Now, I've never really been one to be swept up in the hype of Batman, but I will admit he is one of the more interesting characters in comic books - the sort of nerds who assert he 'could beat God with enough prep-time' are entirely missing the point of Batman. It is not his mad kung fu skills that make him awesome, nor is it his stunning detective skills. Someone who wins every fight and solves every puzzle is a boring character. It is Batmans limitations, the fact that he is a flesh and blood man who could at any moment be fatally shot, that makes him interesting. The psychology of a man who would devote his entire life to destroying crime, that's interesting to explore in a narrative. His solo books are always better reads than the JLA books because the writer doesn't have to artifically pump him up to be able to operate on the same level as Superman, Wonder Woman or Green Lantern - and in the solo texts you have enough time to properly delve into his psyche. In short, Batman works best on his own - despite the occasional sidekick that seems to hang around him.
With that in mind, Arkham Asylum is probably one of the best Batman games possible. It gives the Dark Knight the lead role, setting out not only to hit you with bombastic action but also to explore the disturbed psychology of the world in which Batman operates. The game opens following Batman's latest battle with his archnemesis, the Joker (voiced by Luke Skywalker, aka Mark Hamil) Bats is taking the slightly bruised supervillain to the Arkham Asylum For The Criminally Insane, a high security facility that caters to the worst Gotham has to offer. The introductory credits play as we escort a shackled Joker into the heart of the asylum, only to see him pull off his inevitable escape. The Joker was, in fact, planning to get caught in order to pull off his REAL plan, manipulating Batman to put the Joker right where he wanted to be. The asylum begins to be overrun by the inmates and Batman finds himself rapidly becoming the only hope for Arkham - and for Gotham.
It's sad to say that the story is probably the weakest point of Arkham Asylum, with a very simple narrative and not much in the way of a memorable cast of characters. Batman is supported by a few disposable guards, Comissioner Gordon (albeit briefly) and ex-Batgirl turned hacker extraordinaire Oracle - who appears only as a voice in Batman's ear. They all go about their roles very flatly, although that probably makes sense for Batman; after all, this has to be the hundredth time he's done this dance with the Joker. All the other characters are largely reduced to a few lines of text in the Biography section, since the game focuses more on the psychology of Batman himself. Fertile ground, but already well worn in my opinion.
Mark Hamil has been the Joker for a long time, and he fits the role very well. His high pitched, insane cackles penetrate through all reaches of the island, carried on the intercom system. He is a constant foil to Batman, watching through every camera and in contact with each and every goon. The relationship between the two could have done with a little more exploration, but not without risking going over turf already covered by Heath Ledger. However, he makes a terrible end boss, for reasons I think I will let you see for yourself. The Scarecrow makes for an excellent antagonist throughout, occasionally inducing mind-bending hallucinations through his patented Fear Gas. These sections really have to be seen to believed, providing an introspective look into the inner workings of the Batman while simultaneously fighting not merely for his physical safety but his very sanity.
The titular asylum is on an island in Gotham Bay, and is a location you are relatively free to explore at your own pace. It's not quite deserving of the title 'sandbox' due to the relatively small size and linearity of the corridors, coupled with the necessary acquisition of various Bat-gadgets to access large chunks of the island. Despite the pretentions to sandbox status, the enviroments are created with excellent atmosphere and littered with little clues and references to Batman canon, which you can collect and take pictures of as part of a Riddler sub-plot. One does wonder why there were so many gargoyles about the place, though...
Combat is an interesting mechanic here, and you might be interested to know that it was actually originally designed as a rythym game. The balletic combo encourages combos, but is deceptively simple. There is one attack button, one for counter attacks and one for a stun-inducing sweep of the cape. By chaining these together, you can increase the damage your attacks do and unlock more powerful takedown moves. Time it properly and watch Batman unleash a chain of wince-inducing, bone shattering strikes and blows upon these hapless thugs, easily vanquishing a room full of assailants and turning hardened murderers into wimpering balls of pain. Time it wrong and.. watch Bats get a pipe to the head. However, this is only against one enemy type (admittedly the most common) and against others, the result is.. less spectacular. To beat big enemies like Bane and Killer Croc, you side step their charges and hit them with Batarangs; mental patients are really just Quick Time Events with faces and Poison Ivy's plants force you to be stealthy in really inconvenient places. I'm all for variety, but not when you're varying from good stuff to bad stuff.
Stealth has always been a problematic genre for me, and as a result I've never gotten into franchises like Splinter Cell or Metal Gear Solid. Hanging around waiting for something to happen is not fun gameplay to me, nor is being sent to a "Fission Mailed!" screen for being spotted by a guy who was off screen. But the stealth elements in Arkham Asylum actually really appealed to me. There are moments when you encounter goons who have been able to get hands on the guards' firearms and hence you cannot take them down with your awesome kung fu. Batman is not bulletproof and it only takes a few bullets to take him down for good, thus forcing the player into the brilliant Predator Mode. Sticking to the shadows, and to the gargoyles, the player must use Batmans gadgets and skills to pick off the armed thugs one by one, and things only get more interesting when said goons are fitted with 'suicide collars' - devices that make a lot of noise when the goon is brought down, forcing you to flee before everyone in the room flocks to your position. And when they start putting explosives on the gargoyles...
One of the reasons Batman might be difficult to make a game for is this; how do you represent his unparalelled intellect and detective skills? Your players are highly unlikely to be as intelligent or skilled at criminal detection as the protagonist, so how exactly do you accurately represent these talents without either dumbing down the game or creating infuriating and impossible-to-notice details? Arkham Asylum attempts to represent it with Detective Vision; one press of a button and the world goes all ultra-violet, highlighting goons, enviromental features and other such details. In a few sections, it is used to pick up on some disbelief-suspension buggering forensic details required to track characters across the island - following a traitorous guard by the whiskey on his breath, for example. It's so useful that there are only two reasons to turn it off; the first is that it makes combat a little more difficult, since you can't judge as well when to counter, and the second is that in Predator mode, it messes with your depth perception to be able to see someone through two floors.
I mentioned earlier about the Riddler leaving puzzles and collectibles around the island, which is pretty much the only offering Arkham Asylum makes to after-game play. These range from actual riddles (none of which are actually taxing) to finding items (made easy by Detective Vision and the right gadgets) and.. uh, breaking wind-up teeth with Batarangs? Other than the occasional nod to the fans through references to figures such as Catwoman, Mr Freeze or Prometheus, these are only worth doing for the XP they offer. This is one of the game's other failings, in that there is very little to offer outside of the main product. Most of the collectibles can be found and solved before you reach the end boss, meaning you don't really need to play after the credits. The linear story and level design mean that there is no real way to play it differently a second time; perhaps making the distinction between 'action section' and 'stealth section' a little less black and white would result in potential for different play styles. And, finally, after the credits Arkham Island is empty save for Batman, meaning there is nothing to do but exlpore, other than take advantage of a Challenge mode, in which one can engage in fights or Predator segments and gain medals for getting enough points or meeting certain criteria.
All griping aside, Batman: Arkham Asylum is easily one of the best gaming experiences of the current year, despite a few questionable decisions. The combat is consistently entertaining and the atmosphere ever sinister. On a second playthrough, the Scarecrow sections are something to really look forward to, and the game as a whole really does try to challenge the player as far as possible. At once, you feel like a "Big Damn Hero" kung fu badass, a very vincible man and a stalking monster of the shadows. The combat is a classic example of "easy to learn, hard to master" and the Challenge mode combat sections are a good training session if nothing else.
A definite buy for fans and non-fans of the Bat alike.
With that in mind, Arkham Asylum is probably one of the best Batman games possible. It gives the Dark Knight the lead role, setting out not only to hit you with bombastic action but also to explore the disturbed psychology of the world in which Batman operates. The game opens following Batman's latest battle with his archnemesis, the Joker (voiced by Luke Skywalker, aka Mark Hamil) Bats is taking the slightly bruised supervillain to the Arkham Asylum For The Criminally Insane, a high security facility that caters to the worst Gotham has to offer. The introductory credits play as we escort a shackled Joker into the heart of the asylum, only to see him pull off his inevitable escape. The Joker was, in fact, planning to get caught in order to pull off his REAL plan, manipulating Batman to put the Joker right where he wanted to be. The asylum begins to be overrun by the inmates and Batman finds himself rapidly becoming the only hope for Arkham - and for Gotham.
It's sad to say that the story is probably the weakest point of Arkham Asylum, with a very simple narrative and not much in the way of a memorable cast of characters. Batman is supported by a few disposable guards, Comissioner Gordon (albeit briefly) and ex-Batgirl turned hacker extraordinaire Oracle - who appears only as a voice in Batman's ear. They all go about their roles very flatly, although that probably makes sense for Batman; after all, this has to be the hundredth time he's done this dance with the Joker. All the other characters are largely reduced to a few lines of text in the Biography section, since the game focuses more on the psychology of Batman himself. Fertile ground, but already well worn in my opinion.
Mark Hamil has been the Joker for a long time, and he fits the role very well. His high pitched, insane cackles penetrate through all reaches of the island, carried on the intercom system. He is a constant foil to Batman, watching through every camera and in contact with each and every goon. The relationship between the two could have done with a little more exploration, but not without risking going over turf already covered by Heath Ledger. However, he makes a terrible end boss, for reasons I think I will let you see for yourself. The Scarecrow makes for an excellent antagonist throughout, occasionally inducing mind-bending hallucinations through his patented Fear Gas. These sections really have to be seen to believed, providing an introspective look into the inner workings of the Batman while simultaneously fighting not merely for his physical safety but his very sanity.
The titular asylum is on an island in Gotham Bay, and is a location you are relatively free to explore at your own pace. It's not quite deserving of the title 'sandbox' due to the relatively small size and linearity of the corridors, coupled with the necessary acquisition of various Bat-gadgets to access large chunks of the island. Despite the pretentions to sandbox status, the enviroments are created with excellent atmosphere and littered with little clues and references to Batman canon, which you can collect and take pictures of as part of a Riddler sub-plot. One does wonder why there were so many gargoyles about the place, though...
Combat is an interesting mechanic here, and you might be interested to know that it was actually originally designed as a rythym game. The balletic combo encourages combos, but is deceptively simple. There is one attack button, one for counter attacks and one for a stun-inducing sweep of the cape. By chaining these together, you can increase the damage your attacks do and unlock more powerful takedown moves. Time it properly and watch Batman unleash a chain of wince-inducing, bone shattering strikes and blows upon these hapless thugs, easily vanquishing a room full of assailants and turning hardened murderers into wimpering balls of pain. Time it wrong and.. watch Bats get a pipe to the head. However, this is only against one enemy type (admittedly the most common) and against others, the result is.. less spectacular. To beat big enemies like Bane and Killer Croc, you side step their charges and hit them with Batarangs; mental patients are really just Quick Time Events with faces and Poison Ivy's plants force you to be stealthy in really inconvenient places. I'm all for variety, but not when you're varying from good stuff to bad stuff.
Stealth has always been a problematic genre for me, and as a result I've never gotten into franchises like Splinter Cell or Metal Gear Solid. Hanging around waiting for something to happen is not fun gameplay to me, nor is being sent to a "Fission Mailed!" screen for being spotted by a guy who was off screen. But the stealth elements in Arkham Asylum actually really appealed to me. There are moments when you encounter goons who have been able to get hands on the guards' firearms and hence you cannot take them down with your awesome kung fu. Batman is not bulletproof and it only takes a few bullets to take him down for good, thus forcing the player into the brilliant Predator Mode. Sticking to the shadows, and to the gargoyles, the player must use Batmans gadgets and skills to pick off the armed thugs one by one, and things only get more interesting when said goons are fitted with 'suicide collars' - devices that make a lot of noise when the goon is brought down, forcing you to flee before everyone in the room flocks to your position. And when they start putting explosives on the gargoyles...
One of the reasons Batman might be difficult to make a game for is this; how do you represent his unparalelled intellect and detective skills? Your players are highly unlikely to be as intelligent or skilled at criminal detection as the protagonist, so how exactly do you accurately represent these talents without either dumbing down the game or creating infuriating and impossible-to-notice details? Arkham Asylum attempts to represent it with Detective Vision; one press of a button and the world goes all ultra-violet, highlighting goons, enviromental features and other such details. In a few sections, it is used to pick up on some disbelief-suspension buggering forensic details required to track characters across the island - following a traitorous guard by the whiskey on his breath, for example. It's so useful that there are only two reasons to turn it off; the first is that it makes combat a little more difficult, since you can't judge as well when to counter, and the second is that in Predator mode, it messes with your depth perception to be able to see someone through two floors.
I mentioned earlier about the Riddler leaving puzzles and collectibles around the island, which is pretty much the only offering Arkham Asylum makes to after-game play. These range from actual riddles (none of which are actually taxing) to finding items (made easy by Detective Vision and the right gadgets) and.. uh, breaking wind-up teeth with Batarangs? Other than the occasional nod to the fans through references to figures such as Catwoman, Mr Freeze or Prometheus, these are only worth doing for the XP they offer. This is one of the game's other failings, in that there is very little to offer outside of the main product. Most of the collectibles can be found and solved before you reach the end boss, meaning you don't really need to play after the credits. The linear story and level design mean that there is no real way to play it differently a second time; perhaps making the distinction between 'action section' and 'stealth section' a little less black and white would result in potential for different play styles. And, finally, after the credits Arkham Island is empty save for Batman, meaning there is nothing to do but exlpore, other than take advantage of a Challenge mode, in which one can engage in fights or Predator segments and gain medals for getting enough points or meeting certain criteria.
All griping aside, Batman: Arkham Asylum is easily one of the best gaming experiences of the current year, despite a few questionable decisions. The combat is consistently entertaining and the atmosphere ever sinister. On a second playthrough, the Scarecrow sections are something to really look forward to, and the game as a whole really does try to challenge the player as far as possible. At once, you feel like a "Big Damn Hero" kung fu badass, a very vincible man and a stalking monster of the shadows. The combat is a classic example of "easy to learn, hard to master" and the Challenge mode combat sections are a good training session if nothing else.
A definite buy for fans and non-fans of the Bat alike.