Basic Plot Synopsis: Injustice is NetherRealm’s fighting game based off the DC Comics universe. One part well-constructed fight game, one part sloppy DC-fan love letter, Injustice features a story designed for comic fans. In an alternate universe, Superman is tricked into murdering Lois and his unborn son, causing him to lose his way and set out for complete world domination. He enslaves or convinces the other Super Meta-humans to join him, establishing his One Earth regime. The Batman of this alternate universe uses an inter-dimensional teleporter to bring Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and other Justice League members from our universe to stop Evil Superman’s reign of terror. The story is divided into chapters, allowing the player to take control of over a dozen characters in the quest to usurping the One Earth government.
My Thoughts: When Injustice was released this last summer, I was skeptical – I had not forgotten the unbalanced and mediocre NetherRealm creation, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe. However, I was looking for a good two player game to show of my new PS4 to my friends, so I decided to pick up a copy.
I am notoriously awful at fighting games, my thumbs simply do not MOVE fast enough to land necessary special moves and combos. However, even my fight-challenged thumbs acclimated to Injustice’s controls after a couple of hours, and much to my delight I was laser punching villains and heroes with the best of them. Each of the characters you control has his/her own play style, but I enjoyed playing as characters I would have never naturally chosen, such as The Flash or Cyborg.
Injustice has one of the best tutorials I’ve experienced in a fighting game, and after playing through it I noticed I was considerably better at the game. One of the most interesting in-game mechanics is the interactive environment. Throughout any fight, you can grab pipes, robots, planes, statues and other elements and use them to unleash varying amounts of damage on your opponents. These opportunities can turn the tide of battle and significantly alter combat tactics in any given match. There are also transition moves, where by landing a well timed heavy kick knocks your opponent “out” of the arena. They go crashing through walls, trucks, and other obstacles – receiving a significant amount of damage. Once they land, you resume combat in a new section of the chosen fight arena. These particular transitions give the player an immense sense of power, and often elicited cheers from my friends.
Transition sequence begins at 0:52 – video courtesy of EdwardTriggaHands
The overall story of Injustice makes sense to someone familiar with comic tropes, but to a DC rookie, it might come off a bit convoluted. As a DC Comics fangirl, I was really delighted by the story and opportunities it gave fans to see non-canon dreams realized. The story also allows you to play both canon heroes and villains from the DC universe because unusual allies are made in the fight against Evil Superman’s terror. Want to see Deathstroke and Cyborg work together? It happens. Want to see Batman fight Batman? It happens. Want to see Lex Luthor play the good guy? It happens.
Overall, the game lacks visual punch and occasionally there are cutscenes that look incredibly dated – but it does not distract from the fun factor. If you own a PS4, I recommend you pick up Injustice – especially if you are a DC Comics fans.
– E.B.
NerdAtlas 