Injustice 2: Black Manta Character (DLC) Review

The Injustice 2 Ultimate Pack grants access to the first and second of the fighter packs for DLC characters as well as all other fighter packs. The fighter packs contain an additional three characters that are added to the roster for Injustice 2 and the fighter packs can be bought separately or the fighters inside of them can be bought one at a time. The second set of three characters are Black Manta, Raiden and Hellboy. Black Manta is the first character of the fighters released for the second Fighter Pack.

Black Manta is the archenemy of Aquaman. This supervillain is most well-known for his wetsuit and bug-eyed helmet that he can shoot lasers from. His overall outfit is self-made and inspired by the look of a manta ray. Black Manta's origin story and fights with Aquaman are literally all over the place with the various stories in DC Comics from the classic comics to the New 52 storyline and DC Rebirth but he has always remained around the same in appearance.

Black Manta's appearance is very classical in Injustice 2 and he has some very awesome sound effects. He seems to be a rushdown character but could be used as a mid-range fighter as well. For special moves, he has a short-range laser blast that can be meter burned into a full screen blast, a flying tackle, rocket projectiles, a harpoon gun and a teleport uppercut. His flying tackle can be meter burned for an extra hit, his rockets can be meter burned for a second rocket, his harpoon gunshot can be meter burned to where the laser blast part will hit multiple times at the end of the move and his teleport uppercut can be meter burned to include an extra laser attack. His super move is like a variety of all his special moves ending in a multi-hitting laser shot.

Black Manta's character trait allows him to use his jet pack to hover in the air. This trait can be used in a variety of ways but it will burn through the trait meter quickly so long as the jet pack is on. Players can use the trait to instantly soar into the air and float or it can be used to hover while jumping. Once Black Manta is airborne, if you continue to hold the character trait button, you can make him hover in any direction. Letting go of the character trait button will make him descend slowly or you can tap the LT/L2 button to make him instantly fall from the sky. Black Manta can also perform his jumping attacks while hovering (this takes up extra trait meter). The amount of control that Black Manta can have over his air time is something that can definitely come in handy for zoning opponents and mind games for other opponents ' you never quite know when a Black Manta player will land from a jump.

The main flaw that I see with Black Manta is that his overall combo attacks and normal attacks don't really have that much range. His character trait is one of the most interesting traits yet if you make sure to keep an eye on the character trait meter ' it burns up very quickly with the slightest hover or hover attack. No matter what, Black Manta might have a simple design, but he is the best looking (and sounding) DLC DC character yet and he's a lot of fun to play as well.

Final Rating: 85%