After quite a few hours, full of chaos and fun, I do get the same feeling about Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. The game has many good points and there you really notice Rocksteady’s hand, but the game definitely has its downsides as well.
Perhaps the most disappointing thing is that the story doesn’t actually end, that is if you don’t throw more money at it. Choose the live service and the upcoming season content, yes then of course you get much more. This is a common occurrence with big titles at the moment, more often we get a story and to finish it in good fashion, we have to spend some more money. But credits to the game, because I must say that the moment-to-moment combat and the late-game run of stylish skills and tougher weapons really push the whole thing forward and improve it. The game is an improved version of games like Anthem and Avengers. But that may soon be the case. The formula of this none works, especially if you have a few friends.
I think the big question is whether Suicide Squad: KTJL is going to move to the Live service model, or if it’s going to continue on this path, or is it going to rearrange the loot you get and with that, the mission design. I for one find it hard to imagine that the game can go on like this for years to come. I am very curious about the development we are going to see in this game and the steps it will take then.
Disastrous live service launches have unfortunately become too common a phenomenon in recent times, and I have personally experienced many of them. When I entered Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, everyone was preparing for the worst, but coming from catastrophes like Anthem or Marvel’s Avengers, this title really isn’t that bad. Surely Anthem really did have the potential and, in my eyes, may have come too soon. Now with SS:KTJL, we have a completely different game that is still a little searching for what it will be.
After about 10 hours of campaign progression and open-world chaos, the long-awaited, unexpected follow-up to Rocksteady’s 2015 Batman: Arkham Knight does not warrant such a lengthy development. However, it’s hard to deny that the studio excels in certain areas, imbuing the whole thing with a degree of charm and polish you don’t often see. But, the ride has been a bit bumpy. For instance, there were some server outages, which of course sucks, but especially when it happens just when your early access starts. Because there was also a more expensive version of the game with early access. But, it should not completely spoil the fun, the experience of the game is good, the presentation is nice and you still have that superhero atmosphere.
The premise of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is simple: Task Force X is assembled by Amanda Waller to deal with Brainiac, his invasion forces, and worst of all, the largely controlled Justice League. This is far from ideal for everyone involved. The idea of a huddled group of DC villains whose power levels aren’t that high, going up against Superman and other powerful creatures didn’t work very well in the 2016 film, but so this one works nicely again in a video game.
Mind you, the story still has to find ways to make Earth’s greatest superheroes a little weaker to give Task Force X a chance, but various personal conflicts and some crazy power ups, make this possible. More importantly, it’s a less serious, more colorful take on Rocksteady’s bleak “Arkhamverse” that allows the studio to flex several muscles. Some late story choices may be a bit divisive among fans, but when viewed fresh, it’s quite creative how some characters are handled.
The overall quality of the game, the audio, the presentation, the colors, it reminded me a bit of Guardians of the Galaxy at times. This actually also made me feel more like how nice Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice could have been if Warner Bros. Games had allowed Rocksteady to do its thing 100%. The open-world structure doesn’t destroy it, or make it better. Nor does the brutal narrative on display. It’s the trivial live service elements and loot systems-which I personally don’t hate when done well, but when it’s thumped in like that, it’s basically a hodgepodge that just won’t come together. I played Marvel’s Avengers fairly through then, to the point where I thought this is a drag, but Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League feels a lot tighter, more focused looter-shooter-brawler game. But it’s still not enough, mainly because it shouldn’t be that kind of game in the first place. It’s hard to nail that genre – and much harder to mix with traditional action-adventure gameplay – and Rocksteady is out of its comfort zone here.
Moving through this version of Metropolis, full of crazy enemies but with those little details, is a welcome surprise for any DC fan, now with four characters, but more to come, including Joker. So each character has his or her weaknesses and strengths. King Shark is kind of the tank of the bunch, rams through nicely too. After each mission you get some loot, with this you can improve your character a bit. It is scarce and really gives too few benefits to make it useful.
Of course, there is always the likely chance that the developer will make loot and skill progression more appealing in post-launch updates, but who will stick around for that, especially when most of the marketing campaign and PR response has been so misguided and lacking? Franchises as established as Diablo can afford this luxury, but I don’t know if a game like this can afford it. It has to be there right away, otherwise you’re just really a street length behind.
Perhaps even worse is how the live service, RPG-like aspirations affect the mission structure that guides most of the story campaign and the entirety of the end game after the deceptively more linear and satisfying first few hours. As I said, it is more flexible than anything in Marvel’s Avengers, but open-world events often become the entirety of a “main” mission that is only distinguished from its content because there are gooey cutscenes.
As I approach the endgame portion of the game, where we are supposed to spend many more hours, I must still sadly say that I fear Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League will die in silence. The game is just really fun and funny right now, but how will this continue.