Female characters can jump higher, certain characters have immunity to slime or poison, some can mind-control, and so on. By the time Batman and Robin are on the scene, most of the best stuff has already happened.Īdditionally, the villain levels feel less forced since you're constantly given new characters with unique abilities, instead of relying on special supersuits for Batman and Robin.
It's the difference between watching a police chase after a robbery as opposed to seeing the entire heist from the inside. One Joker level set atop a rollercoaster track is vastly superior to just about any of the Batman levels. For the most part, Batman and Robin just beat up thugs and solve puzzles in a race to the end-of-chapter boss battle, while the villains get to do far more interesting stuff, like smashing through police barricades with giant robots, remotely controlling a police chopper and crashing it through the front door of a bank, etc. In fact, the villain missions turn out to be far more interesting and entertaining than the hero ones. They're almost completely brand-new levels and puzzles, only occasionally crossing areas seen in their "hero" counterparts. However, don't be tricked into thinking that these are recycled maps. Story-wise, they're the same three episodes focused on the Riddler, Penguin and Joker, just retold from the villains' perspective. The other major shakeup to the usual formula is the addition of 15 "villain" missions to complement the 15 "hero" missions you play as Batman and Robin.