Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s future is pretty uncertain. On one hand, the game recently topped the UK charts and there are at least four seasons of content in the pipeline. On the other, it’ll take more than new characters and a few new missions to get people to boot again.
Live service leaks are a dime a dozen. Thanks to datamined information, we know the DLC roster likely includes Victoria Fries, Lawless, and Deathstroke. So far, developer Rocksteady has only confirmed season one’s Elseworlds Joker.
Now, even the game itself is spoiling the upcoming line-up. Redditor ZeronityPlays posted a clip of Brainiac taunting the player controlling Harley Quinn, mistakenly referring to them as “Freeze”. It’s almost as good as from the horse’s mouth itself.
Each character has their own weapon and mode of traversal. This is no small feat, as making the movement and combat smooth is core to the gameplay. It needs to be distinct enough from others to warrant your time but integrate into the overly vertical world. Elseworlds Joker bounces around using bombs and an umbrella, and the leaks suggest Freeze will whip around like Frozone from The Incredibles.
From what we can gather from season one, each will carry their own environment, two episodes with multiple missions, and other activities, including Riddler trophies. This is where the game lives or dies, not in the characters it introduces.
Side missions are some of Suicide Squad’s weakest moments, while the story is its biggest strength. If I’m treated to more narrative with character interaction, I’d gladly boot up again. If these missions are more akin to Hack’s tasks, you can count me out.
Amping up artificial difficulty by making enemies susceptible to one type of damage is irritating at best and downright broken at worst. Shield harvesting is the most egregious example, especially when the game recommends you play with a controller. To make enemies glow blue so you can drain their shield, you need to shoot them in the legs. This is particularly hard when aggressive aim assist constantly pulls your reticle higher. I’m okay with missing shots due to my own bad aim, but fighting against the game’s own mechanics sucks.
Worse yet, completing side missions feels worthless. Gizmo’s rewards don’t impact you until you reach the endgame, even if his missions are a little more fun. Luthor and Toyman’s are primarily stat-based, and they’re so incremental you don’t necessarily feel it. And Hack’s just gives you another slot for contracts.
Focusing on main missions with meaningful rewards is the way to get people to return to the game. Otherwise, Suicide Squad seriously runs the risk of losing its player base entirely.
