Injustice 2 - The Little Spinoff That Could

Injustice (full title Injustice: Gods Among Us) was a spinoff that, on paper, shouldn't work. Netherealm Studios had tried bringing DC characters into the beat-em-up fold back in 2008 with Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe.

It was a rather aggressively mediocre affair, and didn't manage to sate neither MK nor DC fans. The former got a toned down family-friendly MK, while the latter got...well...some of their favourite characters badly represented and nerfed to hell. The story mode was a mess, too.

Netherealm learned lots of lessons from it, though, and the subsequent MK9 (which was this blog's first "proper" review) was a major improvement in every single way and a return to form for Netherealm's prized IP.

So, when Injustice was announced, a beat-em-up solely based on DC characters, eyes rolled the world over. This was going to be another sandbox family-friendly beat-em-up with some silly plot device for characters whose status quo is to be a team to fight each other and all would be resolved by the end, everyone thought.

Netherealm saw us rolling our eyes, and gave us the finger instead.

Injustice saw these characters warped ever so slightly, in a parallel world where one slip cascaded into an oppressive regime lead by Superman and Wonder Woman tyrannicaly ruling humanity, with only a handful of resistance fighters (lead by Batman) opposing them. The events of the game unfold years into the story, when the JLA from a "good" universe accidentally crosses paths with this reality and decide to help Batman in his freedom war.

The reason for the conflict is there. And it's a lot darker than what I'm describing, especially if you bother to read the Injustice comic book (and you should, that shit's gold). At their core, the regime doesn't always want to kill their former allies, as they would much rather bring them to their way of thinking, though it does happen. And Batman's resistance also don't want to kill their former allies, in the hopes they will see the error of their ways. The gore is dialed way the hell down compared to MK9, but the actual darkness? Way higher.

This was, plain and simple, DC's Civil War. And it was glorious, following in the gameplay footsteps of MK9 but with DC characters whose backstories and characters you know a lot better than the kinda convoluted Mortal Kombat lore.

The gameplay was more or less the same. Hey, if it ain't broke, right?

Netherealm had found a formula that worked, but by God they kept improving it. Mortal Kombat X updated the graphics, but mostly kept things the same.

And, surprise, for the most part, so does Injustice 2. And that is a good thing.

It's been years since the events of Injustice.

Batman's side has won and humanity is free. Superman is under lock and key in a cell that dampens his powers via red solar generators. Wonder Woman is in hiding. Aquaman has secluded himself in Atlantis. And Batman's identity is common knowledge, but that's ok, because he's a public figure for rebuilding the world.

That is, until the Society, a group of former villains, previously mostly allied with the regime, starts putting their plan into motion. And who do they work for? Brainiac. The regime itself has gone underground, but now is the time for them to come back into the forefront and reveal their secret weapon: Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl.

The story keeps going down that dark path that the previous game started, and is pretty by the numbers, but it's told through legitimately exquisite animation. I don't usually devote more than a line or two on graphics, but in Injustice 2, they are beautiful af. Specifically the facial animations and acting in this could teach many AAA RPG titles a thing or two.

But while some (including me) will want to play Injustice 2 for the story, it remains a fighting game, and its gameplay is all that should matter to you.
In that respect, it should have a solid combat system, and a large roster of characters. Luckily, it has both.

Bouts are still the same, gameplay-wise, as they have been since MK9. Dealing or taking damage fills a special meter which can be used for enhanced normal moves, or used up all in one go for a supermove (previously X-Ray), an extended animation attack that deals a large chunck of damage should it connect. Fighters handle differently enough to each other, and none feel too overpowered compared to everyone else.
The only fly in the ointment are the seemingly impossible to figure out clashes that occur every so often, where you have to "wager" some sort of button sequence against your opponent's. The winner gains a momentary boost (usually some sort of health regen). I know I'm being vague here, and the reason is simple: I have not figured out how the darned things work. They last barely a couple of seconds, and the AI seems impossible to beat in them.

The roster is pretty sizeable too and includes both fan favorites and characters cashing in on the recent DC film and TV outings. What's more, these characters have many different colour schemes and costumes, and there's DLC to add even more (including characters from Mortal Kombat like Sub-Zero and Raiden, less known characters and non-DC characters like Hellboy and the Ninja Turtles). There are also some different characters courtesy of a reskin, with the same abilities as a main character (for example, Reverse Flash, Bizarro and Mr. Freeze)

Starting from the top left: Hellboy, Sub-Zero, Swamp Thing, Cyborg, Catwoman, Flash, Green Lantern, Harley Queen, Batman, Red Hood, Superman, Joker, Atrocitus, Grodd, Cheetah, Deadshot, Poison Ivy, Starfire, Atom, Enchantress, Black Manta, Supergirl, Green Arrow, Doctor Fate, Blue Beetle, Firestorm, Aquaman, Black Canary, Darkseid, Wonder Woman, Black Adam, Captain Cold, Robin, Scarecrow, Bane, Brainiac, Raiden and the Ninja Turtles.

In conclusion, Injustice 2 has all the same advantages and all the same weaknesses that the previous game did, but wrapped in a lot shinier and beautiful wrapping paper. But more importantly, it's a good fighting game.