Batman Dark Tomorrow Review

Overview

Released in March 2003 for the Original Xbox, Batman: Dark Tomorrow represents Kemco's ambitious but ultimately failed attempt to create a darker, more comic accurate Batman game. Developed by Hot Gen, the game aimed to tell an original story featuring numerous characters from Batman's rogues gallery while incorporating elements of combat, stealth, and detective work. Despite nearly five years in development and input from DC Comics writers, the final product emerged as one of the most notorious superhero games ever released, plagued by technical issues and questionable design decisions that overshadow its occasional glimpses of potential.

Graphics and Presentation

The visual presentation of Dark Tomorrow is a study in contrasts. Pre rendered cutscenes demonstrate decent production values and occasionally capture the mood of contemporary Batman comics. However, the in game graphics suffer from numerous issues, including poor character models, stiff animations, and texture problems that make navigating environments more difficult than necessary.

Environmental design aims for a gothic atmosphere but is hampered by technical limitations and poor implementation. Darkness is often used as a stylistic choice, but combined with the problematic camera system, it frequently renders navigation needlessly challenging. Character models lack detail and move with awkward animations that break immersion.

The user interface is cluttered and unintuitive, with vital information often buried in confusing menus. The heads up display fails to provide clear feedback about Batman's status or objective progress, contributing to the general sense of confusion that permeates the experience.

Sound and Music

The audio presentation stands as one of the game's few relative strengths, though even here significant issues exist. The orchestral score occasionally captures the appropriate mood for a Batman adventure, with dramatic themes that would feel at home in the character's better adaptations. Environmental audio, when it works properly, helps create atmosphere in the game's darker moments.

Voice acting ranges from mediocre to poor, with flat delivery and awkward dialogue undermining attempts at storytelling. Sound effects lack impact and often fail to properly sync with on screen actions, further reducing the game's already tenuous sense of immersion.

Gameplay Mechanics

Combat forms a significant portion of gameplay but proves fundamentally broken in execution. The control scheme is unresponsive and poorly mapped, making even basic actions frustrating to perform. Hit detection is inconsistent, while the lock on system frequently targets the wrong enemies or fails to function entirely.

Stealth mechanics, which should be a cornerstone of any Batman game, are implemented in the most basic and unsatisfying way possible. The detection system is inconsistent, while the limited move sets and poor camera control make avoiding enemies more frustrating than engaging.

The game attempts to incorporate detective elements but these largely amount to using specific gadgets in predetermined locations. The Bat gear interface is cumbersome, making equipment selection more time consuming and awkward than necessary.

Story and Setting

The narrative attempts to tell an original Batman story involving multiple villains and a plot threatening Gotham City. While the premise shows promise, the execution falls flat through poor pacing, confusing plot developments, and awkward dialogue. The game notably features multiple endings, though the requirements for achieving the "good" ending are so obscure that most players will never see it without consulting a guide.

Character interactions fail to capture the essence of Batman and his rogues gallery, despite the game's attempts to incorporate comic book lore. The story's darker elements feel forced rather than natural developments, while important plot points are often poorly explained or seemingly random.

Content and Value

The main campaign can take 8-10 hours to complete, though much of this time will be spent wrestling with controls and repeating sections due to cheap deaths or unclear objectives. Multiple endings technically provide replay value, but the frustrating gameplay makes additional playthroughs an unappealing prospect.

At a current pre-owned price of £8.99, the game might interest collectors of notorious titles or gaming historians. However, even at this modest price point, it's difficult to recommend as an entertainment product given the numerous superior Batman games available.

Technical Performance

Technical issues plague nearly every aspect of the experience. Loading times are frequent and lengthy, breaking any sense of momentum the game might establish. The frame rate is inconsistent, particularly during combat sequences or when multiple enemies are present.

The camera system represents perhaps the game's most egregious technical failing, frequently positioning itself in ways that obscure crucial platforms or enemies. Manual camera control is available but proves unwieldy and often works against the player's intentions.

The Verdict

Batman: Dark Tomorrow stands as a cautionary tale in licensed game development, demonstrating how even extensive development time and authentic source material can result in a deeply flawed product when fundamental gameplay mechanics aren't properly implemented. While the game occasionally shows glimpses of ambition in its storytelling and atmosphere, these moments are thoroughly undermined by broken controls, poor camera work, and confusing design choices. Even die hard Batman fans or collectors of infamous games will find little to redeem this troubled release.

Pros

• Occasionally atmospheric musical score
• Decent pre rendered cutscenes
• Ambitious narrative scope
• Includes many classic Batman villains

Cons

• Fundamentally broken controls
• Problematic camera system
• Poor combat mechanics
• Confusing level design and progression

Final Score: 3/10

Batman: Dark Tomorrow's considerable ambitions are completely undermined by its poor execution. While it occasionally demonstrates understanding of its source material, the broken gameplay mechanics and technical issues make it nearly unplayable.

By OGXbox Archive