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BATMAN: THE CAPED CRUSADER (C64)
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Publisher: Ocean Software.
Developer: Special FX Software. Released: 1988. Genre: Action/Adventure. Other versions: AMI; CPC; AST; SPC. Posted 2nd February 2014. By Alan Passingham © 2014 |
Here is a conundrum for all you retro gamers out there. What if, back in the day, games were not as fiendishly difficult as we like to recall they were? What if we were just 10 year-old dip-sh!ts who couldn’t tell our arse from our zipstick and were unconsciously incompetent at playing games? I hear you laugh at such a bold claim. I hear you declare that if such a thing were true then the world would explode in a fiery cataclysm. But I’ve just replayed Batman: The Caped Crusader on the mighty C64 and pissed through the Penguin stage with just 45 minutes playing time on the clock. As a 10-year old dipsh!t I never got close to defeating Penguin, even after weeks of play. Case closed. We were clueless numpties during the golden age.
That’s not to say the memory of this Batman adventure has become completely sullied. Indeed, it still enthuses real quality in 8-bit design and presentation. Foremost the continuously looping theme tune is probably one of the catchiest ever heard on the C64. Even now when waiting for a train at Waterloo station on the commute home, the joyous ‘do do-do-do-do’ frequently pops into my head and puts a big old smile on my face. Likewise, the novel graphics apply a unique mechanism to the standard flick-screen approach of platformers at the time. Batman’s adventures are encapsulated in comic-book styled cells, whereby every time the main sprite exits vertically or horizontally, a new cell overlays the previous (which is shaded out in the background) as Bats continues his progress. It’s a neat and sophisticated process. Along with the quirky sprites that more or less resemble the Adam West TV show (sadly without the occasional ‘Zzap’ or ‘Kapow’) it has an instinctive look and feel that stands out from the masses of eighties platformers.
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Batman is forced to run as the tax-collector finally catches up
Although this is not really a platformer; Batman is unable to jump for instance. In the ilk of Dizzy, The Caped Crusader is much more of an exploration and puzzle game where the collection of items and their interaction with background objects is key to success. Progress is also fairly logical. A dart obviously interacts with a dartboard, as does a rope to gain access to a floor above. In the cases where the association between item and object is not particularly clear then the comic-strip cell will include a comic-styled header that provides a useful hint on what the player needs to do; like inserting a disc into a ‘pooter. As such the puzzling and item collection is fairly straightforward and not all that frustrating. Even the point and click inventory system is implemented effectively.
The real issue with The Caped Crusader, however, is the game world is relatively small and the various minions of Penguin and The Joker which roam the streets and hideouts of Gotham have minimal impact on Batman’s puzzling progress. It’s all too easy to map out the level design with just a couple of play-throughs and whilst there are lots of distracting enemies in the environments beyond the bat-cave that is all most of them are: distractions. There is little need to engage with or out-right dodge most of them (bar a few bat-a-rangs to the solar-plexus’ of some bald-headed thugs) so long as the snacks collected (like a, uhm, fried egg) are regularly digested to keep up your dwindling health levels. Neither do said enemies provide difficult barriers that need to be overcome. They pretty much wander around aimlessly doing minimal damage, leaving our psychologically messed up hero to get on with the puzzle solving. It certainly renders Batman’s ability to kick and punch as rather unnecessary when you can just ignore most of them on the way to success.
The real issue with The Caped Crusader, however, is the game world is relatively small and the various minions of Penguin and The Joker which roam the streets and hideouts of Gotham have minimal impact on Batman’s puzzling progress. It’s all too easy to map out the level design with just a couple of play-throughs and whilst there are lots of distracting enemies in the environments beyond the bat-cave that is all most of them are: distractions. There is little need to engage with or out-right dodge most of them (bar a few bat-a-rangs to the solar-plexus’ of some bald-headed thugs) so long as the snacks collected (like a, uhm, fried egg) are regularly digested to keep up your dwindling health levels. Neither do said enemies provide difficult barriers that need to be overcome. They pretty much wander around aimlessly doing minimal damage, leaving our psychologically messed up hero to get on with the puzzle solving. It certainly renders Batman’s ability to kick and punch as rather unnecessary when you can just ignore most of them on the way to success.
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When it comes to TVs, Batman asks "how many is too many?"
Whilst there are two separate campaigns – the first involving Penguin, the second The Joker – a complete run through for each lasts about ten minutes. And considering competent players will have sussed out the level design, where the items reside (including explosives that need to be neutralised in the Joker campaign) and where they need to be used within half-hour of first picking up and playing, The Caped Crusader certainly lacks longevity. It’s a quick punchy game. Fun whilst it lasts, with some real quality 8-bit design (the music is so damn good and always worth revisiting), but certainly lacking in substance and considerable challenge. The puzzles are not overly complex and with the lack of any discernible enemies it’s all a little too easy.
So yeah, not all games from yonder were f*ck-hard tough and unfair. Some were just played by children who didn’t really understand the subtlety of puzzles, thinking The Caped Crusader to be just another action-laden beat ‘em up. Laugh at them. Laugh at them and their stupid faces. Now look in the mirror and laugh harder. Numbnuts…
So yeah, not all games from yonder were f*ck-hard tough and unfair. Some were just played by children who didn’t really understand the subtlety of puzzles, thinking The Caped Crusader to be just another action-laden beat ‘em up. Laugh at them. Laugh at them and their stupid faces. Now look in the mirror and laugh harder. Numbnuts…
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VERDICT
Visual: 8/10
Audio: 10/10 Gameplay: 7/10 Longevity: 4/10 OVERALL: 5/10 |