The definitive Batman experience.
Batman Arkham Asylum is a very ambitious game. On the one hand you have the stealth gameplay and exploration techniques, on the other you have the beat-em-up action and problem solving abilities. These both lie on top of a very in-depth universe and compelling story. But do they all work well together? Do they live up to your expectation of what being Batman would be like?.... Absolutely!
The game begins with Batman who has apprehended Joker and is escorting him in the Batmobile to Arkham Asylum but Batman is suspicious because Joker was too easy to catch, rightfully so because as soon as Joker is in the Asylum and away from Batman's reach he manages to break free and all hell breaks loose as he begins to take over Arkham. Now Batman must venture through Arkham and fight the Joker's minions along with other classic Batman villains to find Joker and stop his evil plan.
While I was a bit sketchy about this game seeing as I never read the comic books or watched the TV shows and only saw the movies, I also feared that it would be really cartoony and childish compared to the Christopher Nolan films. But I was very wrong - not only is this dark and atmospheric, it is the greatest comic book game I've ever played. While the characters are quite cartoony it really suits the game and makes it feel like you're playing a classic Batman game while still feeling fresh and new.
While Batman is the main character and he is still bad-ass and cool, the villains are the real star of the game. All the great Batman villains are represented in this game, and while you don't fight them all, you can unlock all their bios and information about them and even a few Arkham interview tapes of the main villains in the game. This enables people like me who don't know much about the Batman canon and history learn more about it and understand why the characters do what they do and I must admit it has made Batman my new favourite comic book hero, and made the Batman fiction much more intriguing and fascinating to me. All the voice acting is top-notch with Mark Hamill as The Joker and Kevin Conroy as Batman and the rest of the cast populated by voice actors from the Batman animated TV show.
The gameplay in Batman: Arkham Asylum is truly fantastic. The beat-em-up action is simple to learn and hard to master with brilliantly coordinated combos that flow so well together and feel incredibly visceral and hard-hitting - kind of like in The Bourne Identity but not as fast. The way the fighting system works is that it is impossible to button mash through a group of enemies, because there is a constant need to counter attacks and string combos together to gain more experience (which unlocks helpful abilities) There are also some enemies that are simply immune to head on attacks later in the game. There are plenty of times where you have to fight several or more enemies in hand-to-hand combat.
And if you're not interested in being a blunt object for the length of the game it is evenly proportioned with stealth missions. Guns can kill Batman in only a few hits (depending on difficulty), so when you encounter enemies with guns in big rooms you have to take them down one by one without getting seen. That's where the detective vision mode comes in, as it give you the ability to see enemies through walls, highlights key parts of the environment that you can use and even see the targets' heartbeats. The stealth sections starts off quite easy with you only up against a few henchmen that are all spread out and with stone gargoyles littered around near the roof which you can grapple up to for an easy escape if you get seen. You can also stay up there and just swing from gargoyle to gargoyle in order to track down that one lone goon and take him out. Later on, you'll encounter smarter henchmen, and gargoyles even become booby-trapped.
What really stands out about these stealth parts is how the henchmen react to Batman taking each of them out. They start out being confident and even taunting Batman, but as soon as you start taking them out they become increasingly scared, which you can see by monitoring their heart rates. As they start to panic, they become more unpredictable and even try to group up together and block the exit. This truly makes you feel like the lurking predator that Batman would be, and the AI of the henchmen works brilliantly in that you can empathize with how scared they are. Also the Joker's commentary over the speakers in these rooms is quite funny, in how he teases the henchman and yells at them when they screw up.
Another villain you'll hear a lot from is the Riddler who has littered all these riddles and trophies all over Arkham which you have to solve/find. While the riddles aren't too hard to find and take a picture of I found it quite tricky at the start without really knowing what I was looking for. However, after I got the first few I began to understand how it works and could find the others much easier. The game rewards you with quite a bit of xp for each riddle, and they also unlock character bios and challenges. The riddles are a great addition that enhances the story mode and are really gratifying to solve while not being too simple or too hard.
Once you complete the story mode but still want more of the beat-em-up and stealth action there are plenty of challenges that you unlock during the story mode. These are split between both types of gameplay and allow you to compete with online leader boards. They use the set pieces from the story mode and raise in difficulty as you complete them. While these are great for the more competitive players, it's also good place to better your skills for story mode or if you just want to have fun without being restricted by the story. While I do enjoy the fighting challenges I kind of got burnt out with the stealth missions, particularly with the need to do them as fast as possible to get higher on the leader board. It kind of ruins the whole feel of being the stalking, calculating Batman for me. Another problem is that Joker repeats what he's already said a lot if you keep doing the challenges. Nitpicking aside these modes are great to keep you playing the game long after you've finished the story.
Visually the game looks impressive and is built upon the Unreal engine. The character models are very detailed and sharp with great facial expressions and fluid movements. Arkham Island looks fantastic as well with a very dark and gothic atmosphere and invokes a nostalgia of games like Bioshock and Resident Evil 4.
This is a must have game for all Batman fans, gamers and even for those who don't know anything about Batman as this game draws you in with its mesmerizing story, atmosphere and gameplay. You can't help but become a Batman fan once you've finished. This is the definitive Batman experience and one of the greatest comic book games of all time.
