TELLTALE'S BATMAN - EPISODE 1: REALM OF SHADOWS

“Show this city the true nature of a Wayne.”

Buying a new game you know little about from a company whose games you’ve never played before is always a risky move. That’s why I bought this episode on it’s own instead of the whole bundle. Luckily for me, buying Telltale’s Batman has turned out to be a very, very good idea.

The story for episode 1, Realm of Shadows, revolves around both Bruce Wayne’s fight to improve Gotham through politics, and Batman’s fight to do so through the good old fashioned Batman method. What you’ll notice, or at least I did, while you might expect Bruce’s story to feel very boring, Telltale’s style of gameplay means that in some parts, I preferred playing as him than Batman. Freakin’ Batman. Don’t get me wrong, punching bad guys and hanging them for others to find is always fun, but getting to play as Bruce Wayne and not be bored is something new to enjoy.

Always fun…

By far my favourite part of the game is the style. Telltale’s graphics truly make you feel like you’re playing a comic book. That’s not something most…any game does. And even though it looks like a comic has somehow invaded my Xbox, the graphics are still pretty damn great. The attention to detail never hits a low point, and that’s something that players will appreciate.

But graphics aren’t the thing that makes the game stand out. The gameplay is. Having not played any of Telltale’s previous titles, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The best that I can describe it is that it’s like you’re watching an animated movie, but where you decided what Bruce/Batman says, which in turn changes what the other person will say. As for combat, it’s about pressing the right button at the right time. You’d think it boring, but it’s surprisingly difficult to put the controller down.

Turns out simple combat makes for a more relaxing Batman experience for players…

In all honesty, I really enjoyed this game. While most causal players might not appreciate that Bruce gets more screen time than Batman, it was fun to see how different these two worlds felt. For once, it's nice to play a story driven game. I don't know about their other games, but Telltale definitely delivers that here. Yes, the gameplay is almost non-stop when you look at the bigger picture, but unlike most games, it doesn't outshine the story it's telling. The gameplay is the story. And when the gameplay looks literally just as good as the comics, what's not to love?