Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leaguehad a lot going for it. A star-filled cast, the power of new-gen consoles and the legendary reputation of the Batman: Arkham games, but was it enough? Unfortunately, no, no it wasn’t.
When Rocksteady Studios announcedSuicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, I was intrigued, to say the least. We all knew a game about DC’s infamous Task Force X team was a no-brainer, but having them face-off against Earth’s greatest heroes seemed like a step too far.
Check outSuicide Squad: Kill The Justice League below
Of course the whole point of the Suicide Squad is they’re criminals. They’re expendable. These guys, gals and anthropomorphic sharks can either rot in a cell for the rest of their lives or take a chance on a suicide mission to lessen their sentence and potentially escape captivity. With that in mind I was eager to see how these characters would react when they found out their targets included the man of steel, Superman, the fastest man alive, Flash, the world’s greatest detective, Batman and the intergalactic police officer Green Lantern.
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I was somewhat impressed with the story at first. After assembling Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang and King Shark and letting them loose into a war-torn Metropolis it was fun to see how these characters got to know each other and where their loyalties lied. Deadshot desperately wants to escape so he can reunite with his daughter, Boomerang wants to resume his criminal activities, King Shark wants to return to his underwater Kingdom and Harley is generally just along for the ride but is arguably the strongest character in the game. None of them want to be there, but the bombs in their necks prevent them from leaving or disobeying, so they take all orders from Amanda Waller and Colonel Rick Flag until they’ve either won or died in the process.
Without getting into spoilers you do see the squad grow closer together, though it does feel like forced character development at times. Nevertheless, there is a character arc for the villains, and the interplay between them is the main reason you’d want to play the story. It was also incredibly funny at times. Some jokes did come across as cringeworthy, and some punchlines you could see coming a mile away, but I did find myself genuinely chuckling at a lot of the humour, and full credit goes to the writers and actors for that.
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My main criticism with the story is how it handles the objective of killing the Justice League. Make no mistake, that is what you’re doing, and unfortunately I think it could have been handled better.
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Warner Bros Games
Aside from that, I think the story is worth enduring, and while there were several moments and plot devices that just seemed way too convenient you have to remember this game is based on comic books, realism flew out the window before you even loaded up the game.
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Swiftly moving onto the gameplay, I can confidently say it largely doesn’t disappoint.It’s clear a lot of time and effort has gone into crafting the experience. Players can choose whichever villain they want and are greeted to several different playstyles depending on their traversal equipment and upgrades. I favoured Deadshot because his jetpack made getting from A to B a breeze and I loved the verticality of his moveset. The other characters are just as fun, with Harley swinging with Batman’s grapple gun, Shark bounding across the map with mystical powers, and Boomerang zooming around with a speed force gauntlet. All characters felt unique and you never felt pressured to stay locked to the first character you picked.
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The fun only escalated when I hopped online to play with friends.Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leagueboasts a great online mode, and while there was the occasional technical hiccup it did the job and provided plenty of co-operative fun and plenty of laughs. I was particularly impressed with how seamless story progression worked as well. I was a few missions ahead of my friend when I joined his game, and was amazed to discover that any progress made in his game automatically applied to my own and vice versa. Whether you want to lock-in to some tough raid missions with your squad or kick back and enjoy some mindless fun while talking about life, the multiplayer will accommodate.
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Now while the gameplay itself was rather fun, I can’t say the same about the missions. The main problem is a huge lack of variation. Mission types are recycled throughout and typically revolve around defending a point from enemies, escorting some of the slowest vehicles in gaming history, or rescuing civilians/allies and delivering them to a transport to name a few. These missions make up almost the entirety of the story mode and the side content, so it did start to feel tedious after a while.
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Finally, let’s talk about the post-game. Without going into spoilers the game doesn’t end when the credits roll. You can venture back out into Metropolis and finish any side content you’re yet to complete, solve more of Riddler’s god-forsaken puzzles, and take on raid bosses that transport the squad to Elseworld’s, alternate realities that are also under Brainiac’s control. That’s about it at the time of writing, though Rocksteady has confirmed new challenges, characters and locations will be on the way throughout the year, all for free. After the first year of support it’ll transition to paid-for season pass content for as many years as the game can feasibly be supported.
UltimatelySuicide Squad: Kill The Justice Leagueis a decent enough continuation of the beloved Arkham series, though I just can’t shake the feeling that this isn’t the type of game Rocksteady Studios wanted to make afterBatman: Arkham Knight. While the combat is fun and a blast to play with friends, the mission variety does make it feel repetitive after a while, and the post-game being more of the same doesn’t really help with that.
Pros: Decent story, combat is bombastic and expressive, Metropolis is a fun sandbox, multiplayer with friends is enjoyable
Cons: Repetitive missions, bosses feel like a let-down, post-game feels like more of the same
For fans of: Batman: Arkham, Borderlands, Destiny 2, looter-shooters
6/10: Good
Topics:Xbox,PlayStation,PC,Batman,Warner Bros,DC
