In Creation Games

Developer: Rocksteady Studios
Publisher: Eidos/Square Enix (Japan)
Platform: Xbox 360 (Version Played), PlayStation 3, PC
Genre: Action/Adventure
Players: 1
Release Date: 28th August 2009 (EU) – Consoles
18th September 2009 (EU) – PC 

There was a lot of hype surrounding Batman: Arkham Asylum before release and personally I thought it could go either way. It looked good and I wanted it to be good but pretty much every other comic book games were disappointing and weren’t anything special. I don’t think there’s ever been a Batman game worth playing. However Arkham Asylum turned out to be good, very, very good. Not just for fans of the Dark Knight himself though, even if you’re just a fan of action/adventure games there is something here for you.

Gameplay in Arkham Asylum consists of many different elements that all mix into make a very good game. It manages to get a very good combination of each one and none of them ever get boring or repetitive. The combat is very fluid and smooth and allows you to pull off a decent selection of moves. Now this isn’t in league with the likes of Ninja Gaiden but it suits the game very well. You can string together combos using one button but you can also perform counters, throws, stun attacks and takedowns. Each move can be used in combat very fluidly with next to no hesitation whatsoever. Stringing together combos can be done with various enemies and you can easily dive towards enemies to attack them and then freely switch towards others. Though the combat is a little basic, it can be quite intense when there are lots of enemies about and you want to try and keep fighting fast and keep your combo multiplayer high. Throughout the game you will be able to upgrade these moves slightly if you want and you can unlock more and make them more effective.

The stealth parts are possibly my favourite parts of the game. Batman has always been about not being seen unless absolutely necessary so hiding from enemies and then taking them down fits right in with the fact this is a Batman game. Each stealth section follows the same formula. There will be a certain amount of enemies, all equipped with guns, that you need to knock out before moving forward. You must make use of the area and your range of takedowns to do so. In most areas there are gargoyle statues high up which you can use to move about undetected. This works well in the game and I do enjoy it but you would think the guards would have the sense to look up and check if you’re there. Quite often these sections can be difficult, especially towards the end of the game but they are very satisfying. Taking out a room of enemies without been seen once just feels great. You are forced to think about the best way to takeout all the enemies. Using the gargoyles to do  “Inverted Takedowns” (Grab the guards from high up), glide kicking them, taking them down from behind or simply laying down some explosive gel are some of the many ways that you can defeat enemies.

Detective mode is very handy for the stealth section. It basically highlights all important objects and all the guards. It will show you any weak structures, any vents etc. This is very handy for when you want to take down an enemy without being caught and you need to find the best place to do so. My only problem with this is that you have it on nearly all the time. Because it is so helpful for the most part of the game (Not just the stealth parts) you will have it on quite a bit. Whenever you use it though, you don’t get to witness the amazing graphics.

The character models are superb in this. The amount of detail that has gone into the main characters has been well worth the effort. The Joker in particular looks fantastic with a very highly detailed face. The other characters generally look good too and a very well designed. Environments are also top notch. All the animations are very smooth which makes combat look great. Batman’s cape flows about whenever he moves which is a great little touch within the game.

The boss fights range from decent to amazing. The Scarecrow encounters are very good and the last one is absolutely fantastic. Definitely has been inspired by Psycho Mantis for the last encounter but it’s such an amazing part of the game. However the boss fight with Killer Croc is pathetic. The Killer Croc fight is built up for the entire game and it is very disappointing. Rather than wrestle with the giant beast that is Killer Croc, he jumps at you while you throw batarangs at his face. It really isn’t very exciting. The other bosses are in between the Scarecrow and Killer Croc.

One thing I can praise for every character in the game is the amazing voice work. Most of the voice actors are from the animated series so Batman fans will love to hear the familiar voices again. Mark Hamill does an incredible job of the Joker and really does make him fell like the psychotic villain he is. Kevin Conroy (Batman) and Arleen Sorkin (Harley Quinn) deserve a mention too for doing a great job with their characters. Even if you’re not a Batman fan you will appreciate how good the voice acting is. The dialogue, on the other hand may not appeal to non Batman fans as it there are quite a handful of cheesy one liners which Batman is known for outside the more recent films and a few of the more serious comics.  

The Asylum has been designed very well and has both a Metroid and Bioshock vibe to it. It takes the superb level design from Bioshock and despite it being a bit linear it was tremendous fun to explore. Each area is full of secrets and riddles (Courtesy of our old pal The Riddler) and thanks to the great level design it’s not boring searching for them (Though if you finish it and load it back up it feels very empty and lacks atmosphere). It takes back tracking and using new abilities and equipment to discover more areas from Metroid. Throughout the game Batman will come across quite his share of gadgets which will help you advance in the game, defeat enemies more effectively (In stealth and combat) and find more secrets. Such gadgets include explosive gel, different batarangs, bat claw (pulls down vents/weak walls) and more.

Once you are finished the 10 hour game you will still have some other stuff you can do. Challenge rooms increase replay value and are quite fun and often quite hard. These Challenge Rooms will either be stealth only or combat only and have certain objectives you can meet to get a higher score. As well as that there are the Riddler challenges which I really enjoyed collecting.

Of course the main selling point for Arkham Asylum is that you play as Batman in an actual good game that captures the whole Batman atmosphere perfectly. Batman fans should have this by now and they will love it but others will still find a great deal of enjoyment out of it and though they won’t pick up on all of the references they should still witness this fantastic game.

+ Great stealth and combat sections
+ Amazing voice acting
+ Asylum has been designed fantastically

- Some boss fights could be better

9/10