Batman Arkham Asylum: A pleasant surprise

When I got an e-mail from a nearby gaming shop last week, informing me about Batman Arkham Asylum being available for sale, I never imagined that I'd like this game so much. Yesterday, I managed to beat the game on easy and I'd like to share my thoughts on this game with you.

 

 

- An action game with elements of adventure and plenty of riddles.
- Excellent atmosphere on the cinematics.
- Settings are dark, claustrophobic, scary and a bit complicated.
- The way Batman moves and fights is quite impressive and realistic at the same time.
- The design of Batman and setting are awesome and unique.
- Batman’s opponents vary from one level to another.
- Very good realism, in terms of movements, punches, kicks etc. You’ll see Batman’s suite slightly or heavily torn when damaged.
- Mark Hamill does the voice acting for Joker. If his name doesn’t ring any bell to you, I’m sure Luke Skywalker does.

 

 

GENERAL TIPS:

- Following normal and ground paths isn’t always the best option.
- Detective mode will save you many times and will help you find opponents and choose the best approach on them.
- Using stealth attacks will also save you from much damage and from getting detected, as the game progresses.

THE ACTUAL COMIC:

The game is based on the comic Arkham Asylum: A serious house on serious earth. It was released in USA in 1989 by DC and it’s a dark adventure with plenty of symbolisms. The hero is a detective who discovers many more things than just the actual clues. The inside of the asylum is based on the Roman church of Sartre in France, while the outside of it refers to the Glastonbury Abbey in Somerset.

 

 

I played and enjoyed this game so much. It was a pleasant surprise, the same surprise I felt when I played Dead Space. Eidos put their reputation back on track with this game.

The only con I found on that game is this. There are large parts of the game where you listen to Joker’s voice all the time, which really annoyed me. But hey, Joker (among other things) is annoying :P

 

For more info check out Batman Arkham Asylum official website.