Batman Arkham Asylum Xbox 360

Nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nu nuh nuh BAMAN!
Despite the games obvious faults I had a blast with this one.

I’ll get my gripes out of the way, first off is the third person camera angle. It takes a little while to get used to. I know what they were going for with the people want to see Batman kicking butt but it feels odd. Mostly because the camera jerks around when you turn making most a little nauseous. I’m not a big fan of the combat system as well. It’s simple enough. Face the enemy and hit X to attack. When an enemy is about to attack you they will display a “spidey sense” icon above their heads prompting you to hit Y to counter attack. Then there are enemies who constantly block, so hitting B will cause Batman to use a “stunning” blow to daze them and then its back on with regular attacks. There’s a lot of depth with the timing, allowing players to rack up massive combos but overall it just felt like button mashing to me.

What they got right in this game is… BATMAN! You feel like Batman, which hasn’t happened in a Batman game since the NES era. The Stealth aspect is amazing, sneaking around, setting up traps, and taking out henchmen one by one feels great. The best part is there are soo many options open to players looking to creep on on a baddie. Weather crawling through ventilation systems, swooping from decorative gargoyles, to just tiptoeing to the back of a henchman and tapping them on the shoulder. Once you come across a room full of guards it’s GO TIME!

Another shining achievement is the sound. Edios rounded up the cast from Batman the Animated Series to do the voice acting for the game. I’m glad to see that something that seemed like a no-brainer is finally becoming a trend in video games. It just makes sense, if you have an intellectual property that already has talented vocalists associated with it, then why not use them in the video game?  It’s like when companies use different voice actors for anime than what they used for the drama CD’s. Fans are stuck in a getting-to-know-you phase that just feels awkward.(thanks Konata Izumi-chan for the reference) By using the same voice actors from the animated series it gives fans a comforting familiarity that lets them jump right into the action. Kevin Conroy reprises his role as Batman, Arleen Sorkin as Harley Quinn, and Mark Hamill takes on his icon role of The Joker. Who knew Luke Skywalker could be so creepy?

One of the more rewarding features of the game is the Riddler’s Challenges. Finding them all rewards the player with character bios and audio clips of certain patients’ psych sessions. Along the way there are numerous Easter eggs from villains: everything from Mr. Freeze’s frozen holding cell to the Rat Catcher’s gear stashed away in its hiding place.

The Story is amazing as well. We all know the premise: Joker breaks out of Arkham and is quickly caught by Batman only to lure the Dark Knight into his madhouse. As the story unfolds and you find out the reason why Joker set up the trap, you get hooked and can’t wait to find out more.

Definite rental but I highly recomend a pick up.
9/10

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