Batman Begins for the GBA

If you’ve read my GBA game reviews, you’ll notice I have a rather unhealthy penchant for movie-based games. It is sort of the gaming industry standard for movie-based games to suck, but occasionally you will run into some good ones. Playing Batman Begins is one of those occasions. I loved the new movie and I’m really digging this game.

Part of what makes this game unique from previous Batman titles is the fact that you play some missions as Batman and others as Bruce Wayne. I think that fits the story in the movies and comics better since Bruce Wayne is not always in his Batman outfit. How about a Superman game where you play some levels as Clark Kent? The only major drawback to this game is that you never get to drive the new Hummer-like Batmobile. Maybe an entirely new game will be based around that thing. I’d play it.

The story in this game pretty much follows the movie. It tells how Bruce Wayne became Batman and the enemies he made in the process. Besides the countless goons in matching outfits, you’ll square off against Scarecrow (an evil psychiatrist with a horror mask), Ras Al Ghoul (a Jedi-like criminal), and Carmine Falcone (the local gangster). When you fight against these main enemies, they have their own strengths and weaknesses that you must learn to exploit if you want to win. This is not an easy game. It took me several tries just to get past the first level.

This game is a sidescrolling beat-em-up, but a really good one. The environment has many levels, so this isn’t some boring platformer where just keep running to the right until you reach a boss. In this game, you’ll open doors, climb through windows, jump through skylights, hang from the rafters, and more. Batman can also climb up high to jump off and glide down to other levels. The fighting is pretty straightforward with punches, flying kicks, and blocks. What makes it interesting is all the gadgets that he picks up along the way. The fighting part does get a tad bit repetitive, but the cool level design will keep you interested. The bosses are no cakewalk, though.

I was really impressed with the graphics in this game. It looks like the movie in that everything has that dark tone. Comic book panel graphics are used in between levels to help move the story along, and they look great. Previous Batman games impressed me with their animation and this one does the same. When Batman jumps, his cape flows along behind him. Each of his moves consists of several frames of animation and he looks much more lifelike than your standard videogame character, especially on a GBA. The digitized faces of the characters look a lot like the actors from the film.

The sound and music are dark and moody just like the graphics, and the ambient music helps set the tone well. This game employs a lot of sound effects for attacks, breaking glass, fireballs, gas, and more. Overall, I was impressed with the use of sound in this game, especially because the GBA’s sound features aren’t always that impressive.

All in all, Batman Begins is a fun action game based on a great movie. If you’ve played the two previous (and great) Batman games for the GBA, then you can expect the same type of gameplay here. If it ain’t broke…