Why you can play the new game ‘Suicide Squad’, but you absolutely don’t have to

When it was announced that video game developer Rocksteady would be returning to the DC universe, fans’ hearts soared. With the game series ‘Arkham’, the British studio not only showed what a real Batman softening should feel like, but also allowed us to dive deep into the DC universe. With great attention to detail, the gaming community has been blessed and pampered for years. The hope was high that we would now be able to immerse ourselves in such a pop culture festival again. But somehow everything turned out very differently…

Looking for context

The first minutes of the game are already a symbolic reminder of what will happen in the coming hours: without meaning or context, four unrelated anti-heroes are thrown into a harsh world. We briefly take on the role of four game characters in a row and within a very short time we are overwhelmed by control options that we are happy with if we can remember even one of them correctly.

Then a minutes-long shooting festival begins, which again seems contextless and stupid and leaves us perplexed. We jump, fly, drag ourselves from battle to battle and take out everything in our way. Then there’s a hard cut and a flashback begins, finally giving us some information along the way.

The not-fantastic four

Anyone familiar with the DC comic world has long known the story that is now raining down on us in video game form: the more or less well-known super villains Deadshot, Harley Quinn, King Shark and Captain Boomerang involuntarily become one secret task force to clean up Metropolis .

The alien superpower Brainiac has not only attacked the city with enormous fighting machines, but has also transformed its inhabitants into hostile, rather aggressive creatures. So there is pure chaos in the city, and on top of that, almost all members of the superhero organization Justice League have been brought under alien control. And because the four evil warriors have been given a bomb implant, they now have to follow orders from the top.

And the marmot greets you every day

So we choose our character of choice and get started. Of course, we can switch between characters at any time. Because there are different skills and weapons between joker sidekick Harley, joker Boomerang, weapons expert Deadshot and animal man Shark, which can be built and expanded over the course of the game if you want to get involved in this one game. However, there is hardly a major difference in gameplay between the characters.

We jump from mission to mission and basically always do the same thing: we collect data, find people, destroy alien posts, find an illustrious villain, collect some data somewhere, destroy another machine and shoot our way through the ruined Metropolis. As a reward there is always a nice meeting with well-known characters from the DC universe, and really stylish cutscenes take us further in the story.

Minor highlights aside from the game mechanics

This simple, boring, and always the same game structure can create a quirky appeal and fascinate for ten to fifteen hours, as long as expectations are greatly lowered. Technically the game is certainly not bad. On the other hand, the work has just become incredibly loveless. “Suicide Squad” certainly has its great moments, but almost all of them take place when we’re not active. Because there are some very good jokes, especially in the cutscenes, the characters are finally allowed to develop there, get their deserved space and move the superficial story forward.

In the cutscenes, the video game really pulses at full speed and the spirit of Rocksteady finally comes to the fore. Here we see the attention to detail, the enthusiasm for the characters and the world they move in, and the desire to conjure up a great video game. But as soon as the active part starts again, everything falls apart and the stupidity continues. Even when the Easter eggs are laid, you just shrug your shoulders and wonder who passed them on. And the end of the game, i.e. the last part, is quite brutal and causes a lot of head shaking in front of the screen.

Sadly, the good old rocksteady days are over

Conclusion: I was really looking forward to this video game and was excited to see what the creativity and DC love Rocksteady would bring back here. I ignored my initial doubts and gave in to the game. But after the first few minutes I was empty inside. While I was impressed by some of the cutscenes and some really good and funny dialogue, the motivation disappeared once I got back into the active game world.

“Suicide Squad” repeats itself, shamelessly selling me the same things over and over again and trying to lure me in with bells and whistles that I just don’t want. The constant push for upgrades and hints that I can buy these and other weapons to get started just got annoying.

If you look at it soberly, we have a third-person shooter that is technically absolutely satisfying and, thanks to its stupidity, certainly finds its audience. But the DC fan still shakes his head and is amazed at how uninspiredly such a good template can be implemented. The loveless open world also leaves you perplexed and stupid and reminds us nostalgically of the good old rocksteady days. But unfortunately this is definitely over and has become a pure relic of gaming culture.

“Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League” is available for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC. Approved for children aged 18 and over.