Batman plus a GamePad has mixed results.
I played the demo of Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition at E3 and walked away a little unimpressed. Now that I have my hands on the full game, my thinking has changed drastically.
I am nearing the halfway point in the story and couldn’t be happier. Gliding and grappling my way across Arkham City is fun and easy to do. Even when I activated the game’s off- screen mode, the visuals and gameplay were smooth. The story is split between Batman and Catwoman, and moves along at a brisk pace that takes you from one section of the city to the next. I’ve found the gameplay inside buildings more enjoyable because of its focus on progression—roaming the city offers many different side quests, but many seem to exist only to pad the game.

The GamePad implementation feels somewhat lackluster when not used in off-screen mode. Swapping weapons on the fly is fine when not in combat, but if I am fighting thugs and want to pull out a batarang, stopping to look down while getting pummeled is usually not fun. The game benefits from using the GamePad in calmer moments, though. Reading character bios while listening to dialogue is a great way to stay informed and engaged.
If you picked up the game on launch day chime in with your initial thoughts below, and look for our full review later this week.