“Who watches the Watchmen?” The implication of that quote, or at least the one I take from it, is that no one does and someone should. I feel the same way about the development team for Watchmen: The End is Nigh, Part 2. It seems to me like someone should’ve been paying attention to this game a bit more. Does that mean Watchmen 2 is a bad game? No…but it means that some pretty puzzling flaws are holding it back from being good or great.

Gameplay:

In an interesting change of pace, Watchmen’s gameplay is both its greatest strength and its greatest weakness. A retry on traditional beat-‘em-ups, Watchmen 2 has very smooth combat with intuitive combos that promote more than just mindless button mashing. Spamming the X button nonstop won’t work as well as timing your attacks to execute stuns, knockdowns, and area attacks. You’ll also have to constantly keep an eye out for opportunities to counterattack, as enemies can swarm mercilessly and often.

And…that’s it. The combat is incredibly fun, but surprisingly repetitive, and with only eight unique combos to last throughout the entire game. Levels are not broken up by puzzles or exploration, instead constructed as a never-ending series of sections where criminals run out and attack you. Beat everyone up, move on to the next section, and repeat until you finish the game. You can throw enemies and execute finishers, counter attack, and use character specific special moves like Rorschach’s Bull Rush or Nite Owl’s Electric Charge, but it does little to help when the characters only have two special moves a piece.

The biggest problem I consistently had was wondering where missing elements were. Why aren’t there co-operative moves like double teams? Why don’t special attacks open up more combos if the limit is set at eight? Why am I incapable of switching between Rorschach and Nite Owl in a singleplayer game? Why is there only local, splitscreen co-op play? Why can’t I play this on Xbox Live with my friends? Why aren’t there unlockable extras? Why isn’t there a more diverse counterattack system that incorporates both light and heavy attacks? Why is the only option when grappling to throw? Why can’t I grapple and use a unique grappled light attack or heavy attack instead of just tossing enemies in a direction?

The worst part is, these are all reasonable questions, not silly ones like “Why isn’t Dr. Manhattan a playable character?” or “Why can’t I unlock additional costumes for Rorschach like his prison uniform?” All of these little issues combine into a gaping, glaring problem that makes me wonder as a Watchmen fan, “What happened?”

Graphics:

It’s truly a shame considering the amount of polish that went into the game’s visuals and the game’s animations. While the collision detection and clipping is sometimes bizarrely out of place and whacky, the combat animations and subtle details like the way Rorschach walks are amazingly well done. Nite Owl’s combat is fluid and artistic, while Rorschach’s is barbaric and hateful. Effects like the lighting, textures, and shadowing are all amazing. The cut scenes are all 2D, and presented as if they were “moving” comic book panels. This adds to the charm of the game for a Watchmen fan, because it feels like a good combination of gritty realism (in game graphics) with some of the gritty art style we saw in the series (albeit with less detail). All of that said, I personally loved the way Rorschach’s mask constantly moved and flowed.

Sound:

If there is a single reason why you should overlook the confusingly unnecessary shortcomings in Watchmen 2, it is the spectacularly well done voice acting and overall sound quality of the game. The dialogue is magnificent. Not only is the voice work for Rorschach and Nite Owl fantastic, but their dialogue is perfectly appropriate. Because Rorschach was easily my favorite character from the series, I went into the game with a very scrutinizing ear when it came to his lines. Everything was as it should be, from his specific removal of certain words in his sentences (“Just watch film” instead of “Just watch the film” for example) to his “Harumph” in reply to Dan’s points that he doesn’t quite agree with, but doesn’t feel like arguing over. While I don’t want to take anything away from the performance put in by Nite Owl or Twilight Lady, it really is Rorschach who carries the game (much as he carried the comic), and if you’re a fan of the character at all, this game is worth a purchase for that alone…

Longevity:

…which is good, because if you’re looking to buy a game that will give you your money’s worth in replay value, you need to look elsewhere. Watchmen 2 will last you about three hours, which, for a game its price, is a damned joke. The game attempts to stretch itself out longer by making the achievements difficult not in skill level, but in obscurity and impracticality. This frustration is further complicated by many of the achievements being glitchy and picky about their circumstances. There are only 12 collectibles to be found, none of which unlock any additional content, and they aren’t even connected to any of the game’s achievements.

Overall:

As a Watchmen fan, it was impossible for me to not enjoy this game. For anyone else, however, there just isn’t enough substance to warrant the ridiculously overpriced cost. 1200 Microsoft Points ($15.00 / £10.20) for only three repetitive hours of gameplay just will not cut it, especially when so many fantastic alternatives exist on the marketplace that give you more bang for your buck. If the developers really crack down, add the features that shouldn’t be missing and branch out and expand on the combat more, this could be one of the best beat-‘em-up games this decade. As it is, though, you should just watch this one pass you by.