Review of Batman Returns (NES)

Batman, the most popular DC comics hero, has been given some great video games over the years. There's been some stinkers, but for the most part he's been treated very kind. Batman Returns is yet another installation in the good games side. Let's take a look.

Story : Not much to talk about here. Penguin is up to some diabolical scheme and it's up to Batman to beat him within an inch of his life to save Gotham City. Catwoman appears to complicate things. Is she friend or foe? There's only two villains in the game obviously, but that's more than enough. The other minor villains in the movie actually appear in this game. Very very cool!

Graphics : Outstanding graphics in this game, all around. Batman looks great and is animated well. The sprites are all large for the NES and the two main villains look excellent and are also animated very well. The backgrounds are detailed enough and look very gritty and dark, matching the movie. It can be a little hard to see things sometimes, but it's still not too annoying.

Sound : Nothing great here, but nothing bad either. The sound effects are generic but suffice. The music is satisfactory and doesn't annoy. For the most part, a very enjoy game sound wise.

Game play : Batman has a nice arsenal of moves. He moves well and is responsive and fluid. He responds well to any action you give him. His punches and kicks are fast and effective. He also has throwing projectiles. The enemies provide a solid challenge without being too hard. For the most part you can beat most of the game without thinking too much.

There's a lack of detective work involved here, but since it's a beat em up it's forgivable. The levels aren't too long and there aren't too many henchmen to beat. The bosses are colorful and look cool. One bad thing is you can't block, which can be problematic since there's so many enemies.

Re playability : Definitely a very nice game to sit back and enjoy multiple times. If you're a Batman fan, you'll most likely love this film. The game is very short but is a great ride through and through. I've revisited it myself once every few years and enjoyed it immensely.

Overall : 8/10. Excellent game. The lack of detective work is the only thing missing but it's still a great game. Highly recommended.