It's much more difficult now, since the overpowered counter button has been removed in place of the more finesse - oriented parry maneuver. (egmnow.com)
There is also a counter button that gives a sort of Batman-esque feel to some combat situations. (ztgd.com)
Time slows down if you counter someone correctly, giving you a second to think about what you want to do, the counter button felt like it was delayed by a second and I never seemed to get it down right. (thatvideogameblog.com)