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BATMAN: GOTHAM CITY RACER (PS)
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Publisher: Ubi Soft.
Developer: Sinister Games. Released: May 2001 (Europe). Genre: Driving. Posted 24th December 2021. By Shane Battams © 2021 |
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Though regrettably not some oddball kart racer based on the iconic series, Batman: Gotham City Racer did still offer a potentially novel spin on the caped crusader’s adventures. A mission-driving game that sees you racing around Gotham taking down criminals could have been fun, but sadly the reigns were handed to Sinister Games for this one: the developer behind the critically-panned Dukes of Hazzard racers a couple of years prior. Much like those, this driving game would prove a waste of a good license, with several crippling issues dampening out almost all the enjoyment you could scrape from it. Not even footage from The New Batman Adventures series could save this criminally bad game.
Gotham City Racer tasks you with tailing, combating and capturing the criminals of the titular city while playing as the Bat family. Across 51 missions, you’ll drive between key districts of Gotham (often separated by a loading screen), taking on escaped goons from Arkham. The problems begin with the driving – it’s extremely poor. The Batmobile handles with the grace of an elephant on an ice rink, swaying violently between stiff as a brick to sliding across and spinning out without much warning. There’s little impact to the crashes, no damage indicators aside from a slowly dwindling metre and very little nuance to the weapons, whether it’s the batarangs, laser shots or oil slicks. Though you do get to test out Batgirl’s motorcycle in one mission, you’ll be otherwise thankful for its absence, as it handles even worse. You can play as both heroes and criminals, each with their own unique vehicle, but the issue with handling doesn’t disappear.
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No laughing matter: Batman plays poorly and looks worse
While 51 missions sounds like a lot, much of Gotham City Racer is brisk. Some missions last less than a minute and simply task you with driving to a destination, something that’s easier said than done with the atrocious handling. However, there are some other mission types, including tailing a villain and taking down their vehicle while shooting and dropping mines. The problem is that none of these missions are fun, thanks to the aforementioned issues with weaponry and driving. You’ll tire of this game long before the end and despite the missions taking a little under three hours to finish, it feels like Groundhog Day, given how often missions repeat. The lack of flexibility and relative ease of the game also limits its longevity. Even experimenting with different routes in a semi-open Gotham isn’t possibly, as for some reason, paths are blocked off and you’re forced to take specific routes.
Its presentation is pretty awfully, too. This Batman game suffers from serious fogging, lacklustre 3D models and repetitive texturing that proves a real eyesore. Sometimes, it’s like the wheels of the Batmobile aren’t even attached, that’s how poor it looks. The sound sees a constant loop of short music tracks, which awkwardly stop then restart. It’s not good. The only possible saving grace is the decent amount of footage taken from The New Batman Adventures, with plenty of missions bookended by scenes ripped from the show. But even these are used poorly, as the context of these encounters is reappropriated to set up another boring mission and there’s even some noticeable skewing of the plot that will leave dedicated fans scratching their heads. None of the series’ personality shows up in gameplay, with no voice clips to speak of during driving. It’s a poor effort.
Its presentation is pretty awfully, too. This Batman game suffers from serious fogging, lacklustre 3D models and repetitive texturing that proves a real eyesore. Sometimes, it’s like the wheels of the Batmobile aren’t even attached, that’s how poor it looks. The sound sees a constant loop of short music tracks, which awkwardly stop then restart. It’s not good. The only possible saving grace is the decent amount of footage taken from The New Batman Adventures, with plenty of missions bookended by scenes ripped from the show. But even these are used poorly, as the context of these encounters is reappropriated to set up another boring mission and there’s even some noticeable skewing of the plot that will leave dedicated fans scratching their heads. None of the series’ personality shows up in gameplay, with no voice clips to speak of during driving. It’s a poor effort.
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Outside of the main missions, there is some extra content that proves just as underwhelming. Patrol lets you pick a section of Gotham and take down goons in a user-set time limit, but it’s nothing but the same underwhelming design you’ve grown bored of just with worse handling if you opt for one of the cycles. There’s also a two-player chase mode, which lets you and another player set up a sort of cops ‘n’ robbers game and it even lets you utilise the criminal’s vehicles spotted throughout the game. Sadly, not even the intrigue of playing as the bad guys can overcome the crippling flaws which plague this game.
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The vehicles you can patrol Gotham City with are not limited to the Batmobile... although you'll wish they were
Batman: Gotham City Racer would prove another woeful use of the iconic hero, concluding a bad run of games for the caped crusader with a displeasing take on mission racing. The concept of utilising the Batmobile to take down goons could have proved a lot of fun, but atrocious handling and tedious objectives leave this one spinning its wheels. It ends up feeling a rushed mess, with little effort going into the presentation, use of the show’s footage or even the basic design. Fans of the caped crusader will struggle to find enjoyment here. A myriad of racing games on the PlayStation outclass this effort with ease, leaving poor Batman eating their dust.
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VERDICT
"Atrocious handling, tedious objectives and a lack of effort leave Batman: Gotham City Racer spinning its wheels... A woeful use of the iconic hero.” OVERALL: 3/10 |
PIXEL SECONDS: BATMAN: GOTHAM CITY RACER (PS)
Sinister Games rounded off the Caped Crusader’s shambolic run of PlayStation games with one final kick in the teeth, courtesy of Gotham City Racer. The console’s limited memory meant delivering an open-world Gotham City was always going to prove an uphill struggle, but there are all manner of hindrances, many stemming from far more fundamental issues. Most inescapably, its hideously heavy, unresponsive handling. Who knew the Batmobile had the turning circle of a shopping trolley at slow speeds? 51 missions sounds generous, but really its 51 objectives (the majority of which require nothing more than a short drive from A to B) and a very great number of loading screens. The visuals are absolutely awful, beset with loads of pop-up and some conspicuously basic landscape designs. There are a few FMV clips lifted from the animated series to paper over the presentation issues somewhat and Gotham does at least deliver some landmarks, such as Arkham Asylum and Wayne Manor. However, they do little to brighten what is for the most part a clunky, sparse and drab driving experience. It’s difficult to recommend on any level, even to the biggest Bat fans. [3] – Tom Clare © 2022
Sinister Games rounded off the Caped Crusader’s shambolic run of PlayStation games with one final kick in the teeth, courtesy of Gotham City Racer. The console’s limited memory meant delivering an open-world Gotham City was always going to prove an uphill struggle, but there are all manner of hindrances, many stemming from far more fundamental issues. Most inescapably, its hideously heavy, unresponsive handling. Who knew the Batmobile had the turning circle of a shopping trolley at slow speeds? 51 missions sounds generous, but really its 51 objectives (the majority of which require nothing more than a short drive from A to B) and a very great number of loading screens. The visuals are absolutely awful, beset with loads of pop-up and some conspicuously basic landscape designs. There are a few FMV clips lifted from the animated series to paper over the presentation issues somewhat and Gotham does at least deliver some landmarks, such as Arkham Asylum and Wayne Manor. However, they do little to brighten what is for the most part a clunky, sparse and drab driving experience. It’s difficult to recommend on any level, even to the biggest Bat fans. [3] – Tom Clare © 2022
OTHER BATMAN SPIN-OFF REVIEWS
Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu (2003, PS2)
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LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes (2012, PS Vita)
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