It has almost been a week since Batman Arkham Asylum has been released and hype has taken over this game. Guinness has dubbed it the best reviewed superhero game of all time and the game’s Metacritic score is very generous. Being that I consider myself a die hard fan of both Batman and stealth action games, if this game can please me then it has to be awesome. So does the game meet the credentials as the best Batman game of all time or does it fall into the same abyss that George Clooney’s bat-nipples were banished to by millions of bat-fans?
This game is the shit that I have been waiting for my whole life. Jim Lee’s Batman design? check. Voice overs from the cast of Batman the Animated Series? check. Totally awesome-sauce gameplay that makes you feel like the Dark Knight? check, check, and check. Batman Arkham Asylum is a bat-fan’s greatest dream come true in a video game. Rocksteady games and Eidos (I know, Eidos producing a good game lately? the Apocalypse maybe?) have really outdone themselves by providing so much content from past iterations of the characters and the comics that it makes one giggle with joy. Long forgotten characters from the 50′s and 60′s even make slight appearances in this game which is thoroughly entertaining, especially seeing how they are revealed to the player. I really can not stress enough how much I appreciated Rocksteady’s full respect for Batman and his mythos. The team definitely proves upon completion of the experience that they ate, sweat, and breathed the essence of who Batman is.
YAY:
- Batman’s combat system is very misleading. When you first get your hands on the controls during combat you realize that you mostly press 2 buttons and that is it. This may sound dull, but what happens after you press those buttons is pure ass-kicking goodness. The animations of the Caped Crusader bludgeoning his enemies are ruthless and thoroughly pleasing. Not to mention the counter system blends perfectly into the action and makes the experience feel like a choreographed fight sequence in a film. The ethereal joy of this combat system is truly demonstrated when you are beating on 6-7 foes at a time delivering punches and kicks and countering a thug’s fist coming up behind you. This is also what makes the arena challenge modes so addicting.
- The stealth aspect of the game is equally entertaining. Grappling from one gargoyle to another or sneaking up behind an unsuspected goon and putting him in a silent sleeper hold delivers on satisfaction. This in combination with the Joker barking at you as you pick off his henchmen makes you feel more immersed in the game.
- Arkham Asylum’s production value is just sweet. The Unreal Engine is definitely put to good use as there are very few times where the textures do not load immediately like in Gears of War. Each and every character model is clean and very detailed. In fact the character sketches found in the bios menu are pretty damn spot on with the rendered character models. Going even further, Arkham itself is presented on par with BioShock’s Rapture or Riddick’s Butcher Bay. Seeing as though Rocksteady said that they wanted a dark brooding setting like Butcher Bay, I think they exceeded past their goal. Nearly everything you see on the island in this game is vital to the rest of the scenery which offers the player a more cohesive and organic world.
- Even though voice overs are part of the production value, they deserve their own special merit. Mark Hamill returns to the Joker in top form. The game relies on him greatly to give a perfect performance in order to lure the player into the role of Batman. Seeing as the Joker almost never shuts up in the game, it is amazing that each line is given with just as much care as the next. Kevin Conroy also does a bang up job as Batman but there are a few conversation moments where you sort of miss the growling intensity of Christian Bale’s take on the character.
- The Riddler trophies are arguably the best idea in this game. These riddles and items will have you searching around the island with a fine-toothed bat-comb in order to find them all. More importantly, the location of each item is just perfect. They make the player explore the game’s world and at the same time offering an almost Zelda experience where only access of certain gadgets can get you to certain items. It also doesn’t hurt that the Riddler himself taunts you with each item found which drives you to want to beat him at his own game.
NAY:
- The game’s story bogs down towards the last third of the experience. This is pretty disappointing because the rest of it is very good. You want to figure out what the Joker has up his sleeve as he never really schemes the same plan twice. I guess his master plan in this game is okay and all, but it is not quite the “end of days” scenario that fans have come to expect from him.
- About half of the boss battles are really fun and nerve-racking. The game pretty much boils down to 2 early boss fights which are then repeated for the rest of the game’s baddies. Despite what many are saying in their reviews, the final boss is who you would expect, just not how you want him to be. The final boss is even more sub par because the build up to it is pretty epic yet he is one of the easiest battles in the game.
- There are many dangerous plot holes that the story almost falls into, which would make it a worthless Batman experience. Most of them have to do with how frivolous Batman is with the use of his secret identity in conversations and nightmare sequences.
Batman Arkham Ayslum is a great game and probably the best superhero game to date. Never before has an audience been able to get an immersive experience where they feel like they are Batman. This game accomplishes that in the first hour of gameplay. Rocksteady’s commitment to the Batman mythos enriches the ambiance of the game by giving more insight into new fans while providing awesome easter eggs to the die hards. Whether you are a fan of the movies or a bat-fan in general, you need to play this game. Rent it, buy it, or wait for it to come down in price- playing it is your priority.
