Last year's "Mortal Kombat" brought a struggling fighting franchise back to form with sensational (if somewhat bloody) graphics and great brawling action.
The teams behind it, NetherRealm Studios and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, gave us a behind-closed-doors look at their next project, "Injustice: Gods Among Us," at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles this week.
In the game, you’ll choose from various DC Comics characters, heroes and villains alike. The four we saw in action were Superman, Batman, The Flash and Solomon Grundy, a big, hulking creature with knives in its back. Each character plays differently from the others, depending on his abilities. Batman relies heavily on his tools of the trade, including a grapple belt and Batarangs, while Solomon has enough brute strength to throw people around, along with cars and knives ['The Amazing Spider-Man' First Look ]
"Injustice; Gods Among Us" features a number of interactive backgrounds that really immerse you in the fighting action. You can tear off cables in the Batcave and electrocute someone in mid-air; hit a button on the side of the stage to fire missiles from the Batmobile at your opponent; and knock people — yes, even Superman — through buildings.
Along with outstanding visuals that bring the DC universe to life, you’ll also be treated to moments that make the whole thing feel like an interactive comic title. For instance, when Superman activates his super-attack, he can hurl a punch into an enemy’s stomach, knocking them into the stratosphere before they come crashing down to Earth.
For a "Mortal Kombat" follow-up, NetherRealm seems to be going quite a ways out there with its latest project, but "Injustice: Gods Among Us" is looking like a fighting game that both comic book fans and casual players can happily embrace. And unlike "Mortal Kombat's" over-the-top carnage, "Gods Among Us" [ 'Mortal Kombat' for PS Vita Is Bloody Good Fun ]
focuses more on fighting tactics and crazy brawling, though that will probably still be enough to earn it a Teen rating upon release.
Look for it sometime in 2013 on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.