Games based on comic book characters--particularly comic book characters that find themselves the focal point of a Hollywood summer blockbuster--have had a bad rap since the day Batman stepped out of the big screen and into consoles.  Fortunately for us, games like Spider-Man and its far superior sequel have shown game developers that they can make a fun game and stick to the movie’s theme.  Now EA brings us Catwoman, a game based on the Warner Brothers summer blockbuster movie starring ultra hot Halle Berry.  Is this another game that joins the ranks of the amazing Spider-Man or will it simply move straight to the bargain bin with the likes of Spawn?

Based on the DC Comics character Catwoman tells the tale of Patience Phillips (the second Catwoman introduced outside the Batman series) who is a likeable yet unconfident to the point that she bows to the every whim of her boss in the Hedare Beauty Design company.  Working late in the Hedare Factory, Philips overhears a ghastly secret concerning one of their latest lines of cosmetics and is suddenly discovered by wandering henchmen.  Yet Phillips doesn’t quite escape the confines of the factory and is killed instantly and left for dead until a mysteriously supernatural Egyptian cat called Midnight resurrects her.  Patience Phillips is born anew as Catwoman--confident, sly, sexy and dangerous.

Immediately we are given a sense of how the game plays through the first level that serves as a tutorial.  We also come to see the game’s many flaws and its disappointing level design.  Catwoman is indeed a stealthy cat who struts along the game in her sexy outfit and wielding her trusty whip.  She is able to leap with grace and crawl across the floor on all fours with agile swiftness.  Her sharp claws are able to sink into concrete so she could crawl up walls and thanks to her feline reflexes she can swing on poles like a true acrobat.  She also possesses Cat Senses that come in handy rather well throughout the game.  For example, Catwoman can track her “prey” through keen cat-like eyesight that allows her to see footprints left behind by the enemy. 

The game’s levels also encourage players to perform objective tasks centered on Catwoman’s various feline skills.  Her moves range from Wild Cat (knock an enemy into certain environmental objects), Alley Cat (get out of an area using agility), Pussy Cat (strike a super model-like pose or taunt your foe) and Scaredy Cat (attack a frightened enemy).  These objectives aren’t hard to execute even when the game asks to perform the task multiple times since there are different ways of executing each move.  To top it all off, executing each move earns you points to purchase new moves and abilities such as Smell Fear (you can literally pick up the scent of fear and pick out the weakest enemy).  There’s even Domination mode much like the Spider Senses in Spider-Man 2 that is used to enhance Catwoman’s abilities for a limited time.

Catwoman’s fighting skills mimics those seen in the movie and that means plenty of tricks using her whip (she can wrap her whip around an enemy’s neck and spin him like a top) as well as acrobatic hand-to-hand combos.  Catwoman knows an urban-styled version of the Brazilian martial arts known as Capoeira that has her using her hands and feet gracefully.  She could even kick an enemy into another enemy or into environmental objects such as dumpsters or trashcans.  Unfortunately, all of this is executed very poorly and this brings us to the game’s various faults.

The game’s combat controls are awkward and make fighting rather difficult.  Often times Catwoman isn’t able to position herself quickly enough to face an enemy and this results in Catwoman kicking or whipping nothing but air.  There is a targeting system but it doesn’t really help. This would have been more aggravating had the enemies been a lot smarter.  Enemies don’t pose much of a threat and this is due to unintelligent AI.  Making matters worse, the camera doesn’t help and, in fact, hinders your progress.  The game’s levels aren’t great either but this is mostly because the story is as dull as the movie itself.

The game’s graphics, however, is where the game truly excels.  Catwoman does indeed look a lot like Halle Berry and she looks very good in her Catwoman getup (oh my does she ever).  She is, though, the only character that really looks like her real life counterpart since the characters played by Benjamin Brat and Sharon Stone in the movie look nothing like their characters in the game.  Still, Catwoman is good to look at throughout the game whether it is through cinematic cut scene or during the game’s action sequences.  The environments, although a bit on the plain side, are decent enough.

Sound-wise, Catwoman showcases a more than decent score that plays throughout the game quite nicely and some sound effects that could have been emphasized a little more to go with the environments.  For example, in the alley during the game’s second level, Catwoman struts around in the alley looking for Midnight the Cat and all you really hear is chirping crickets and the distant meow of Midnight.  There’s not even the sound of distant traffic.  The voice acting isn’t bad, although it isn’t quite good either.  While Halle Berry does lend her voice to Catwoman, much of her dialogue is sparse and the lines aren’t very witty. 

Catwoman is a game that could have risen beyond the film’s bland story and weak characterization but sadly the game just doesn’t do that.  Thanks to its many glaring flaws such as awful camera and awkward combat controls, Catwoman isn’t much fun to play even with the cool feline abilities.  Even its beautiful visuals aren’t able to save this one.  This one is a rental for sure but if you like the thought of controlling a wonderfully rendered Halle Berry, buy this one when it finds itself in the bargain bin. 

Gameplay: 5.0
Catwoman comes complete with Cat Senses and agile feline abilities that would have been incredibly fun to unleash but alas this isn’t possible due to its awful controls.  This is too bad, really, since Catwoman has a handy whip that can slap a gun off the hands of enemies but the jerky controls make this feat nearly impossible.  Catwoman is also skilled in her own style of Capoeira with plenty of neat little combos but there is no real challenge found in this game to begin with. 

Graphics: 8.0
Visually, Catwoman is a strikingly beautiful game with its main character looking as sharp and curvaceously rendered to perfection.  Catwoman looks a lot like Halle Berry and this is a very good thing since the game is able to make the character look good not only in cut scenes but all throughout the game.  The other characters aren’t bad too look at either and the environments are not bad at all.

Sound: 7.0
The score is actually quite good throughout the game and it fits the game somewhat good enough but the rest of the game’s sound just isn’t able to compliment the game’s visuals.  The sound effects are stifled by the music and much of the game’s dialogue isn’t that good despite the decent voice acting. 

Difficulty: Medium
Catwoman is delightfully agile and her movements reflect the grace of a cat even while she’s battling against multiple enemies.  She’s got a whip and a fighting style that would make a Brazilian proud but all of this just doesn’t really matter since the enemies aren’t intelligent enough to be a real threat . . . even the ones with guns aren’t menacing enough.  The real challenges come from escaping certain situations by climbing up walls or swinging from poles.

Concept: 5.0
Catwoman is an interesting character but the awfully dull storyline of the film version makes the game version slightly more appealing . . . but not by very much.  There are some items to collect and objectives to complete but you are still forced on a linear path.  You earn points here by collecting Catwoman’s favorite treasure, diamonds, and performing moves in any of the different moves.  These points allow you to purchase new moves and abilities or comic book pages.

Overall: 5.5
Catwoman is a flawed experience from beginning to end and this is quite unfortunate since she’s an interesting character with all the right moves.  Yet the bothersome camera and awful combat controls just make this a bad game with very little to offer action fans that love this comic book favorite.  If you’re a fan of the character, a rental is in order, otherwise stay away from this one.