness continues, with loading screens represented by short podgy cartoon versions of “Batman” and “Joker”, one shooting wildly in the air with a wide smile on his face (Batz) and the other holding the loading bar like ill-gotten loot (Jokerz). From there you are bought into a mildly gritty, if it wasn’t for the alludes to “shark repellent” and bright colours, menu screen leading you to the usual multi-shooter tropes: just straight in and play, edit your character or check up on your stats. So far, so expected.
But as I said it’s the humour that separates Gotham City Impostors from your run-of-the-mill online shooterfest. Diving into the Initiation mode (recommended to help you get used to all the wacky gadgets and play styles), you are introduced to the world of things but a gloriously over the top member of the Batz, where you learn how to shoot slingshots armed with grenades, glide around the rooftops and roller-skate your way to victory! And from there, you are ready to jump into the action…
There are only two game modes: Fumigation and Psych Warfare. Both variate on the usual game mode of Capture and Defend, but with their own unique takes. Fumigation has you acquiring a Gasblaster, which blasts… gas… that when reaching a certain level can damage your opponent and help you win the game. Psych Warfare has more of a Capture the Flag element, with both teams going for one battery to plug into a propaganda machine which will demoralise opponents, causing them to lose their weapons.
In truth, it’s the combination of these unique game styles and the Batman “skin”, as it were, that makes for a fun game. Once in the field of battle, gameplay is fast and frenetic as you’d expect with most shooters, but graphically is appealing enough to be beyond the bland “grey and brown” maps of CoD and Battlefield. “Presents” drop from the sky to boost your defence, speed and other skills, and XP is awarded for a variety of things so you always feel you’re achieving something. Most of all though it does seem fun. Quips are thrown around by the characters with either camp bravado (Batz) or schizophrenic craziness (Jokerz). Players fly around the screen with grappling hooks, gliders and the aforementioned roller skates leading to a feeling of unpredictability. And that’s all before you unlock the Jack-in-the-box Bombs…
The only grumble I would say is that while playing there was a bit of lag, which eventually sorted itself out, and like all online shooters it does suffer the odd strange match-making and “cheap” player. However overall Gotham City Impostors is a fun variation on the genre and also is a must for all Bat-fans. Go and join the Beta today over at http://www.gothamcityimpostors.com/ and join in the crazy. As always, you can find me on Xbox Live as Oli J BA…
Verdict: Buy
