"When are Penguin and Riddler finally going to snog" was a question many Gotham watchers were asking, and which I've been assured has been extensively covered on AO3
AO3 is good at answering questions, though admittedly its mainly good at answer questions related to snogging but rest assured when I'm watching The Owl House and going "I wonder what it would be like if Eda and Camila snogged??" then AO3 will have a handful of answers ready
Shipped them since S2 when Riddler cared for Penguin in his cozy bed. They were the best reason to watch that show (that and the wildly attractive Bullock & Alfred). The fact they never snogged or awoke in the same bed together is the true crime of the show.
@@MsYunaFires It's clear they were written as a on-again, off-again couple. And that show has my favorite version of Penguin, as this clever, charming, and ruthless criminal. I'd love to see that actor get another chance to reprise that or a similar version.
I shall now go to this game's Wikipedia page. If the rat king isn't actually multiple people holding the title together between them like a council, preferably chained together or conjoined like a big clump, I will be quite upset.
@@hunted4blood wait seriously? That's genuinely cool and the level of detail I would not expect of modern triple A development. Does it actually relate to themes of the game??? Be still my beating heart!
@@AdumbroDeus You have to squint a little to make it work, but yeah. There's a scene where Harley Quinn and Scarecrow basically sit you down and tell you that the game is about identity and how we all have a repressed "shadow" part of our psyche (hence the title of the game). So the Rat King is one particular character's unintegrated shadow self, and thus one of several identities all bound together, pulling him in different directions, much like how Batman has 4 different identies he has to juggle throughout the game. I unironically think this game's arc for Bruce is one of the best in all of Batman media.
@@hunted4blood I agree with you on this. You see Batman's character growth throughout this from the angry hothead youth to the cool calculated vigilante he becomes in Asylum. The strength of the story telling is that it takes place over the course of 7 days. It gives the story time to breath as opposed to solving it all in 1 night. If you are going into this game, think Asylum gameplay, not open world as it is now.
Regarding the Joker in Blackgate, Arkham Asylum isn't reopened yet in the timeline. In Arkham Origins, the Asylum had been closed down at the start of the game. In the end, after the Blackgate riot where Joker and Bane made a mess, officials were thinking of reopening the place.
I'm going to sound very old, but is it really necessary for the volume for the advert at the start to be massively louder than the volume of the actual intro? Having to turn the volume down and back up again having been deafened doesn't put me in the mood for buying things...
Definitely don't have to be old to damage your hearing when wearing earbuds. I damaged my hearing listening to Spotify music which significantly varies in volume while wearing Airpods which are terrible for changing volume quickly
Man, I really hate the depiction of Batman as being clueless about how useless beating up criminals is at preventing crime. Like, Bruce Wayne studied criminology, among his other studies, so he should understand the root causes of crime. It's part of why he traditionally funds so many charitable missions in the first place, to address those root causes!
Yeah a lot of people seem to forgot that by day Bruce wayne is heavily involved in gothams political side he actually wants to help the city not just beat dudes up
In the real world, adding police actually does reduce the number of serious crimes (like assault, murder, etc.). Batman arguably counts as "increased police presence"; even though he's just one man, he relies on fear, secrecy and psychology to have an outsized effect in suppressing crime.
Anybody who thinks criminals are victims of circumstance instead of people who made a choice hasn't met criminals. The Mendez brothers were rich, Sam bankman-fried had damn near anything he wanted. Even criminals that are impoverished, live among people in the exact same circumstances that commit no crimes often in the same family. Removing choice from the equation makes little more then robots that can't reason.
As far as VR goes, the quest 3 is quite affordable, seeing what Sony are pitching the ps5 at these days. Still a price point that's a luxury, but a decade ago headsets were twice as much and needed to be tethered to a computer that would also run you 2k. I wonder how much of a loss Meta is taking on every sale?
TBF Brauce does do charitable donations with all his money, the problem is that there are more rich people who spend money to keep things bad and that Gotham is literally fucking cursed (in more ways than one).
It's such an overdone observation, it's basically boils down to "oh those poor rapists, murderers and thieves, they just had no choice but to break the law"
Charity is patronizing and doesn't fix poverty. Social policies or more profound systemic changes do. So you are right on the second half, but bats does nothing but punch people and throw coins lol.
@@Mrmumps-tb4no Feels like you're showing you're showing your ass when comparing thieves to murderers and rapists. There is a wide umbrella that technicaly encompases thievery, and not all of it is evil imo. If someone is starving I'm not going to begrudge them if they steal a loaf of bread.
There is a bit of a problem with the premise; Batman already understands that there are people who commit crimes out of desperation. He doesn't give these people the same treatment that he gives organized crime and super villains; he shows compassion. Hell, he is even kind to the super villains at times.
as a note, this is a specific to the Arkhamverse. Arkham Origins Batman is sort of a one track rage man, and later games show him as empathetic, so they were using this game to try and explore that character transition. Sort of cool, honestly.
As I mow through scores of organized crime henchmen as Batman (which was a lot of fun), I don't think there was any consideration from Batman of whether or not any of those low level henchmen were doing it out of desperation. Desperation and low level organized crime are not mutually exclusive. Also showing more compassion to a supervillain than their low level henchmen is even more problematic.
@@jamessegerstrom Oh definitely. I agree with you. I was replying to OP. I love the Arkham games, and I think it would be so much more fun if Batman grows even more and we start punching more stuff like mercenaries of billionaires and corrupt officials. Though it might require more effort to fit that into Batman / Arkham's general noir aesthetic.
It's an annoying misconception that people who don't know anything make. Origins Batman was a lot more aggressive but he didn't treat everyone like criminal scum. He has already encountered Mr Freeze in Cold, Cold Heart.
It's really good, too. I don't know what it's going to take for VR to take off, the Quest price point is nuts for what you get, and the experience is well beyond Xbox vs PlayStation vs PC.
If they really wanted to be poignant of Batman's approach to crime fighting, the developers should have rather put the focus on how the villains are not revolutionaries tearing the system. In wanting to be "in with the times" writers drifted from Batman being the solution to the villains being the new trend setters because they are disrupting the system in the city. But they too benefit and even exploit to a worse degree the henchmen and crew who are just civilians wanting to make a quick buck by any means. That just shows that Gotham is so fucked, no matter where you go, you seem to kick the can down the road and eventually hit a megalomaniacal costumed baddy with a huge job vacancy.
A "topical" take on the henchmen's motivation would be SO hilariously on-the-nose, but also totally worth it. "Yeah, I joined up with Joker's gang because I lost faith in Batman's ability to actually make this city a better place, but to be honest I'm not sure how changing the name of Gotham Harbor to Joker Harbor is going to make it easier for me to buy eggs."
@@JimJava007 that's actually something I was looking forward too in the White Knight series. But the entire series reeks more of a fanfiction just to prop up the Joker as Jack Napier and painting Batman as a failure. The big problem with cannon is that rarely there's a clear line across movies, books and games. There's a larger notion that Batman punches the oppressed but that is a simplification and misguided view that doesn't address the villains that fuck up the city for their own sake.
At this point in the zeitgeist, Ratman would be the hero, Batman would be the villain, and the violent death of Gotham would be the happily-ever-after.
@@jeremyfischer7856no he wouldn’t, I don’t know if you played the game, but innocent people were being murdered, taken hostage, etc. by Ratman’s men, Batman was the one putting a stop to the chaos, that’s not how you save a city, that’s how you get anarchy
There is something darkly hilarious about the tendency of the upper class to try literally every solution for society's problems, other than the obvious one of "you have money, they need money, so give some of it to them."
@@NYKevin100"ok, how much? Do you want me to empty my value or do you want me to make investment? Is it charity giveaway or is it establishing livelihood? Did you have a plan or do you think money can solve everything?"
@@SimuLord I argue, redirect the idea giving. Fool Elon into thinking he could pick a fight with somebody who could floor him in three seconds. Get cameras. Let the guy floor him. Musk's dumb enough that he'd go with it if you made the right pitch.
I’ve said it one with respect to BTAS Batman and I’ll say it again. So many billionaires want to be Batman, yet none of them want to be like Bruce Wayne (as in actually use their money to help people and prevent them from becoming criminals).
this is why Bruce Wayne is an idealised, fictional ideal of what we want rich people to be like: because most of them, if not all, are more like lex luthor
I mean, it's always said that Bruce does this, yet I've never seen a version of Gotham City that actually seems to be benefitting from this. It's perpetually a shithole full of insane criminals and people desperate enough to work for them.
I mean, it's always said that Bruce does this, yet I've never seen a version of Gotham City that actually seems to be benefitting from this. It's perpetually a shithole full of insane criminals and people desperate enough to work for them.
1:47 funny you say this considering in a recent issue of a batman comic it's revealed that Joe chill was once a patient of Bruce Wayne's dad so it seems the curse affects the whole family
The Arkham games do the thing where you occasionally overhear goons chatting with your super hearing and they make sure to portray them so you don't mid using them as a landing pad.
I'm always reminded of this guy in the sewers in Arkham Asylum. He's talking about how the Joker gives him the creeps and kept telling him to kill his sister(or some other woman in his life) to prove his loyalty, and after a while, he just clubbed some random woman on the streets to death. Might come off as just random bad guy talk, but it cuts down to the core of Batman and Joker stories (along with Superman to some extent) which is how long can you hold on to your moral fortitude, how long can you justify not taking the easy way out and using your strength against the weak. He could've chosen to be a better person by denying the Joker, but he didn't, he took a step forward into the madness.
If memory serves, Arkham Asylum was in disrepair during Arkham Origins and was only refurbished when costumed crime exploded in response to Batman breaking the mob
the thing about two face's story in the game is that yes its an origin story but it does use well the fact that he and batman were once upon a time close friends but it ties into the greater story about how some criminals are worthy of empathy and compassion and not jsut things to be punched, and also plays into aspects of two face we haven't had explored in media for years
stopping criminals from committing crimes might not help the criminals, but it does a whole lot of good for people who would otherwise be victimized by that criminal.
People who's idea of deep writing for Batman being "he only knows how to beat the poor and now we are going to challenge this" aren't just pretentious, but also have never read a singular Batman comic. What scares me is how often they get a job.
Art is made by people who would pay to be there, not the most talented. The truly talented know their price, and practically no one is willing to pay it anymore when some producer's kid is there and brings funding along too.
Batman’s most commonly faced enemies are usually Gotham’s richest people. If people who hate Batman found out anything about him they would probably explode
You also don't have to read a comic book either, just look at the ither games. Arkham City literally starts with Bruce Wayne campaigning to close the titular facility, and the climax revolves around him stopping the systematic mass m*rder of the inmates. Atleast this one is a prequel so the canonical older Batman isn't reframed as "problematic" or whatever
i'm a bit leery of this review, particularly the bit at the end. i feel like if there were wacky zany boss fights, he would've criticised it for being incongruous with the prequel setting, and if there were wacky zany boss fights and it wasn't a prequel, he would've criticised it for being basically the old games but in VR. so basically the devs can't win here. i'd rather they did something new anyway, even if it's a bit more mundane than what came before.
You know the next hero in line is green arrow Or better known as Batman but Robin Hood At least early on but they are definitely not going for socialist Oliver
@@BP-dn9nv there’s a Wonder Woman game trailer that released a couple years ago that has not been followed up on once to this day. Why can’t we get any more games for any more dc characters
Joker being in Blackgate and not Arkham Asylum is somehow more accurate, since the Joker is not clinically insane and does not belong in an Asylum; so Blackgate does actually make more sense
Depends on the version of the Joker. Some versions do not even remember his life or identity before he became the Joker, which sounds like some kind of clinical stuff going on.
the Joker may not be clinically insane, but he definitely has no problem pretending to be when it's convenient. like when making an insanity plea to avoid the death penalty.
I guess it’s meant to be progression since it’s still “early”. In Origins he’s basically a super-mobster, rather than a supervillain. So throw that guy in jail. Give it a few breakouts and increasingly dastardly plots for a number of years later, we can upgrade to criminally insane, and chuck him in Arkham in time for the original game.
If you want the Quest 3 to be comfortable, you need a hard strap (preferably with a front-to-back top strap) with a counterweight at the back (usually a battery.) You can get the Kiwi Designs H4 Boost or BoboVR S3 Pro (and remove the dumb "horns" and add a front to back top strap, like self-adhering velcro tape from amazon.)
Yeap, I bought a cheap battery head strap and literally never use the battery part of it. You wouldn't think "the solution is more weight on your head!" but it ABSOLUTELY is.
If I had a nickel for every Quest exclusive VR game about superhero billionaires, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird it happened twice, you know?
I know you're making a joke Yahtz, but Bruce does more for Gotham as himself than he ever has at Batman. Canonically he's the #1 employer in Gotham, offering second chance employment, training, education benefits. He makes sure the everyone in the city has full, free health care coverage, along with various clinics and pharmacies to keep costs down. He also offers many grants, foundations, and helping hands to people who need it.... His budget is 3-4 times more as Bruce than it is as the Bat and all his fun toys.
you can tell he actually liked it cause there werent as many knob jokes and he actually complimented alil bit of it and didnt mention he quit playing before the end.
Ah, the deafening silence of no narrated ad.... I'd almost call it refreshing, except I actually kinda miss it. By strange coincidence (and I'm showing my involvement level here, I know), I finally started Batman Arkham Asylum last night for the first time. Can't wait to see if Batman gets the help he so desperatly needs. Clinicaly-speaking, of course.
@@dastvan8002 i would recommend much more to play for yourself tbh. Watching a 2D video of a holodeck game is like watching somebody else driving a roller coaster and basicaly robs yourself from an awesome expierence
If you plan on doing more VR stuff, I recommend getting prescription inserts that clip on to the lenses of the headset. Greatly improved my comfort, especially in longer sessions.
Ohhh you reminded me Gotham was a thing. Yeah, the Riddler/Penguin shenanigans was the only light in that mess. My Fav version of (young) Penguin, followed/fitting perfectly with (older) Penguin via Colin Farrell .
As the intro finished playing, I was on my way to search for this game and literally said out loud "why have I never heard of this new Batman game?" And before I could finish that sentence, you said "VR game" and answered the question for me.
To be fair, Alfred becoming Bruce's guardian was a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time after he first showed up as a butler/amateure detective and basically bullied his way into becoming Bruce's butler...
In Origins they were discussing re-opening Arkham at the end of the game after the Blackgate breakout. I haven't played this game but it could be before Arkham re-opens which would explain the Joker being there.
@@kwayneboy1524 Some acknowledgement that the issue isn't money nor can be solved with money. Money is merely the vehicle that is used to interact with the overarching issues of government ineptitude and corruption.
@@eddthehead123 I did but I am asking for your personal take on it. You gave your alternate approach but what aspects of the game plays into this played out trope in your opinion?
3:10 To be fair, deliberately getting sent to multiple different prisons to fill out a (presumably handmade) punch card *does* seem like the kind of thing the Joker might do. At least the more clowny versions.
after playing something like BoneLab batman arkham shadow just felt like a vr game that desperately wanted to be a traditional game maybe if there was like a freeform combat option where all the hand-holdy prompts eased off a bit and just let the player beat up dudes plain n simple i would've bothered to finish the starting mission
So going through the video the arkham series doesn't just tack on words, Asylum takes place in the asylum just like city takes place in Arkham city, arkham knight has the Arkham Knight as one of the main antagonists, origins is the origin of batman kinda, blackgate takes place in blackgate, and shadow ties back into the games major themes of "the shadow" that everyone has. Shadow is also a sequel to blackgate and not just origin.
Gotham was such a weird show. The premise was something only fans would have any interest in, but then it was written like the writers assumed the audience had zero knowledge of any of the characters beyond their names/aliases. Everyone watching the show knows Harvey Dent becomes Two-Face. Putting half of Harvey's face in almost pitch-black shadow in 90% of the shots he's in is unnecessary and insulting to the viewer's intelligence.
Someone commented on how Arkham was deactivated thanks to the events in Arkham Origins. Also, I think the first game states Arkham was built in the late 1800s or early 1900s.
The "flinging my arms into small dogs" comment is one I want to believe is a joke, but at the same time makes me wonder if Toffee was actually within range of Yahtzee's flailing.
I think that's the mistake a lot of people make about Batman, maybe even the writers. He *isn't* about crime prevention, he's about crime resolution. Like, a lot of his work is solving crimes, crimes that happened. And even when he's more proactively involved, he's *stopping* a crime that is *happening*. The crime prevention stuff is the things he does as Bruce Wayne: employment, charities, etc... Though it does make you wonder what about Gotham makes it what it is, as you really can't tell me that Batman hasn't had an effect. I get there are a lot of people in the comments who don't know what's gone on in the Philippines or El Salvador: sometimes a brutal crackdown on violent criminals is *exactly* the right move to make. It's just *afterwards* you also have to implement social stability to prevent people from falling back into those patterns out of necessity or desperation, or you know, do it before that takes place. But anyone who thinks you can convince a scammer to stop scamming because it's the right thing to do... well, let's just say drug lords, gang members and dictators tend to be even harder to sway.
Funny how you mention the Riddler and the penguin. Because in that "classic" Alyas Batman en Robin. Joker and Penguin are defiently lovers...and robbers...and...singers! (edit..the 1991 one of course )
I mostly stopped watching youtube for 2 years because I had a child and rathered sleep over funny internet videos. That's why its refreshing to have listened to enough of Yahtzee's audio books for the algorithm to bring me here a week ago. Although I must admit I got used to hearing about Jacques McKeown who is a less impressive batman.
Finished this game last month and can't argue with any of yahtzee's points. except for the cape glide. yea it's silly but I found it fun. in general I'd say the game is "decent, but wonky" in about every respect. combat, story, stealth. all decent but wonky, stealth being the wonkiest, cause yea, the guard AI / pathing breaks super easy.
If they ever invent a VR headset that makes me feel anything other than "Grant Imahara in a motion sickness chair" while playing, I might give a game like this a go.
Speaking of Batmans who are dead, the Batman of the Arkhamverse was killed in(by) Suicide Squad, which is why this had to be a sequel to Origins (a prequel) rather than a mainline game.
Well, narratively it was okay. As for gameplay, it got boring and repetitive very quickly. There are times when Batman’s like “hey, Alfred, I need a… a batarang, send it to me” and then he walks 30 minutes to get the bloody stuff. Which proves my point that early Batman is a dumbass who doesn’t equip his basic stuff yet. It gets even more annoying later in the game. Harley Quinzel is being held hostage. Batman: “oh bollocks, Alfred, I need me bloody bat-claw”. “Are you sure, Master Wayne? You could just knock the door down or use a vent or…”. “No fucking way, Alfred. What am I paying you for?”. You see how bad it is? 2 hours till the finale and Batman decides that it’s time to leave the hostage to get the basic equipment.
I've never been a fan of the "Batman should be trying to address the root cause of crime" line of thinking. Mostly because he is doing that. Bruce Wayne and Wayne enterprises do more charity work than anyone else in the DC universe. Batman exists to tackle the mob and supervillains, people who don't want to leave crime behind them. Plus a lot of the time if he does find somebody who is a criminal out of desperation, he discreetly makes sure they get a job at Wayne enterpises or covers their medical bills anonymously or something. Okay. Batman rant over, back to the funny video game man
Batman fighting ratman, this is just a furcon with poor security.
or a mosh pit.
Ska-badabadabadoo-belidabbelydabbladabbladabblabab-belibabbelibabbelibabbelabbelo-doobelidoo.
@@TallDarknGruesomeOr both. There's probably a good handful of metal bands with a huge furry fanbase.
Next week, Catman and Gnatman.
>furcon with poor security
Wrong VR app, you're thinking of certain parts of VRChat.
"When are Penguin and Riddler finally going to snog" was a question many Gotham watchers were asking, and which I've been assured has been extensively covered on AO3
AO3 is good at answering questions, though admittedly its mainly good at answer questions related to snogging
but rest assured when I'm watching The Owl House and going "I wonder what it would be like if Eda and Camila snogged??" then AO3 will have a handful of answers ready
@@dubstepbee6892"AO3. Here for all your snogging-related questions."
Shipped them since S2 when Riddler cared for Penguin in his cozy bed. They were the best reason to watch that show (that and the wildly attractive Bullock & Alfred). The fact they never snogged or awoke in the same bed together is the true crime of the show.
@@MsYunaFires It's clear they were written as a on-again, off-again couple. And that show has my favorite version of Penguin, as this clever, charming, and ruthless criminal. I'd love to see that actor get another chance to reprise that or a similar version.
christ i remember that being a thing haha. good times.
I shall now go to this game's Wikipedia page. If the rat king isn't actually multiple people holding the title together between them like a council, preferably chained together or conjoined like a big clump, I will be quite upset.
Well, in a roundabout way, he kinda is.
@@hunted4blood wait seriously? That's genuinely cool and the level of detail I would not expect of modern triple A development.
Does it actually relate to themes of the game??? Be still my beating heart!
@@AdumbroDeus I mean, there's definitely more than one person in charge, yeah
@@AdumbroDeus You have to squint a little to make it work, but yeah. There's a scene where Harley Quinn and Scarecrow basically sit you down and tell you that the game is about identity and how we all have a repressed "shadow" part of our psyche (hence the title of the game). So the Rat King is one particular character's unintegrated shadow self, and thus one of several identities all bound together, pulling him in different directions, much like how Batman has 4 different identies he has to juggle throughout the game.
I unironically think this game's arc for Bruce is one of the best in all of Batman media.
@@hunted4blood I agree with you on this. You see Batman's character growth throughout this from the angry hothead youth to the cool calculated vigilante he becomes in Asylum. The strength of the story telling is that it takes place over the course of 7 days. It gives the story time to breath as opposed to solving it all in 1 night. If you are going into this game, think Asylum gameplay, not open world as it is now.
Regarding the Joker in Blackgate, Arkham Asylum isn't reopened yet in the timeline.
In Arkham Origins, the Asylum had been closed down at the start of the game. In the end, after the Blackgate riot where Joker and Bane made a mess, officials were thinking of reopening the place.
That actually does help my suspension of disbelief; thank you.
Yep! My only nitpick! (Of the review)
Kinda funny given the setup for the first game is that Blackgate has transferred a lot of prisoners to Arkham, it came full circle.
I hope we still get the "Games I Didn't Review" video for 2024 lol
According to Nick, that's next week.
You will.
We all do
Hope it includes Mouthwashing
1000xRESIST plz. I think it would be right up Yahtzee's alley.
I'm going to sound very old, but is it really necessary for the volume for the advert at the start to be massively louder than the volume of the actual intro? Having to turn the volume down and back up again having been deafened doesn't put me in the mood for buying things...
Ok gramps
Guess, it's some sort of a running joke at this point, considering it was always the case, ZP included.
Yes, it makes you pay attention and your hate makes you remember the brand more.
Remember: Advertisers are not your friends.
WHAT? I CANT HEAR YOU OVER MY TINNITUS.
Definitely don't have to be old to damage your hearing when wearing earbuds. I damaged my hearing listening to Spotify music which significantly varies in volume while wearing Airpods which are terrible for changing volume quickly
Man, I really hate the depiction of Batman as being clueless about how useless beating up criminals is at preventing crime. Like, Bruce Wayne studied criminology, among his other studies, so he should understand the root causes of crime. It's part of why he traditionally funds so many charitable missions in the first place, to address those root causes!
Batman isn't perfect. if he realized his approach wasn't working, he wouldn't be Batman in the first place.
Yeah a lot of people seem to forgot that by day Bruce wayne is heavily involved in gothams political side he actually wants to help the city not just beat dudes up
I feel that's A problem in any media depicting batman outside of some comics and some Cartoons
In the real world, adding police actually does reduce the number of serious crimes (like assault, murder, etc.). Batman arguably counts as "increased police presence"; even though he's just one man, he relies on fear, secrecy and psychology to have an outsized effect in suppressing crime.
Anybody who thinks criminals are victims of circumstance instead of people who made a choice hasn't met criminals. The Mendez brothers were rich, Sam bankman-fried had damn near anything he wanted. Even criminals that are impoverished, live among people in the exact same circumstances that commit no crimes often in the same family. Removing choice from the equation makes little more then robots that can't reason.
I’m so glad the first game in the series to require an expensive VR headset has some thoughts on income inequality to share.
€250 headset with this game is very expensive? Would you say that if a batman game was a console exclusive of a €500+ console?
@@grfrjiglstan you dont need an index to play VR. The latest quest headset is cheaper than a ps5
In fairness the Quest 3s is cheaper than most consoles.
The normal Quest 3 is a bit pricey, but definitely on the cheaper end of VR.
@@bearofthewest389 you would still need to buy the VR headset if it was a playstation exclusive
As far as VR goes, the quest 3 is quite affordable, seeing what Sony are pitching the ps5 at these days.
Still a price point that's a luxury, but a decade ago headsets were twice as much and needed to be tethered to a computer that would also run you 2k.
I wonder how much of a loss Meta is taking on every sale?
"Synchronized cake ownership and consumption" is an amazing turn of phrase.
Lol I told Yahtzee the same thing while I was doing the captions. It's my favorite goof since "Hanging Gardens of Babylon Foot."
TBF Brauce does do charitable donations with all his money, the problem is that there are more rich people who spend money to keep things bad and that Gotham is literally fucking cursed (in more ways than one).
Court of Owls, Simon Hurt, the Demon of Gotham (though that's more an Etrigan problem)
It's such an overdone observation, it's basically boils down to "oh those poor rapists, murderers and thieves, they just had no choice but to break the law"
Charity is patronizing and doesn't fix poverty.
Social policies or more profound systemic changes do.
So you are right on the second half, but bats does nothing but punch people and throw coins lol.
@@Mrmumps-tb4no Feels like you're showing you're showing your ass when comparing thieves to murderers and rapists. There is a wide umbrella that technicaly encompases thievery, and not all of it is evil imo. If someone is starving I'm not going to begrudge them if they steal a loaf of bread.
@@umarthdc he is involved with gotham politics though, the issue is that he's the only non corrupt guy doing it so doesn't make much of an impact
The Arkhamverse returns. But only for the Zucc. A fitting omen for the year...
And fitting that a game about a billionaire is exclusive to the platform of a billionaire.
people complain there aren't enough vr games. more vr games get made "no why did you make a vr game"
@@legendp2011People want VR games for the headsets they already own, not to have to buy yet another headset just to play its one exclusive game.
@@legendp2011i don't think that's what they're complaining about bud
@@legendp2011It could have been PCVR, and from what I understand also on the Quest 2 if it’s on Quest 3S.
There is a bit of a problem with the premise; Batman already understands that there are people who commit crimes out of desperation. He doesn't give these people the same treatment that he gives organized crime and super villains; he shows compassion. Hell, he is even kind to the super villains at times.
as a note, this is a specific to the Arkhamverse. Arkham Origins Batman is sort of a one track rage man, and later games show him as empathetic, so they were using this game to try and explore that character transition. Sort of cool, honestly.
As I mow through scores of organized crime henchmen as Batman (which was a lot of fun), I don't think there was any consideration from Batman of whether or not any of those low level henchmen were doing it out of desperation. Desperation and low level organized crime are not mutually exclusive.
Also showing more compassion to a supervillain than their low level henchmen is even more problematic.
@@iruns1246 Oh yeah, definitely. I'm just saying, Batman of the Arkhamverse did have room to be learning this lesson.
@@jamessegerstrom Oh definitely. I agree with you. I was replying to OP. I love the Arkham games, and I think it would be so much more fun if Batman grows even more and we start punching more stuff like mercenaries of billionaires and corrupt officials. Though it might require more effort to fit that into Batman / Arkham's general noir aesthetic.
It's an annoying misconception that people who don't know anything make. Origins Batman was a lot more aggressive but he didn't treat everyone like criminal scum. He has already encountered Mr Freeze in Cold, Cold Heart.
I literally didn't even know there WAS a new Batman Arkham game in the works, much less out and able to be fully rambled at.
> VR
Mystery solved.
Same, I heard nothing about it.
Ya, I thought he didn't have any new titles and had to do a review of a 10+yo game 🤷
It's really good, too. I don't know what it's going to take for VR to take off, the Quest price point is nuts for what you get, and the experience is well beyond Xbox vs PlayStation vs PC.
If they really wanted to be poignant of Batman's approach to crime fighting, the developers should have rather put the focus on how the villains are not revolutionaries tearing the system. In wanting to be "in with the times" writers drifted from Batman being the solution to the villains being the new trend setters because they are disrupting the system in the city.
But they too benefit and even exploit to a worse degree the henchmen and crew who are just civilians wanting to make a quick buck by any means. That just shows that Gotham is so fucked, no matter where you go, you seem to kick the can down the road and eventually hit a megalomaniacal costumed baddy with a huge job vacancy.
A "topical" take on the henchmen's motivation would be SO hilariously on-the-nose, but also totally worth it. "Yeah, I joined up with Joker's gang because I lost faith in Batman's ability to actually make this city a better place, but to be honest I'm not sure how changing the name of Gotham Harbor to Joker Harbor is going to make it easier for me to buy eggs."
Isn't that just late-stage capitalism in general?
@@JimJava007 that's actually something I was looking forward too in the White Knight series. But the entire series reeks more of a fanfiction just to prop up the Joker as Jack Napier and painting Batman as a failure. The big problem with cannon is that rarely there's a clear line across movies, books and games. There's a larger notion that Batman punches the oppressed but that is a simplification and misguided view that doesn't address the villains that fuck up the city for their own sake.
At this point in the zeitgeist, Ratman would be the hero, Batman would be the villain, and the violent death of Gotham would be the happily-ever-after.
@@jeremyfischer7856no he wouldn’t, I don’t know if you played the game, but innocent people were being murdered, taken hostage, etc. by Ratman’s men, Batman was the one putting a stop to the chaos, that’s not how you save a city, that’s how you get anarchy
"Billionaire beats up dudes with jobs" could be an interesting satire.
Don't give Elon any ideas.
There is something darkly hilarious about the tendency of the upper class to try literally every solution for society's problems, other than the obvious one of "you have money, they need money, so give some of it to them."
@@NYKevin100"ok, how much? Do you want me to empty my value or do you want me to make investment? Is it charity giveaway or is it establishing livelihood? Did you have a plan or do you think money can solve everything?"
@@SimuLord I argue, redirect the idea giving. Fool Elon into thinking he could pick a fight with somebody who could floor him in three seconds. Get cameras. Let the guy floor him. Musk's dumb enough that he'd go with it if you made the right pitch.
@@StarkRaven59 We already tried this. But Elon chickened out of the Zucc fight, so it didn't work.
I’ve said it one with respect to BTAS Batman and I’ll say it again. So many billionaires want to be Batman, yet none of them want to be like Bruce Wayne (as in actually use their money to help people and prevent them from becoming criminals).
this is why Bruce Wayne is an idealised, fictional ideal of what we want rich people to be like: because most of them, if not all, are more like lex luthor
I mean, it's always said that Bruce does this, yet I've never seen a version of Gotham City that actually seems to be benefitting from this. It's perpetually a shithole full of insane criminals and people desperate enough to work for them.
I mean, it's always said that Bruce does this, yet I've never seen a version of Gotham City that actually seems to be benefitting from this. It's perpetually a shithole full of insane criminals and people desperate enough to work for them.
@SarcyBoi41 that's because if he fixes the city the story is over and no more comics to sell.
1:47 funny you say this considering in a recent issue of a batman comic it's revealed that Joe chill was once a patient of Bruce Wayne's dad so it seems the curse affects the whole family
Surely the main villain not being the Joker again is something to appreciate
hell, they even make a joke about it in the game!
The Arkham games do the thing where you occasionally overhear goons chatting with your super hearing and they make sure to portray them so you don't mid using them as a landing pad.
I'm always reminded of this guy in the sewers in Arkham Asylum. He's talking about how the Joker gives him the creeps and kept telling him to kill his sister(or some other woman in his life) to prove his loyalty, and after a while, he just clubbed some random woman on the streets to death.
Might come off as just random bad guy talk, but it cuts down to the core of Batman and Joker stories (along with Superman to some extent) which is how long can you hold on to your moral fortitude, how long can you justify not taking the easy way out and using your strength against the weak. He could've chosen to be a better person by denying the Joker, but he didn't, he took a step forward into the madness.
If memory serves, Arkham Asylum was in disrepair during Arkham Origins and was only refurbished when costumed crime exploded in response to Batman breaking the mob
the thing about two face's story in the game is that yes its an origin story but it does use well the fact that he and batman were once upon a time close friends but it ties into the greater story about how some criminals are worthy of empathy and compassion and not jsut things to be punched, and also plays into aspects of two face we haven't had explored in media for years
This video was hilarious from start to finish, even more so than usual. Excellent job with the writing and delivery.
stopping criminals from committing crimes might not help the criminals, but it does a whole lot of good for people who would otherwise be victimized by that criminal.
Boy I was thinking the same thing.
this is what his origins shows, all the money wont help it against crime, no one is safe
Nice try Jeff bezos
@@goldenfiberwheat238 well yes, he's clearly jeff bezos if he asks for help while being mugged by a thug.
@ I’m saying he’s a rich apologist
I am looking forward to getting my matics fully ramblo'd throughout 2025
People who's idea of deep writing for Batman being "he only knows how to beat the poor and now we are going to challenge this" aren't just pretentious, but also have never read a singular Batman comic. What scares me is how often they get a job.
Art is made by people who would pay to be there, not the most talented. The truly talented know their price, and practically no one is willing to pay it anymore when some producer's kid is there and brings funding along too.
same cancer that got us suicide squad aka 💩
Batman’s most commonly faced enemies are usually Gotham’s richest people. If people who hate Batman found out anything about him they would probably explode
Whose, if you please.
You also don't have to read a comic book either, just look at the ither games. Arkham City literally starts with Bruce Wayne campaigning to close the titular facility, and the climax revolves around him stopping the systematic mass m*rder of the inmates. Atleast this one is a prequel so the canonical older Batman isn't reframed as "problematic" or whatever
Yahtzee vs his own VR expectations is a fight matched only by Yahtzee's arms while using VR vs Yatzhee's small dog
you're a real one for reminding everyone of the arc where Penguin was in love with Riddler in Gotham.
i'm a bit leery of this review, particularly the bit at the end. i feel like if there were wacky zany boss fights, he would've criticised it for being incongruous with the prequel setting, and if there were wacky zany boss fights and it wasn't a prequel, he would've criticised it for being basically the old games but in VR. so basically the devs can't win here. i'd rather they did something new anyway, even if it's a bit more mundane than what came before.
I wish WB would make games about DC characters other than Batman. Provided of course they aren't live services, which is apparently a lot to ask.
You know the next hero in line is green arrow
Or better known as Batman but Robin Hood
At least early on but they are definitely not going for socialist Oliver
It doesn't help that DC's other household name character is dull as dishwater when it comes to attempted character development.
@@BP-dn9nv there’s a Wonder Woman game trailer that released a couple years ago that has not been followed up on once to this day. Why can’t we get any more games for any more dc characters
0:24 video start
Well that’s 24 seconds I don’t know what to do with…oh wait…yep just wasted them writing this.
Joker being in Blackgate and not Arkham Asylum is somehow more accurate, since the Joker is not clinically insane and does not belong in an Asylum; so Blackgate does actually make more sense
Depends on the version of the Joker. Some versions do not even remember his life or identity before he became the Joker, which sounds like some kind of clinical stuff going on.
the Joker may not be clinically insane, but he definitely has no problem pretending to be when it's convenient. like when making an insanity plea to avoid the death penalty.
I think the Joker from the Arkham games probably qualifies as clinically insane
I guess it’s meant to be progression since it’s still “early”. In Origins he’s basically a super-mobster, rather than a supervillain. So throw that guy in jail. Give it a few breakouts and increasingly dastardly plots for a number of years later, we can upgrade to criminally insane, and chuck him in Arkham in time for the original game.
If you want the Quest 3 to be comfortable, you need a hard strap (preferably with a front-to-back top strap) with a counterweight at the back (usually a battery.)
You can get the Kiwi Designs H4 Boost or BoboVR S3 Pro (and remove the dumb "horns" and add a front to back top strap, like self-adhering velcro tape from amazon.)
Yeap, I bought a cheap battery head strap and literally never use the battery part of it. You wouldn't think "the solution is more weight on your head!" but it ABSOLUTELY is.
If I had a nickel for every Quest exclusive VR game about superhero billionaires, I'd have two nickels.
Which isn't a lot, but it's weird it happened twice, you know?
Both games had the same development team. It makes sense to hire the people behind Iron Man VR if you want a VR Arkham game made.
Wasn’t the fact that they have an exchange program the entire plot of Batman Arkham asylum? That’s why the place was full of goons
I like that Yahtzee agrees that a 20 mcnugget box is the normal size and anything smaller is just stripped down
I know you're making a joke Yahtz, but Bruce does more for Gotham as himself than he ever has at Batman.
Canonically he's the #1 employer in Gotham, offering second chance employment, training, education benefits. He makes sure the everyone in the city has full, free health care coverage, along with various clinics and pharmacies to keep costs down. He also offers many grants, foundations, and helping hands to people who need it.... His budget is 3-4 times more as Bruce than it is as the Bat and all his fun toys.
you can tell he actually liked it cause there werent as many knob jokes and he actually complimented alil bit of it and didnt mention he quit playing before the end.
I was NOT ready for that ending illustration
Arkham Asylum (the first game) said in the intro that Blackgate and Arkham had an arrangement. So, yes at 3:09.
That joke at the end is actually the best summation of the Suicide Squad game that I've ever heard.
The sonic comparison is funny because this game's Batman and Sonic are voiced by the same guy
Could be an intentional reference for all we know. Yahtzee seems the type to remember his actors.
Yahtzee being a gotham penguine-riddler shipper brings me a weird sense of satisfaction.
Ah, the deafening silence of no narrated ad.... I'd almost call it refreshing, except I actually kinda miss it.
By strange coincidence (and I'm showing my involvement level here, I know), I finally started Batman Arkham Asylum last night for the first time. Can't wait to see if Batman gets the help he so desperatly needs. Clinicaly-speaking, of course.
Honestly, I had no idea this game was released.
I'd recommend seeing Batman Arkham Videos' playthrough
@@dastvan8002 i would recommend much more to play for yourself tbh. Watching a 2D video of a holodeck game is like watching somebody else driving a roller coaster and basicaly robs yourself from an awesome expierence
They should make a Batman combat racing VR game and call it "Batmobile goes VRoum !"
If you plan on doing more VR stuff, I recommend getting prescription inserts that clip on to the lenses of the headset. Greatly improved my comfort, especially in longer sessions.
And a different strap e.g. bobovr. The default one was either too loose or felt like a vice grip on my head after 30 minutes
Biggest shock to my system, Yahtzee has watched fucking Gotham! The show is a B-Minus, but the B stands for Batshit so I enjoy it.
aka the show with more Jokers than the three jokers comic
The Panguin and Riddler snogging bit caught me off guard well done Yatzhee
While this doesn’t sound like some ground breaking game… this is the game that MIGHT make me get VR.
Ohhh you reminded me Gotham was a thing. Yeah, the Riddler/Penguin shenanigans was the only light in that mess. My Fav version of (young) Penguin, followed/fitting perfectly with (older) Penguin via Colin Farrell .
FWIW, I actually really enjoyed the gesture to deploy the cape. Got a Big Kid grin from me.
Fingerscrossed for Miside being covered.
As the intro finished playing, I was on my way to search for this game and literally said out loud "why have I never heard of this new Batman game?" And before I could finish that sentence, you said "VR game" and answered the question for me.
Had no idea thi exists.
Great video, thanks for the laughs.
This was probably the funniest credits gag in ZP/FR history
Can someone tell the editor we don’t need to hear the intro riff twice within 15 seconds at the beginning of the video?
To be fair, Alfred becoming Bruce's guardian was a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time after he first showed up as a butler/amateure detective and basically bullied his way into becoming Bruce's butler...
In Origins they were discussing re-opening Arkham at the end of the game after the Blackgate breakout. I haven't played this game but it could be before Arkham re-opens which would explain the Joker being there.
I hate the "I am a billionare, which means I can automatically fix inept government spending and corruption with my money" cliche.
How could it be done better
@@kwayneboy1524 Some acknowledgement that the issue isn't money nor can be solved with money. Money is merely the vehicle that is used to interact with the overarching issues of government ineptitude and corruption.
@@eddthehead123 how does the game provide your first cliché point?
@@kwayneboy1524 Did you watch the video?
@@eddthehead123 I did but I am asking for your personal take on it.
You gave your alternate approach but what aspects of the game plays into this played out trope in your opinion?
3:10 To be fair, deliberately getting sent to multiple different prisons to fill out a (presumably handmade) punch card *does* seem like the kind of thing the Joker might do. At least the more clowny versions.
Rat King from Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles is in this? Sweet, I love a good crossover.
They did beat Assassin's Creed to using Shadow but Sonic used Shadow decades ago.
after playing something like BoneLab batman arkham shadow just felt like a vr game that desperately wanted to be a traditional game
maybe if there was like a freeform combat option where all the hand-holdy prompts eased off a bit and just let the player beat up dudes plain n simple i would've bothered to finish the starting mission
Welcome back Yahtz. It's been too long.
"Still hangs off the front of my face like a fat orphan Kuala."
So the Metaquest gave you clamidia?
Only the once. Clearly am improvement. >.>
So going through the video the arkham series doesn't just tack on words, Asylum takes place in the asylum just like city takes place in Arkham city, arkham knight has the Arkham Knight as one of the main antagonists, origins is the origin of batman kinda, blackgate takes place in blackgate, and shadow ties back into the games major themes of "the shadow" that everyone has.
Shadow is also a sequel to blackgate and not just origin.
Gotham was such a weird show. The premise was something only fans would have any interest in, but then it was written like the writers assumed the audience had zero knowledge of any of the characters beyond their names/aliases. Everyone watching the show knows Harvey Dent becomes Two-Face. Putting half of Harvey's face in almost pitch-black shadow in 90% of the shots he's in is unnecessary and insulting to the viewer's intelligence.
Joker was in Blackgate because Arkham wasn't built yet
Someone commented on how Arkham was deactivated thanks to the events in Arkham Origins.
Also, I think the first game states Arkham was built in the late 1800s or early 1900s.
The "flinging my arms into small dogs" comment is one I want to believe is a joke, but at the same time makes me wonder if Toffee was actually within range of Yahtzee's flailing.
Looks like Toffee got his revenge, judging by the gag in the end credits. 😂
What are you on about timing for critical moves?. So you couldn't get your combo up and then press one button over and over?, no timing is required.
Hehe glad I'm not the only one who wanted Riddler and Penguin to kiss in the Gotham show
I think that's the mistake a lot of people make about Batman, maybe even the writers. He *isn't* about crime prevention, he's about crime resolution. Like, a lot of his work is solving crimes, crimes that happened. And even when he's more proactively involved, he's *stopping* a crime that is *happening*. The crime prevention stuff is the things he does as Bruce Wayne: employment, charities, etc...
Though it does make you wonder what about Gotham makes it what it is, as you really can't tell me that Batman hasn't had an effect. I get there are a lot of people in the comments who don't know what's gone on in the Philippines or El Salvador: sometimes a brutal crackdown on violent criminals is *exactly* the right move to make. It's just *afterwards* you also have to implement social stability to prevent people from falling back into those patterns out of necessity or desperation, or you know, do it before that takes place. But anyone who thinks you can convince a scammer to stop scamming because it's the right thing to do... well, let's just say drug lords, gang members and dictators tend to be even harder to sway.
I think Batman works as crime prevention but also isn't always the best with dealing with what causes crime at least in his early years.
If Yahtzee gets bored and doesn't have a game, he can poke at Zenless Zone Zero for whatever it has on offer.
Thought it was fun! Made me want a Thor VR game
Funny how you mention the Riddler and the penguin. Because in that "classic" Alyas Batman en Robin. Joker and Penguin are defiently lovers...and robbers...and...singers!
(edit..the 1991 one of course )
3:53 is that cake made of spaghetti or am i going mental?
I seem to remember that the comics version of the Rat King was basically supervillain Fagin.
I had totally forgotten a tv show called Gotham existed.
I mostly stopped watching youtube for 2 years because I had a child and rathered sleep over funny internet videos.
That's why its refreshing to have listened to enough of Yahtzee's audio books for the algorithm to bring me here a week ago. Although I must admit I got used to hearing about Jacques McKeown who is a less impressive batman.
What surprised me the most about this video is that someone remembers Gotham was a thing.
Finished this game last month and can't argue with any of yahtzee's points. except for the cape glide. yea it's silly but I found it fun. in general I'd say the game is "decent, but wonky" in about every respect. combat, story, stealth. all decent but wonky, stealth being the wonkiest, cause yea, the guard AI / pathing breaks super easy.
Fun fact: the guy who voices Batman in this and origins is the guy who voiced ezio
And Sonic The Hedgehog.
Great video, "a-hole knee connective tissue" being my favourite line, but holy hell spoiler alerts
If they ever invent a VR headset that makes me feel anything other than "Grant Imahara in a motion sickness chair" while playing, I might give a game like this a go.
Yahtzee being a huge fudanshi never fails to make me chuckle.
I too convince myself that using the vr headset once a day for about an hour or more counts as exercise 😭
There should be a spin off game set in Gotham Hospital.
Speaking of Batmans who are dead, the Batman of the Arkhamverse was killed in(by) Suicide Squad, which is why this had to be a sequel to Origins (a prequel) rather than a mainline game.
Well, narratively it was okay. As for gameplay, it got boring and repetitive very quickly. There are times when Batman’s like “hey, Alfred, I need a… a batarang, send it to me” and then he walks 30 minutes to get the bloody stuff. Which proves my point that early Batman is a dumbass who doesn’t equip his basic stuff yet. It gets even more annoying later in the game. Harley Quinzel is being held hostage. Batman: “oh bollocks, Alfred, I need me bloody bat-claw”. “Are you sure, Master Wayne? You could just knock the door down or use a vent or…”. “No fucking way, Alfred. What am I paying you for?”.
You see how bad it is? 2 hours till the finale and Batman decides that it’s time to leave the hostage to get the basic equipment.
I've never been a fan of the "Batman should be trying to address the root cause of crime" line of thinking. Mostly because he is doing that. Bruce Wayne and Wayne enterprises do more charity work than anyone else in the DC universe. Batman exists to tackle the mob and supervillains, people who don't want to leave crime behind them. Plus a lot of the time if he does find somebody who is a criminal out of desperation, he discreetly makes sure they get a job at Wayne enterpises or covers their medical bills anonymously or something.
Okay. Batman rant over, back to the funny video game man
I was wondering why there was a Batman: Arkham game I hadn't heard about, until "VR" came up, what with VR games being niche at the best of times.
I was there when he ordered this, I could know his turnaround time, if I remembered anything.
Great job. Please review more VR games
2:02 its been relevant in this dispensation since 2008 and its always been relevant to one degree or another.
Hey atleast the batman hallucination fight was done way better here compared to Suicide Squad
Remember, crime is caused by poverty, which is why all rich people are model, law-abiding citizens.
Please review Nobody Wants To Die, it's a cyberpunk detective noir game thing featuring time manipulation and a gravelly voiced guy with PTSD
But do you fight against the giant rat who makes all of the rules?
If you happen to be trying more VR, you could try Into The Radius. Honestly, it's mostly because I'd love to see your opinion on it.