Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

20 to 40 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Worth playing"

I could be categorised as your atypical comic book nerd. I was first introduced to Batman through a Superman comic and later was treated to the 1990's cartoon that captured the true essence of the comic like no other TV show or movie has done since. Many say that all previous Batman games have all been awful, but I'd like to state that Batman Vengeance for the PS2 sets the stage for what I encountered in a fully realised, complete game in Arkham Asylum.

In Arkham Asylum, the game opens with Batman returning the Joker to the asylum after he had broken. The Joker is impossible to read, so Batman doesn't realise until it's too late, that Joker wanted to be back. What follows are a series of twists and turns that only the crown prince of crime can truly realise. Batman must spend the duration of the game on the island that the asylum sits on, thwarting innumerable attempts by the inmates to kill him and others.

The game beautifully renders the look and feel of Gotham. Each section of Arkham Island has a different tone to it and the infusion of Riddler activities variety into the environment as well. The island is broken up into North, East and West as well as different medical buildings and a mansion. Getting into each building is a challenge in and of itself, but the flow of the game makes all this seem effortless.

Batman goes up against almost all of his rogue's gallery in one form or another. Joker is nothing if not a good leader and inspires the rest of the ne'er-do-wells to focus their energies on thwarting, and attempting to kill, Batman at every turn. Joker also employs nondescript henchmen with a variety of weapons and the combat system, which takes a little getting used to, takes advantage of what most Batman fans are familiar with; a combination of stealth and brute force while leveraging an enemy's strength as a weakness. The use of dodge can leave Batman on an incessant hit streak, if timed right.

The graphics for the backgrounds are beautifully displayed. The characters are also done well, though during battles, Batman and the people he is fighting can seem to phase through objects. The cut scenes are well done, but do show some inconsistencies.

The voice acting and story are the strongest elements to the game. The voice acting is pulled from the cast from the cartoon from the 1990's, though I wasn't sure if that was the same voice for Commissioner Gordon. Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamil work wonderfully with one another and the chemistry is captured perfectly in the game. The story of the game pulls from the pages of the comics, and is even written by one of the better known Batman scribes, Paul Dini. Having written for the animated series, Dini brings that same look and feel to the comic and brings a level of integrity that should bring peace of mind to any long-time Batman fan.

The game play is a little different than most 'hack-and-slash' games I've played. There is a certain amount of finesse. Timing the button presses is sometimes the only way to avoid taking considerable damage. Batman has a variety of tools at his disposal, each one coming in handy at different times in the game. Exploring the environment requires a new weapon to find everything. The grapple gun is augmented at various points, my favourite the ultra-bat-claw, which allows Batman to pull down walls with.

Batman Arkham Asylum is a great game in every facet of the game. The controls are fluid and match the way Batman fights, the graphics are superb, but can get choppy and the story is brought to life through stunning visuals and pitch perfect voice acting. The only detraction I can think of is there were times where I felt like the plot or story stalled and the movement around the island was purposely slowed by having to find this or that. I did find all of the 'extras' in the game, but haven't tried my hand at any of the challenge modes just yet. This is a great Batman game and one that certainly shouldn't be missed.