Yarrr! We be here to save Gotham.

With all of the new titles constantly shipping in a variety of genres, it’s easy for some games to get lost in the shuffle. For me, this was the case with WB Interactive’s Gotham City Impostors.

I first heard about this game at PAX Prime last year. I loved the concept and the booth was pretty entertaining, so it seemed like a title that I was going to be hearing a lot about. However, much larger and more anticipated titles from franchises like Mass Effect and Assassin’s Creed ended up stealing the show for me.

Flash forward nearly a year and enter the 2012 Steam Summer Sale. I saw the entire Batman franchise on sale and could not resist adding GCI and the entirety of its DLC content to my library.

I suck at pvp games

Yeah, I’ll freely admit that I am atrocious when it comes to facing off against fellow players.  I can play an FPS against a horde of AI creeps all day and feel pretty good about myself. When other humans enter the equation, however, I spend most of the game on the ground and find myself swearing. A lot. The whole experience tends to leave a bad taste in my mouth. I presume that’s from the tea-bagging. I’m usually done with pvp after a few matches and never want to go back.

Gotham City Impostors is an entirely different beast for me. Yes, I’m still laughably terrible at the genre and I’m sure people groan when they see my name on the roster for their team, but I am still having fun after numerous matches over the last few days.

Comic Combat

The game is straight forward enough to pick up immediately, though I recommend a quick jaunt through the tutorial to give you an understanding of the mechanics behind some of the support items and gadgets in the game. It’s also funny. In fact, the game is absolutely riddled with humor. Even the credits are well worth a watch. Once you’re up to speed on how to navigate the arena of play, it’s time for the good stuff.

There are several modes of play to choose from:

• Team Deathmatch This is pretty self-explanatory if you have ever played a pvp shooter. Team Jokerz versus Team Batz in pitched combat until one side achieves the required number of kills.
• Gas Blasters A fun variation on the classic control point game. Three gas machines  are positioned randomly and players gain control by standing near them (making themselves sniper bait) for a specific amount of time. Points are awarded for each second a team controls a gas machine and when one side reaches critical mass (the appropriate number of points), the match ends with the other side being taken out with nerve toxin or a swarm of bats. I’m guessing you can figure out the logistics on that one.
• Psych Warfare A game of center flag where the flag is a battery and the home base is a brainwashing machine. Capturing the battery and powering your machine demoralizes the enemy and forces them to drop their weapons and gadgets. Bonus points for killing demoralized enemies. Demoralized players can still fight back by slapping. So extra points for humiliating your opponent by slapping them to death.
• Bounty Hunter Similar to deathmatch except that players drop coins when killed that must be picked up by opposing players in order to score. Allies are able to pick up coins of their fallen brethren to defend against enemy scores.
• Challenges This is a single player mode where players can earn xp by performing well in an increasingly difficult series of feats. Fun, but you’re not actually blowing up other people with a jack-in-the-box, so probably not where you’re going to spend your time.

Customize yo self

Everything a masked vigilante needs.

The last thing I want to mention is the crazy amount of customization that you can do in GCI. There are stock builds freely available in the game such as Striker, Sniper, Medic, and so on, but the real fun is in spending your unlocks to acquire new weapons, gadgets, and personality traits (perks) that you can customize a loadout with. On top of that, you are awarded costume coins at the conclusion of each match which you can use to do exactly what you would imagine costume coins are used for. Costumes. There, I said it. Happy? Make a memorable character that your opponents will learn to loathe with each dying breath.

Since the Steam Summer Sale, there seem to be plenty of people online willing to face off against others in what I can only describe as an insanely madcap carnival of carnage. Get in some shots while the gettin’s good. Check the gallery below for more screen captures.