Batman: The Brave and the Bold for the Wii is a charming game. The graphics, the voice acting, and the gameplay elements all tie together to make you really feel as if you are playing an episode of the cartoon. There are a few areas in which Batman: The Brave and the Bold falls short, but these are easily overlooked by the game’s light-hearted appeal to gamers young and old alike.
Batman has been many things through the years, from a tongue-in-cheek pop-culture icon to a grim, gritty, “Dark Knight”. In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, the caped crusader has far more in common with his 60s TV self than Christian Bale’s depiction. Batman’s costume is bright blue, his chest symbol proudly yellow, and his jaw is so square you could use it for a protractor. There’s a Silver Age feel to the game, with all manner of obscure heroes and villains teaming up with Batman in wacky situations, from the ghostly underworld to outer space.
Like the graphical style, the gameplay feels very retro, too. Batman: The Brave and the Bold has more in common with vintage brawlers like Double Dragon than it does modern games such as Arkham Asylum. The world’s greatest detective and his partners fight their way through a series of side-scrolling levels, punching, kicking, and throwing their way to victory. There are many different types of attacks, like mid-air combos, and holds that let you knee the bad guys until they fall, but good old-fashioned button mashing works just fine; you really don’t need to know much more than “keep pressing A”.
Of course, Batman is all about cool gadgets, and in this respect, Batman: The Brave and the Bold delivers. Batman himself has access to batarangs, explosive charges, a stun-gun, and even Nth metal knuckles that increase his melee damage. Each of these can be unlocked and upgraded by spending coins, which drop from fallen enemies like candy from a pinata. Generally speaking, these alternate attacks cost energy, which slowly regenerates over time, so you can’t just spam triple batarangs all the time, for instance.
Apart from a brief training session at the beginning of the game, Batman is always joined by a partner in crime-fighting. A second player can jump in or out anytime to control these other heroes. There are four main partners, one for each of the “episodes”. Robin is the first, followed by the new Blue Beetle, then Hawkman, and finally loud-mouthed Green Lantern Guy Gardner. The first three of these are very similar to one another, with only minor differences in weaponry and abilities. Guy Garner, however, is a totally different hero, as befits a character wielding a power ring capable of bringing thoughts to life. I’d have preferred a bit more variety in the playstyle of the partners, which, apart from the Green Lantern, play very much like Batman himself.
Straight up brawlers just don’t cut the mustard in today’s gaming world, and Batman: The Brave and the Bold attempts to mix things up a bit in different ways; some work, others do not. The boss battles have a fair amount of variety, but aren’t particularly challenging, either. One fight, a SHMUP style tussle against a giant alien starfish in outer space, is easily the highlight. Some light exploration elements and environment interaction break things up, too. It’s the story and voice acting, though, that really makes you want to keep playing.
The voice acting in Batman: The Brave and the Bold is incredible. Many of the same actors from the show are featured in the game. Couple this with the fact that the cut scenes are of very high quality, and you’ve got what amounts to bonus episodes of the cartoon. I especially enjoyed the interaction between Batman and his partners. Robin teases his mentor mercilessly about his soft spot for Catwoman. Blue Beetle has a hilarious conversation with Batman about what makes a good archenemy. The Hawkman scenes focus on the trials of getting older (as Hawkman is an older hero in the show). Best of all, for a longtime comic book fan like myself, was the interaction between stoic Batman and arrogant Guy Gardner, with a whole slew of Green Lanterns making cameos, too. You can tell much attention was paid to these elements, and the game is very entertaining as a result.
There are a few blemishes in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, though. There’s very little in the way of challenge; death means nothing but an instant respawn. This is one of the easiest games you’ll ever play. I’d estimate our time playing the game at around seven hours total, a bit low in my eyes. A survival/challenge mode adds a bit of additional value, but not much. I was also somewhat disappointed that Batman only teams up with four others; more heroes appear, but only as special room-clearing summons that are on a recharge timer. While you can choose which “call in” hero you want for each level, you can’t pick your main co-op partner. There's not much gameplay interaction between players, at all; a team-up attack would have been ideal. I should also note that I was unable to test the interaction with Bat-mite, which requires a DS copy of Batman: The Brave and the Bold to use.
All told, the game is very enjoyable, especially for fans of the characters. There is a high level of fan service that will have the target audience giddy with delight. The production values are incredible, notably the show-accurate art and voice acting. The gameplay itself is somewhat lacking, as if the developers were clinging too tightly to the retro brawler formula. It could have been far, far worse, though. Batman: The Brave and the Bold is no Arkham Asylum, but it’s no reason to think the Batman game curse is back, either.