I haven't played the game yet but it seems like the majority of those who have played the game really enjoy it (PC problems aside). At Giantbomb specifically, Jeff seems to be the most cynical about it. The others seem to really like it. I think the fear among a lot of people is that WB will continue making similar batman games and it will become call of duty-esqe.

I'm a huge Batman nerd, so i'm sorta biased. I could and would play annual iterations. I love the series.

City was the worst in the series and I still liked it a lot. I can understand why people are getting tired of it, but If you look at the current market of games, most games are either similar in style or sequels.

I personally can't understand why people still play MGS and yet...there is still another half? game coming out this year.

For me they don't change it up enough. I played the first 2 and haven't seen anything in the second two that make me think they're that different. If I want a batman fix I'll read a comic. I will never be able to play all the games that I want to so why should I play a game that is so similar to one's I've already completed?

But that's just my opinion, if you really enjoy these games and would play one every year, good for you, enjoy your self :) . But it doesn't take that much imagination to see how some people are burnt out on this franchise already.

4 bi-annual games plus spin-offs is a LOT of games. I think the reality is that, in the crank-them-out-until-people-can't-stand-it-anymore world of modern game design, you will know when people are done when they puke. There's never going to be a polite, "no thanks". People are going to enjoy a game until they suddenly turn on a dime and throw it under the bus.

This is what I was exactly referring to and it is exactly how Assasin's Creed has evolved especially from 3 up. I listed Brotherhood and Revelations as you can see the iterations beginning there but AC3 is really where the series hits it's stride. Like I said it isn't exactly a 1:1 Batman but you can definitely see the influence from Batman's combat creeping in. Not to mention the list of combat items you can use in combat (smoke bombs, guns, darts, etc) all act in a similar fashion as well.