I got this game on release day (thank you, Amazon, for your free street day shipping!) and I loved it from the beginning. While there are some classic Batman games out there (think NES), they’ve all pretty much sucked, not to mention been pretty boring.
Now steps in Batman: Arkham Asylum and you have yourself a whole other ballgame.
Before I knew the main characters would be “played” by the people who’ve spent so many years doing the voices, I was hesitant. Then I watched a game trailer for it and heard Joker’s voice. Then I got excited. For those of you who remember the animated series back in the 90’s, you’ll recognize a few voices in the game, but probably not the names: Kevin Conroy (Batman), Mark Hamill (the Joker…and Luke Skywalker) and Arleen Sorkin (Harley Quinn, the evil vixen that plays second fiddle to Joker). And the voice acting was stupendous.
I’m not going to delve into the plot or anything like that. You want to know the plot? Play the game. But, I’ll go into other aspects that I found helped make the game as successful as it has been.
The fighting is great. No killing of course, but you definitely get plenty of opportunities to crack skulls. Given the situation, you can either jump into the middle of a group of guys while throwing punches, elbows, kicks, etc. all while dodging, leaping and counter-attacking. Or you can play it quiet (most useful when the baddies have guns) and hang around the rafters and wait for an opportunity to either glide down or hang above an unsuspecting convict and rope him up. You’ve got yourself the Batarang (single, multiple or guided missile) to daze guys, to distract guys or to terrify the living shit of guys.
Basically, combat is pretty much perfect. Strangely enough, it doesn’t become dull and boring after the countless of hours of playtime. If anything, it becomes more exciting as you’re faced with greater numbers and extra muscle.
Now that I think about it, the only thing that would have made the stealth aspect of this game better is if you could throw smoke pellets.
The gameplay itself is very addictive and immersive. I found myself playing and playing and playing, finally glancing at the time and realizing 3 or 4 hours went by without even realizing it. While some tasks may seem tedious and repetitive (mainly if you keep screwing up/dying and having to repeat things), you quickly get past that feeling as you push through the story. By the time I was 75% finished, I found myself wishing I had gone slower so I could savor the enjoyment of it all.
Of course, there are collectibles/hidden items throughout the game with a Riddler twist on them. Luckily, they’re not all same kinds of collectibles (you have your Riddler trophies, Arkham secrets, actual riddles to solve and Arkham interview tapes with the villains) and I actually found myself going through and collecting all of them after I had finished the game 100%. Plus, these hidden items allow you to accrue even more experience points which, of course, are used to upgrade aspects of Batman: weapons, armor, skills, etc. And as you progress, you gain more of those wonderful toys to not only help deal with whatever situations arise but to help you obtain some of these trophies.
Once you’re done with the game, or even during, there are “challenges” you can complete outside of story mode. And, just like any other game, you got to unlock all the levels by progressing through the game and collecting the trophies. So far, I’m enjoying them.
I’m leaving a lot out, I know. What I’ve said here is just a taste of what one experiences in the game and if you choose not to play, you’re missing out. As you might know, Batman is a bit of a brooding, dark character which is a stark contrast to Bruce Wayne…you know, the man behind the mask? Given the mood I was, and still am, in during the gameplay, I got as close as I’ll ever feel to being Batman (assuming I die before the holodeck becomes mainstream). The game does a good job of making you feel like Batman, from his flowing fighting style at your fingertips to the way the bad guys get agitated and fearful while you’re stalking them from above, slowly picking them off one-by-one to solving the Riddler’s riddles.
No matter what you got, PC, 360 or the PS3, you won’t be disappointed. Although, the PS3 has a download to play as the Joker (that’s the console I have but I haven’t had the time to play as him…been too depressed even for video games as of late). This game is WELL worth the money.
