If you haven't seen the latest in Nolan's
series of Batman films, then be assured that
we'll steer away from any spoilers here in
the review.
While Gameloft's tie-in game only tangentially
follows the film narrative, it attempts to
hit the main beats and as such it's a bit
of a minefield for those yet to visit the
cinema.
The second concern we'll address is more or
less the elephant in the room - the recent
release of The Amazing Spider-Man gave us
more than enough reason to be worried about
The Dark Knight Rises, especially as it features
very similar gameplay.
However it's clear that Spider-Man was borrowing
heavily from both this title and Total Mayhem,
and suffered for it.
The Dark Knight Rises is - to mangle a quote
- the Batman game the iOS platform deserves,
but not the one it needs.
Although it suffers from the usual problem
of aiming so very high and falling short of
this lofty goal, the end result is still something
worth playing, even if it manages to burn
you now and then.
Those familiar with the Arkham series of Batman
titles will be perfectly at home with Dark
Knight - so much so that it's all you can
do to resist trying to hook-shot and glide
across the city.
The semi-open world city design means you
can explore to your heart's content and eventually
take on side-missions to rescue the citizens
of Gotham from Bane's grasp, but the game
gravitates around its story missions, taking
you to large and detailed locations that are
just as beautiful as the city itself.
Let me stress that last point, because the
game looks utterly gorgeous on the latest
iDevices.
Occasionally the game struggles to smoothly
display all of the action, but areas with
heavy amounts of action are generally designed
with this in mind, so it's not as problematic
as it sounds.
It's definitely worth taking some time out
to stop and take in all of the detail, from
the raindrops as they pour down Batman's cowl
to the buildings reflecting in the puddles
on the street.
Combat also takes on an Arkham-lite style,
with players laying the beat-down on several
thugs at a time while also being able to counter
and deploy various gadgets to even the odds.
For the most-part this works well, but it's
also where the first cracks start to show.
Controlling the camera in combat is all but
a lost-cause, which can make fights in tight
corridors or near walls an absolute nightmare.
Thankfully most of the fights can be approached
strategically, either making use of stealth
or hit-and-run tactics to even the odds and
minimize risk to Batman's health.
The gadgets deployed to get away with these
tactics are not infinite - they are in fact
a limited resource occasionally doled out
by missions when they're specifically required,
but are otherwise purchased by using up in
game 'gold' (something that is unsurprisingly
available for IAP as well).
They're not needed to succeed, but the game
does feel far more mundane and repetitive
when you're limited to using the grappling
hook and your fists.
If I'm being harsh it's only because I find
myself inexorably attracted to The Dark Knight
Rises, coming back to its dark and brutal
cityscape in order to mete out harsh justice.
The flaws make it a hard game to fall in love
with, but underneath the tarnish is a game
worth pursuing - especially if you enjoyed
the films.
Until these issues are resolved, The Dark
Knight Rises will remain a bitter pill to
swallow, but one you'll only occasionally
regret.
