Injustice: Gods Among Us is a traditional fighter in the vein of Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, but pits DC’s superheroes and gods against each other. When superheroes and supervillains fight it should be earth shattering. Black Adam’s punch should shatter windows and Doomsday’s should bring down buildings. Does Injustice make you feel each punch? Does Injustice make you feel like you’re a god among men? The short answer is yes. Due to the high detail of the backgrounds and how interactive each stage is every punch, kick, and fall causes damage to everything around you.
Outside of the Hall of Justice Atom Smasher is trading punches with Giganta in the background while at the entrance Superman battles Lex Luthor as the Hall crumbles with each punch.
The graphics, detail and the amount of work and planning put into each stage is a major selling point of the game and really makes the gamer feel like you are playing in a world where what amounts to modern day gods are fighting for the fate of the planet. Familiar locations like Wayne Manor, the Hall of Justice, Atlantis, Crime Alley and others are there to choose from. In the extras section of the game (known as The Archives) you can even take a look at the artwork for both the damaged and non-damaged versions of each stage.
A wandering robot is rolling by Superman’s feet, but is picked up and hurled at Luthor exploding and knocking him down. Soon Superman is on him, knocking him into another nearby robot who throws Lex into the air straight towards Giganta.
Each stage is built with certain levels which can be activated by super punching the opponent at a particular spot, usually at the edge of a map. These are spectacular “super moves” which take away about a quarter to half of the opponent’s bar depending on the difficulty. All but about two of the stages in the game have these multi-level transitions and they can often be triggered twice or even three times in the same battle depending on your opponent’s skill level.
Lex is flying towards Giganta who grabs him from the air, balls him up in her fist, and punches Atom Smasher in the face with Lex still in her grip, causing massive damage. She then looks down at this insignificant thing she has caught and hurls Lex into a nearby building where Superman is there waiting to continue the battle. Lex’s armor is torn, falling apart in spots and visibly damaged. He looks like he’s on his last legs, but he stands prepared to face Superman.
The detail in Injustice’s characters is amazing as well: costumes are ripped and shredded and skin is bruised and bleeding as fights go on. Each of the costumes are meticulously designed, and reflect the current DC style mixed with Nether Realms’ own stylistic tendencies. Each character has a variety of costumes to choose from, two of which are available for each character without any DLC or special achievements.
Lex is barely standing under his own power, but being a Luthor, he throws a sneering taunt Superman’s way. They growl and charge each other, meeting in a blinding flash. Superman is sent hurling back and Lex has caught his second wind. Has Luthor saved himself and defeated his foe at last?
What was just described is called a wager and is a nice last ditch strategy to regain some health or if you are winning, gain some additional damage for each of your attacks. The fighters wager or bet sections of their power meter to see who comes out on top. The gamer has to decide if it’s worth saving for a super move or wagering to regain health or additional damage. The right decision here can change the outcome of a match.
Superman has had enough of Lex and decides it’s time to finish this. He lets lose a devastating combo whittling Lex’s remaining energy down and setting him up for the coup de grace. Superman roars and punches Lex into the upper atmosphere, flying after him at super speed. He then two-hand punches him back to earth in a massive blow to Lex’s back. Lex plummets to earth, rises to one knee and then falls defeated.
The game has a strong single player element with an entertaining story mode, a traditional tournament style battle mode, a mini game mode called Star Labs, a single fight mode, and a training room. The story mode is a welcome change from the traditional battle mode and filled with plot twists much like the comics they are building on. QuickTime events are used in between battles and cutscenes in this mode, which actually effect the battle about to take place by weakening the opponent in various ways. Be wary though, this game has a lot of long cut-scenes which can sometimes be irritating to some gamers who just want to get back to the action.
Battle mode is the traditional tournament style ladder seen in most fighters since the original Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter. Injustice offers 19 variations on this standard mode which can either make you fight a mirror of yourself, choose a random fighter for you each battle, have one timer for the entire ladder set for 2 minutes and many more. This mode is where most fighting gamers will spend the majority of their time.
Star Labs, which are like mini games or battles with special circumstances and serve as micro stories. For instance one early Star Lab mission had a weakened Superman staying in the suns rays to regain health while fighting Bane.
Multiplayer consists of one versus one fights, King of the Hill mode where one fighter takes on all comers with a new health bar each time, or Survivor which is like King of the Hill, but with a health bar that carries over from fight to fight. Online multiplayer honestly still needs some work. The matchmaking interface feels clunky and isn’t as polished as most multiplayer games outside of the fighting genre. Once you are in a match though lag and other issues gamers often experience doesn’t seem to be a problem. Fighting seems to be fluid and the games are very similar to offline versions. Depending on the hour, even with how popular this game seems to be, I often had to wait several minutes between fights trying to get matched up with an opponent. The multiplayer mode offers daily challenges for additional XP to level up your account, but with the amount of time between bouts, I’ve yet to complete one.
Comic book fans will love Injustice’s bonus material as you can customize your “hero card” icon, portrait, and background with the character of your choice, including utilizing unlockable comic book covers and logos. In addition to items for your hero card among the unlockables are XP boosts, concept art, music, and additional costumes.
All in all the game has a fluid fighting engine with a decent combo and counter system, moves are easy to pull off yet the power meter gives them a bit more for the veteran fighter to play with. The game walks a fine line of being inviting to casual fighters, while giving just enough challenge for most veterans. This game is perfect for gamers that are fond of current DC comics characters, Mortal Kombat fighting games, or are just looking for a fun casual fighter to while away their time.
