Title: Injustice 2
Author: MJ Khan
Recovered Author: MJ Khan
Published Date: 2017-06-07
Original URL: https://geeknode.co.za/2017/06/injustice-2
Wayback URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20171202004033id_/http://www.geeknode.co.za:80/2017/06/injustice-2/
Recovery Confidence: high

- Developer NetherRealm Studios
- Publisher Warner Bros Interactive
- Distributor Ster Kinekor
- Where we got our copy Ster KInekor
- Genre Fighter
- Game modes Single Player, Multiplayer
- Players 2
- Reviewed on Playstation 4

- Available on Android, iPhone, Xbox One

- MJ Khan

- 6 months ago

- 0 0

There has never been a better time to be a superhero fan. From the blockbuster franchises vying for your cash on the big screen, recurring television series, to the revival in comics and graphics, proliferation of merchandise encompassing everything from the sacrosanct to the obscure and the various strong gaming franchises that hold it all together. The sequel to 2013’s Injustice: Gods among us aims to capitalise on this frenzy, and I’m thrilled to share that it’s not a cheap cash-in.

Brought to you by the house that Boon built aka NetherRealm Studios, Injustice 2 extends the experience of the first game, while adding various tweaks and features to the formula to deliver what is arguably the best value for money content package I’ve played in recent years.

Superhero franchises lend themselves to fighters more so than other genres (especially Kart games – google Motor Kombat for more info), as it answers the age-old question – who would win a fight between A and B. A being Superman and B being everyone else, or at least that’s how it usually plays out in my head.

It is commendable that NetherRealm developed a game that balances mass appeal with depth. It makes Injustice 2 both a great party game, as well as a worthwhile competitive title. I find a lot of the newer fighting games to have a high barrier entry, especially the ones that start with Guilty and end with Gear. Injustice 2 recognises that some people just want to pick up a controller, choose someone they are familiar with (or the flavour of the month depending on which DC movie they recently watched) and proceed to beat up the Green Lantern.

The single-player story mode picks up where the last one ended (I highly recommend you watch a YouTube summary to bring yourself up to speed – it’s important) with Batman trying to address the fallout of Superman going full dictator. This is halted by the society and lead Baddie, Brainiac. I’m not sure whether the society is a reference to the Parseltongue friendly ‘Secret Society of Super Villains’ (SSoSV) but it’s a terrible name, and would make for a poor WWE stable name (even worse than The Corre). While it was confusing at times (more times than I’d like to admit), I appreciated and delighted in the effort put into the story mode, and it plays out as a great tutorial that forces you to play and appreciate the various characters. The 76 story fights took me about 6 hours to get through, and with multiple threads ensuring the second playthrough was a masterstroke that sheds the typical simple narrative that plagues its peers (good guys fight bad guys and defeat big bad guy). The only two slights in an otherwise excellent package is the occasional groanworthy writing, with many eye-roll worthy one-liners breaking the suspension, and the super moves quickly becoming stale after you’ve seen them a few times, unlike Mortal Kombat X’s X-Ray moves which had a better shelf-life due to their Sniper Elite camera levels of gratuitous splatter.

NetherRealm replaces the S.T.A.R labs challenges with the Multiverse (similar to MK’s Living Towers) and I spent hours playing through various challenges and handicaps, mostly to avoid the inevitable trashing that awaited me online. I tried an hour of online for this review, with each beating more savage than the last, all constant reminders that you can play something for hours and not necessarily be good at it. The weird thing is that it didn’t spur me to get better so I could beat people online, it just made me plonk more time into the Multiverse. I didn’t pick up much lag so I couldn’t blame that (like I sometimes do in Rocket League).

28 familiar and obscure faces make up the base roster (29 if you count pre-order bonus Darkseid) and while every character is given new super moves and tweaks, I did feel a little cheated that they did not carry over all the previous characters, like Zod and Deathstroke. I appreciate DC and NetherRealm scraping their almanac to incorporate the lesser-known beings, and I have read reports that stated they chose characters based on their ability to weave them into the story, but I’m sure no one would have minded if they brought Lex Luthor back from death. I don’t want to sound ungrateful, and some of the new additions are great fun to play with (love the Scarecrow) but I always want more Superhero for my buck. Here’s hoping they take a page out of Smash Bros for the inevitable Injustice 3 and chuck everyone at us. Without film and television reference it’s difficult for me to choose the more obscure (sorry Doctor Fate). Is it just me or does Black Adam look a lot like the dude from that old television show, Kumar’s at number 42? Just me? Ok then.

While the gore is all but non-existent, Injustice 2 can’t shake the smell of Mortal Kombat X off its bedsheets with several characters sometimes feeling like a simulacrum of MK mainstays. This happens often enough to notice and while it’s manufactured in the same factory, there’s a level of plausibility that ensures you look past it (except Jax and Cyborg – they feel the same).

The visuals are sumptuous, with individual stage design stealing the show. I would often watch the ‘demo screen’ just so that I could appreciate everything without having to focus on fighting. Not beholden to last-gen specs, Injustice 2 is allowed to soar. The sound design is equally impressive and is reference quality for those with surround sound set-ups. It is a high-production game in every sense.

While air-breakers and rolls (think combo breakers) add a level of strategy to matches, it is the new Gear system that proves to be Injustice 2’s masterstroke. The loot-dropping system rewards players with costume pieces and equipment that can be used to customize characters’ appearances and modify abilities and stats. It’s less Overwatch and more Witcher 3 in that the gear isn’t just aesthetic. NetherRealm is generous and you can accumulate ‘loot boxes’ with very little effort.

It would have been cool to see a Green Arrow based on the TV show (as opposed to the traditional DC Robin Hood wannabe) and an Aquaman based on Jason Momoa (I assume there will be a DLC pack to coincide with the Justice League movie).

The only way NetherRealm could make this game better is if somehow Marvel allows them to use their IP ala ‘Who framed Roger Rabbit.’ Don’t let this amazing title slip by while we wait and dream for that day.

There has never been a better time to be a superhero fan. From the blockbuster franchises vying for your cash on the big screen, recurring television series, to the revival in comics and graphics, proliferation of merchandise encompassing everything from the sacrosanct to the obscure and the various strong gaming franchises that hold it all together. The sequel to 2013’s Injustice: Gods among us aims to capitalise on this frenzy, and I’m thrilled to share that it’s not a cheap cash-in. Brought to you by the house that Boon built aka NetherRealm Studios, Injustice 2 extends the experience of the first game, while adding various tweaks and features to the formula to deliver what is arguably the best value for money content package I’ve played in recent years. Superhero franchises lend themselves to fighters more so than other genres (especially Kart games – google Motor Kombat for more info), as it answers the age-old question – who would win a fight between A and B. A being Superman and B being everyone else, or at least that’s how it usually plays out in my head. It is commendable that NetherRealm developed a game that balances mass appeal with depth. It makes Injustice 2 both a great party game, as well as a worthwhile competitive title. I find a lot of the newer fighting games to have a high barrier entry, especially the ones that start with Guilty and end with Gear. Injustice 2 recognises that some people just want to pick up a controller, choose someone they are familiar with (or the flavour of the month depending on which DC movie they recently watched) and proceed to beat up the Green Lantern. The single-player story mode picks up where the last one ended (I highly recommend you watch a YouTube summary to bring yourself up to speed – it’s important) with Batman trying to address the fallout of Superman going full dictator. This is halted by the society and lead Baddie, Brainiac. I’m not sure whether the society is a reference to the Parseltongue friendly ‘Secret Society of Super Villains’ (SSoSV) but it’s a terrible name, and would make for a poor WWE stable name (even worse than The Corre). While it was confusing at times (more times than I’d like to admit), I appreciated and delighted in the effort put into the story mode, and it plays out as a great tutorial that forces you to play and appreciate the various characters. The 76 story fights took me about 6 hours to get through, and with multiple threads ensuring the second playthrough was a masterstroke that sheds the typical simple narrative that plagues its peers (good guys fight bad guys and defeat big bad guy). The only two slights in an otherwise excellent package is the occasional groanworthy writing, with many eye-roll worthy one-liners breaking the suspension, and the super moves quickly becoming stale after you’ve seen them a few times, unlike Mortal Kombat X’s X-Ray moves which had a better…

Video Game Review: Injustice 2

Video Game Review: Injustice 2

2017-06-07

MJ Khan

A deep and enjoyable fighter

Total - 8.8

88
8.8

NetherRealm has developed a masterpiece chockful of content and replay value

User Rating: Be the first one !

9

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MJ Khan

Gaming / Entertainment Author at Geek Node

A veteran gamer and award-winning strategist, MJ enjoys eating chocolate eclairs and watching WWE. He completed his Masters coursework on videogame theory and enjoys writing about representation in games.

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Batman · dc comics · featured · injustice 2 · injustice 2 review · injustice 2 review south africa · mj khan · Superman · wonder woman

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