Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League [Xbox Series X] | REVIEW

Rocksteady had a LOT to live up to following the success of their brilliant Arkham trilogy, so seeing so many negative previews for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League ahead of release was a little bit alarming. I’ve never judged a game before I’ve got to play it myself, but with so much negativity amongst players, there was no way it was going to be good… right?

Well, whilst Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League does have its share of imperfections, it still manages to stand tall thanks to some excellent storytelling, fun gunplay, and jaw-dropping visuals. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t reach the height of the Arkham series, but it’s certainly not the disaster that players might have expected it to be.

Check out some screenshots down below:

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League takes place in the Arkham-verse, but sees players exploring Superman’s home city of Metropolis instead of Gotham City. Surprisingly, it also features the same Batman from the Arkham titles alongside some of his Justice League cohorts, but they’re not the good guys in this story. Instead, they’re under the control of Brainiac, who is having them do his bidding as a means to dominate the planet. You know what that means, right? Yep, you’ve got to, uh-hum, ‘kill the Justice League’.

This is where the Suicide Squad step in, with Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and King Shark grouping together to bring them down. If you’re familiar with the history of the group, you’ll know that they don’t always work in cohesion (and the only reason they’re fighting for the ‘good guys’ is because they have a bomb in their head that’ll explode if they misbehave), but they’ll have to use every trick in the book and work as a team if they hope to take down Earth’s mightiest heroes.

I loved the storytelling of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, with the shocks and surprises it unleashes upon players making for one hell of a DC story. As a long-time fan of the comic book universe, I loved getting this unique villainous spin on the heroes (especially since most video game adaptations see you playing as them), whilst the clever writing and enticing plot beats kept me fully invested until the very end. Some might not like seeing their favourite characters portrayed in this sort of way nor will they approve of the way they get treated by the Suicide Squad, but to me, it’s one of the biggest strengths of the entire experience.

“Playing Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League with three other players on a higher difficulty is a real treat, with the mission design showcasing more of its strategic nuances when playing with friends who utilise the different skillsets and weaponry of each character.”

Players can switch between all four main characters as they play through the game, with each offering their own distinct style of play to keep the experience fresh. There’s a big focus on gunplay so you can expect to be unloading upon foes with the likes of pistols, shotguns, machine guns, heavy weapons, and sniper rifles (each character can only use specific weapons), whilst navigating from point A to B differs too – whether that’s when using Deadshot and his jetpack, Harley Quinn and her Bat Drone, or Captain Boomerang’s Speedforce Gauntlet. These may not sound like a big deal, but believe me, they really do add that spark of varied creativity to each character’s traversal that’ll quickly give players their favourite character to play as.

The gunplay is all about bullets and numbers, with players seeing the damage dealt by their attacks in real-time as their enemies’ health whittles down. The screen can fill up with enemies at times so there’s seemingly ALWAYS something to shoot, whilst you’re constantly unlocking new loot to enhance your weapon set. I never felt like I stuck with one gun for too long and their varied capabilities mean there’s always an incentive in place to switch them around, whilst there are more unique weapons that’ll unlock later on in the game that embrace different elements of the DC universe in some cool little ways. Whichever gun you’re using, gunplay always feels good and brings with it a satisfying sense of precision and oomph, especially when you’re using a loadout that suits your style of play.

Each member of the team brings with them their own abilities and perks to utilise and unlock too, with a big emphasis placed on levelling up your characters to expand their capabilities. Admittedly, there’s a run-of-the-mill choice of options in their talent tree that players would have seen a million times before in similar titles, but they do help establish a satisfying sense of progress that sees your skillset continually develop. The abilities help make each character feel unique too, though if I’m being honest, the reliance on shooting from range does means you won’t always embrace these differences. After a few hours of play, I found I was treating Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League as a third-person shooter more than anything else, with it not always feeling like I had to embrace the individual capabilities of each character to their fullest to succeed.

Check out some screenshots down below:

Where Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League does falter is with its mission variety, with a lot of repetitive tasks to be completed on your adventure. Whilst it does bring out the occasional specialised mission that really ups the tension with dramatic set-pieces as you duke it out with the Justice League or help out one of the other favourites from the DC Rogues Gallery, a lot of time is spent simply clearing groups of enemies over and over again or protecting a specific objective. It can get dull fast, and whilst the quick pace of the missions does mean that they never outstay their welcome, simply having to complete similar tasks the next time around can be tedious. It doesn’t get much better in the post-game either, though the higher difficulties do demand players to be more thoughtful and tactical with their actions. As a live service game, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League needs a varied and rewarding gameplay loop to keep players coming back for more – right now, I’m not sure if it has that.

There is one thing that saves the mission design from falling into mediocrity: the multiplayer. Playing Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League with three other players on a higher difficulty is a real treat, with the mission design showcasing more of its strategic nuances when playing with friends who utilise the different skillsets and weaponry of each character. And, of course, it’s ALWAYS satisfying to show off your character’s build and loot, especially with the more unique gear you can earn in the post-game. I’m hoping more content comes soon to keep my friends and I coming back for more, but as it stands, we’re still having plenty of fun in multiplayer together.

It looks absolutely gorgeous too, with the game REALLY demonstrating the power of current gen consoles. I’ve seen some social media posts comparing it to Arkam Knight and saying the game doesn’t look as good, but believe me, some of the landscapes and action sequences are simply phenomenal. And the character faces? I thought I wouldn’t see DC characters look better than they do in Injustice 2, but Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League takes it to the next level with so much realism and detail displayed in every emotion shown on each character’s face. Add to all of that the 60fps frame rate and you’ll quickly come to realise the game is one hell of a looker.

Developer: Rocksteady
Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Platform(s): Xbox Series X|S (Reviewed), PlayStation 5, PC
Website: https://www.suicidesquadgame.com/