Batman: Arkham Asylum
About
Batman: Arkham Asylum as an action-adventure game developed by Rocksteady Studios. It is the first installment in the Batman: Arkham series which is based on Batman comic series.
Batman successfully captures Joker and transports him to the Arkham Asylum on the Arkham Island. Batman suspects Joker of surrendering intentionally hence why the hero decides to escort Joker personally. Joker breaks away from the security frees all the inmates and captures the asylum. Batman sets out to restore order in Arkham Asylum.
Played from a third-person perspective, the gameplay of Batman: Arkham Asylum can be divided into three types: world exploration, stealth and beat 'em up. Batman explores the asylum while solving puzzles and using his wide range of gadgets. If Batman is spotted, the game turns into a beat 'em up featuring fast hand-to-hand combat. Batman himself does not use any weapons due to his moral choices while the enemies grow stronger and begin using different weaponry as the game progresses.
In some cases, while confronting a group of enemies, it is suggested that Batman's actions should not be spotted and the game turns into a stealth action.
System requirements for PlayStation 4
System requirements for PlayStation 3
System requirements for Xbox 360
System requirements for macOS
System requirements for PC
System requirements for Nintendo Switch
System requirements for Xbox One
Where to buy
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Batman: Arkham Asylum reviews and comments
Had an itch to play some superhero games after completing Spiderman (PS4), so I thought I'd give the arkham trilogy a try having never played them before.
Unfortunately I don't think Asylum has aged rather well, to be honest I don't think I would have enjoyed it much at release either.
The combat shows its age, it effectively comes down to pressing square and triangle occasionally and lacks any real depth. The combat is also quite clunky imo and just doesn't feel that great, with batman feeling rather slow at times. Boss battles are quite simplistic and not very well designed, most of the time it just turns into an enemy gank fest where you're left fighting enemy thugs rather than the bosses themselves. The joker fight in particular was just awful. I played on hard, and the poison ivy fight is mind numbingly annoying. There are a variety of gadgets available in game, with the batarang being a mainstay in your arsenal throughout. Not saying other gadgets are useless however, the explosive gel and batclaw can actually be helpful during some of the games more difficult encounters and I enjoyed the waynetech upgrades (apart from the combat upgrades which I found a bit disappointing).
Story is OK, I don't really pay much attention to story in video games as long as the gameplay is good, but a good story definitely elevates the experience. In AA, the story is decent but nothing noteworthy.
The stealth missions are okay, somehow there are gargoyles in the room of every building on the island but I understand i'm being nitpicky there. On hard, the predator missions can be rather unforgiving if you are spotted, with armed thugs killing you rather quickly, so you do need some patience.
World design is good and tight, doesn't feel overdone and fits with the theme of the game rather well. Level design is okay considering the context of the game, with some nice areas such as the botanical gardens and intensive treatment. Level traversal is quite linear, with some backtracking involved.
Enemy variety is quite poor, it's basically blackgate goons throughout the game with different weapons sprinkled in, and the boss fights of course.
Enough whinging
The voice acting in this game is fantastic, especially mark hamill as the joker. In fact most of the characters are very well acted. I really enjoyed riddlers VA, he had the perfect condescending talk down tone you would expect of the character.
Atmosphere is very well done, especially the sections leading up to the scarecrow encounters and the killer crock boss fight (which though in itself is poor, is quite tense).
The game does look quite good, especially for a 2009 release. Although I don't like some of the art design overall it was well done. Batman visibly showing signs of wear and tear throughout the game was a nice touch.
Overall, I think batman AA is a decent game but not one that I'd ever think of replaying.