Batman, The Telltale Series Episode 1 review: ‘the finest Dark Knight experience of recent times’

The developer’s take on the Caped Crusader is here to make up for Batman v Superman 
Must-buy: the first episode of Telltale's Batman series suggests it could be their masterpiece
Telltale Games
Talal Musa2 August 2016

Is it a bird? Is a plane? No, it's a Batman game, arriving with perfect timing - swooping in to save fans from the disappointment of Batman v Superman.

Batman's so good, in fact, that if the opening episode is anything to go by, Telltale Games may have just created their masterpiece - no mean feat from a studio behind The Walking Dead, Tales from the Borderlands and The Wolf Among Us.

Unsurprisingly, Telltale has stuck to its tried and tested formula. For those new to the studio's style, gameplay centres on player choice and consequence. Levels are broken up into episodes (in Batman, there are five) and action sequences take the form of quick-time events.

Foregoing the well-worn origin story, the story concerns Batman at the top of his game – somewhere between Christian Bale's Dark Knight and Ben Affleck's, older, weathered hero.

In combat, Batman's assured – blending his vast array of gadgets with hard-hitting martial arts. This varied armoury gives Telltale more freedom to experiment with quick-time and deliver the studio's most exhilarating action sequences yet. Whether it's firing the Batclaw with a timely bash of the right trigger, or charging a thundering straight right punch by holding down 'X', brawling feels much more connected than in other Telltale games - helped along by clever choreography that maintains the frenetic momentum.

But being Batman is more than just handing out beatings - he's also the world's greatest detective, and that hasn't been overlooked. Later in the episode, players piece together a crime scene and use flying drones to plan a penthouse assault. Neither tasks are particularly challenging – but Telltale's willingness to hand over more control than before helps players to forge a stronger connection with the hero.

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Perhaps the most fun is away from the combat, when playing as Bruce Wayne. Rather than force an interpretation of Wayne on the player, Telltale has opted to forge a character with multiple personality arcs. Some dialogue choices, for example, could easily be delivered by Michael Keaton's less assuming, shy Wayne. Others ooze Bale's cocky playboy arrogance or Affleck's underlying aggression. Players can create the Wayne they want - with Troy Baker on hand to deliver the script with gusto.

Telltale Games

Graphically it's more of the same, cartoon style, albeit with slightly more detailed character models and backgrounds. Telltale confirmed that PC gamers will be able to tweak visual settings more than in their previous games for those after extra sharpness.

Sound design and score are also top notch, with a main theme highly reminiscent of Hans Zimmer's work for The Dark Knight trilogy.

Time will tell whether Telltale can continue the momentum in future episodes and deliver what could be the finest Dark Knight experience of recent times – but on present evidence, this is a must-buy.

Batman: The Telltale Series Episode 1 is out now on PS4, Xbox One, PC, iOS, and Android

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