So yeah I'm around the part where you just breakout out of the prison and see the island for the first time. The combat is ok in my opinion and the characters are probably what are keeping me playing not the gameplay.  So my question is, does it get better? I mean all I have done so far i either just walk up behind dudes and press triangle or just mash square and do a few throws.  Feels a bit 'meh' to me. But hopefully it gets better, it does get better.....Right?

I don' really understand how you can judge a game having "just" started it. But yes, it does get better once you start having better gadgets and you start roaming around more diverse settings. The game is amazing from start to finish if you ask me, though.

I didn't get it at first either. I stopped playing and then came back months later. I played straight through without stopping.

I agree with Joey.

To the OP, though, yes- stick with it. It gets better. Only disappointment will be a couple boss battles but for me that doesn't ruin the overall package.

Keep playing it should eventually hit you like a 500Ib gorilla!!

i guess you haven't gotten to the Scarecrow part :)

It's basically a small-ish Metroid game, but with awesome combat, stealth sequences, a great story, and RPG elements. Also, it features what I think is the coolest sequence that I have ever seen in a game. Those who have played it probably know which part I'm referring to.

Everyone after me will probably call me an idiot for saying so, they always do, but I doubt it will get any better. I was the same way as you, and I really didn't care for the gameplay at all. If the combat is not doing anything for you now, then I doubt it will later. They just add in couple extra enemy types that make you juggle a few more combo buttons, and that's about it. The rest of the game is just a shit ton of that, and some rather lack luster stealth moments that are pretty much just grapple statue, wait, move to another one, wait, move to another, wait, rinse and repeat.

I just finished it for the first time.  My favorite part were the spirit of arkham collectables.  I liked the game, but I didn't think it was awesome.  Combat was pretty repetitive, and the boss battles sucked.  Croc and Ivy were awful, and it's all just rule of three.

Actually as soon as I started it, I was enthralled. It was just such a good game and the combat is so fun to just flip around and elbow dudes in the face.

" I didn't get it at first either. I stopped playing and then came back months later. I played straight through without stopping. "

The combat is pretty good, but I didn't get far because I hate stealth.

I have a completely different opinion about the game play

While I don't think the game is as amazing as so many made it out to be, it's still a great game. I was similar to you in that I didn't understand why people loved the game as much as they did and stopped playing for a while, but came back it after almost a year and really enjoyed the rest of the game.

It was good game, but tI didn't feel special, just competent.

I find it way more fun on the hardest difficulty, that way you have to strike perfectly in battle, but when you do YOU'RE THE FUCKING BATMAN

So i got dis one game and it was all like, "press start" and i was all like, "pfff, fuck this shit game".

" Actually as soon as I started it, I was enthralled. It was just such a good game and the combat is so fun to just flip around and elbow dudes in the face. "

" I find it way more fun on the hardest difficulty, that way you have to strike perfectly in battle, but when you do YOU'RE THE FUCKING BATMAN "

" Everyone after me will probably call me an idiot for saying so, they always do, but I doubt it will get any better. I was the same way as you, and I really didn't care for the gameplay at all. If the combat is not doing anything for you now, then I doubt it will later. They just add in couple extra enemy types that make you juggle a few more combo buttons, and that's about it. The rest of the game is just a shit ton of that, and some rather lack luster stealth moments that are pretty much just grapple statue, wait, move to another one, wait, move to another, wait, rinse and repeat.

The only thing I liked about the game was the characters and the story, but the gameplay was just not fun at all. Oh, and if you are like me and you hate back tracking, then this game is not for you. It's basically the Metroid style thing where you run through the same place 50 times, and every tenth time you get some new item that lets you do one thing you couldn't the last time you ran through it.

I would give it to at least the first fight with the Joker or the Bane fight before giving up on it. It may hook you down the road. It never did for me though, which is a shame because I was really enjoying everything about the game except the gameplay.

"

If you don't like the basic combo system at the beginning then you probably won't be enthralled by the rest of the game either.  I loved it from the beginning, but I can't say that it transforms into something else completely, it just slowly builds on itself.

" @imsh_pl said:

" I find it way more fun on the hardest difficulty, that way you have to strike perfectly in battle, but when you do YOU'RE THE FUCKING BATMAN "

Freeflow Perfection. Now that is a nice Achievement to get. "

I got about half-way through and I couldn't get myself to keep playing. The game is fine but nothing really grabbed me. The voice acting is pretty good but that isn't enough to get me to finish it.

I am 65% through the game at the moment and am loving it. I played the demo and was a bit meh as well but the further you get into the game the better it gets. The fighting is very satisfying but the greatest thrill are the setpieces where you have to take down a room full of armed dudes without being caught. There is a later one where all the gargoiles have been mined so you have to creep in and out of ducts and pop out of the floor etc. Completing that properly makes you feel like an utter badass.  Also it finds a way to fit a lot of great batman villans into the story with out feeling over-done and Mark Hamil's Joker is superb.

I remember seeing the logos in the intro and I hated the game, my god it sucked.

I thought it was good, not great.  I loved the combat mechanics, yet every fight felt still unsatifying.  Unsatisfying because: It was a given you would win each fight pretty much however badly you played, getting a good multiplier was something to aim for but ultimately pointless, and losing your multiplier was just annoying even though it didn't really matter.

The whole 'play well = more XP' thing is practically impossible to pull off well in a game like this because it totally fucks up the balance.  It makes the game harder for people who are already sucking, and makes the game easier for those who are already doing well.  The alternative is to make the system so toothless that it might as well not exist at all, or just make the game really easy the whole way though. 

I hope they take a look at the optional '100%' stuff from AC:Brotherhood and go more in that direction. ie.  relatively easy to just get through the game, but quite challenging to get through the 'proper' way.  Give the player the opportunity to tailor the experience to their taste.

" So yeah I'm around the part where you just breakout out of the prison and see the island for the first time. The combat is ok in my opinion and the characters are probably what are keeping me playing not the gameplay.  So my question is, does it get better? I mean all I have done so far i either just walk up behind dudes and press triangle or just mash square and do a few throws.  Feels a bit 'meh' to me. But hopefully it gets better, it does get better.....Right? "

No one said jumping on the bandwagon was going to be fun

Yea I probably  have too high expectations for the game. I'm sure it will capture my imagination soon enough though.  

it was cool but certainly not GOTY. no fucking way. 

"Hack n slash is better in bayonetta and god of war than in Arkham, sneaking is better in games focusing on it."

I just pressed "New Game" on Half-Life 2 for the first time... don't see what all the fuss is about. The intro movie is really average. This is obviously not the best game ever made.

" I don' really understand how you can judge a game having "just" started it. But yes, it does get better once you start having better gadgets and you start roaming around more diverse settings. The game is amazing from start to finish if you ask me, though. "

I was loving it from the first sequence where you was walking Joker into the asylum but I am a huge batman fan.

It's definitely one of the best games of 2009. It starts out kinda slow, but quickly turns into a Metroid-style brawler once you get all your gadgets and the enemies get a little more challenging.

So... you've played like 5 minutes?

" @floodiastus said:

"Hack n slash is better in bayonetta and god of war than in Arkham, sneaking is better in games focusing on it."

I think you may be missunderstanding the combat system. It's not meant to be a "hack-n-slash" style like Bayonetta's by any means. Nothing farther than that. It's much more tactical and precise. If you try to button-mash your way through the game, you'll fail miserably. It's all about timing. Maybe the stealth parts are better in other games, but that doesn't mean it's not good in AA.Really, I don't understand how you could ever classify AA's combat as "hack-n-slash". "

Batman is not a fussy guy. So it makes sense.

BATMAN!

" @JoeyRavn said:

" @imsh_pl said:

" I find it way more fun on the hardest difficulty, that way you have to strike perfectly in battle, but when you do YOU'RE THE FUCKING BATMAN "

Freeflow Perfection. Now that is a nice Achievement to get. "

Agreed, the AA platinum trophy was propably my most satisfying one yet. "

" I don' really understand how you can judge a game having "just" started it. But yes, it does get better once you start having better gadgets and you start roaming around more diverse settings. The game is amazing from start to finish if you ask me, though. "

" So i got dis one game and it was all like, "press start" and i was all like, "pfff, fuck this shit game". "

" The combat is pretty good, but I didn't get far because I hate stealth. "

I'm not even gonna read the OP or the rest of the thread (right now anyways).

That game was amazing from start to finish.

If someone's even plays an hour of Arkham Asylum and doesn't get it, I don't get it.

Keep playing, I think it does start getting better esp. when the bat tech starts coming in & upgrading it.

I played it even though I fucking hate Batman.

At first I was like "Man I fucking hate Batman why the fuck am I playing this?"

But then I was like "Ho shit yeah I am punching these dudes and fuckin exploding foam and god damn yeah stealth takedowns like a motherfucker this game is pretty god damn alright"


But I still fucking hate Batman.

I found the combat and general feel of the game fantastic from the moment i tried the demo, to the last challenge room. I think if you don't like it now, there's a chance you never will. But this thread says otherwise so pfft

It gets way better. Just wait 'till you get the explosive gel.