Introduction
It's about Batman in an Asylum called Arkham. In case you don't know anything about Arkham Asylum, it's the prison where all the best (or worst) super villains in the Batman universe are sent when captured. In this game Arkham occupies most of an island off the coast of Gotham City, a city with which it shares it's dark atmosphere and gothic architecture. All of your time is spent on the island, in and around the various sections of the asylum and a few other areas.
You start with an escape which you must deal with and essentially lasts the whole game. Along the way you explore the island, hit people, gain experience points to unlock abilities and do plenty of detective work. The detective work is partly to find your way, but also used to hunt for the secrets, which unlock peripheral extras and give you additional experience points.
Gameplay
The most striking thing about the gameplay is how solid and finished everything feels. It all just works and feels all the more real because of it.
Initially you'll think that the combat is merely button mashing, which works well at the start, but you'll uncover depths as you progress. You have to otherwise you'll start losing fights. Although you can scrape through with mashing the right button at the right time, which is what I did.
There's some stealth involved, but it's minimal and you in some cases you can muddle through with brute horse and a pinch of luck.
The exploration aspects of the game are engaging, especially if you like a good collect-em-up. Although you are by no means required to collect the hidden objects, etc. Unless you have OCD, but that's your own problem.
Sights and Sounds
Graphically the game looks great. Not the most technically advanced, but like the gameplay, it works and is solid.
I can't say I really noticed the music, but the voice acting and character design is utterly convincing and add a lot to the atmosphere. Detail and background on the characters is fleshed out with the collect-em-up side of the game.
Stuff that sucks
The combat system is isn't flawless, at least not under my control. There were times, especially during boss fights, were Batman wasn't doing exactly what I wanted him to. But that was probably both my fault and the fault of the design not being perfect. Perfection is probably an expectation too far.
The boss fights can be an annoying difficulty spike until you work out the pattern. However the game is forgiving with check points throughout.
On the PC I can't imagine how you'd play Batman on a keyboard, so a 360 control pad is an essential. Which is a downside if you don't already have one.
Conclusion
The combat is almost always enjoyable and it's potential complexity avoids a feeling of repetition. Despite having to go over the same ground on occasions the environments remain interesting and sometimes retain tension. As you gain new abilities new areas open up, an old staple of exploration in games but it still works.
I rarely enjoy a game enough to be inspired to write a review these days. I enjoyed this game enough. Game of the year for me, so far. It drops half a star because it made me shout at the screen during boss fights.
If you want a charismatic beat-em-up, which has some stealth elements, some fun gadgets and a big dollop of exploration then why not try it?
Score :
