Batman Arkham Asylum: Hands On

Back in 1939, when the Caped Crusader first appeared in Detective Comics, the world of videogames was something only spoken of in science-fiction. Artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger could only have dreamt of the worldwide impact their character would have, and continues to have, many generations on. When people think of superheroes Batman will always be one of the first that spring to mind and the recent reboot of the film series has proved that there is a lot of life left in the stories of the Dark Knight.

Ever since computers were capable of portraying Batman in sprite form the 8-bit powerhouses have done their best with the legend. He’s come a long way since the 1986 Spectrum version of Batman from Ocean Software. Even then it was clear he was destined for great things as “Your Sinclair” gave the game a fantastic 93%. Fast forward to modern day and the three most recently released titles, Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu, Batman Begins and of course Lego: Batman (where haven’t Lego gone!) have all got an average reception, only Lego’s interpretation got above 6/10. This year we were all expecting Batman: Dark Knight but the studio behind the game, Pandemic, was one of the many development companies eaten by the wolves of the recent economic crash.

So will Batman Arkham Asylum, developed by the London-based studio, Rocksteady, change the fortunes of the comic-book legend, or will it continue to prove the theory that movie tie-in games never really work. We went off to the big city to see the game first hand, chat with the development team behind the game and get our first play of the brand new Batman title.

You could be forgiven for wondering who Rocksteady are. With only one title behind them it must have been a difficult choice for them to take on a big name like Batman. The recent trend of British development successes with studios such as Guildford-based Criterion, the masterminds behind Burnout Paradise, or the hugely influential DMA Design, who created the legend that is Lemmings, and who more recently and relevantly turned into Rockstar North and created the epic Grand Theft Auto IV (the best GTA of the series in my opinion), include in this lengthy roll-call of legendary games, the sleeper hit that was Crackdown; created by Dundee’s Realtime Worlds, who in turn were founded by the very same person responsible for GTA and Lemmings, and you have in your hand some of the greatest games ever created for the Xbox 360 platform (the only killer Triple-A games I’m missing are possibly Bioshock and Halo – can we link Bungie in here at all?) Maybe Rocksteady thought their luck was in, British talent is doing very well.

Batman Arkham Asylum centers itself solely on the island of Arkham with the player being able to freely roam around the island. The story starts off with Batman, having captured the Joker in a somewhat easier-than-expected battle, arriving at Arkham Asylum with the crazed supervillian in tow. However the entire capture has been planned and the game begins with Joker escaping and presenting Batman with an easy puzzle or two for starters. The main quest of the game is to save the city of Gotham from the Joker’s fiendish plan by getting to him before he detonates the collection of explosives around the city, uncovering the dark inner secrets of the Asylum as you go.

The game is broken up into various stages and puzzles, with almost every room posing Batman a challenge involving accessing a particular area or getting passed a collection of guards. What is nice is that it never seems repetitive and each puzzle seems new and varied from the others before it. Battles never seem predictable with the AI clever and cunning. There’s almost an element of Bioshock creeping into the game as the environments are lavishly detailed and increase the gaming experience. The sound and the characters and graphics are spot on.

Gadgets are a key part of the modern mortal superhero that is Batman and the game goes some way to introduce a CSI-esque detective element into the title. Using a special detective view the player can see enemies, spot areas to which he can swing to using his utility belt, or aim precisely when lining up a batarang or two. Using a bit of clever thinking you can also make use of the explosive gel to blow up walls and knock out enemies on the other side. Let us not forget then that Batman is not immortal, in fact should you get spotted by the guards you have to move quick – if they unload a clip into you then you’re for your own Batman RIP episode – remember children Batman came before Batfink.

Combat within Arkham Asylum uses a new FreeFlow combat idea, essentially simply using three buttons the character will flow through the combat taking out the enemies around him. Using the ‘counter attack’ button the player can, upon seeing the special marker above an enemy, get a move in quick before they’re hit. Continuous hits build up your multiples, which are especially important in the various challenge modes which see Batman pitted against wave after wave of Joker’s henchmen. The whole idea of the combat scenarios are to flow with the moves and not button-bash. During the time we played with the game we found it a lot more receptive and successful if you’re flowing with the combat. I felt more connected with the game and a lot more immersed in the environment. Timing is everything.

During the game you’ll see most of Batman’s recurring enemies. One of the expanded elements within the game features The Riddler and his maze of riddles and collectibles dotted around the game. The game will take you upwards of 14 hours to run through, after which you’ll keep coming back to the game for the challenge modes, which put Batman into scenarios such as clearing rooms in a certain amount of time or performing tasks without alerting the guards.

Between the PS3 and the Xbox 360 version there isn’t a lot of difference. If I were to pick one it would be the 360 which is a little sharper, brighter and more fluid. However, the PS3 version does have the ability to play as The Joker in challenge mode, if that’s what “floats your boat”.

For me, Batman Arkham Asylum has found its way to the upper echelons of my must-have list. The studio talent of the British Isles knows no boundaries and the team at Rocksteady should be proud, for they have given the legend that is Batman the respect it deserves and we, as gamers, have got a cracking part of the deal. August 28th is the day on which the game is released here in the UK. Those in the USA get it just three days earlier. Rumour has it the demo will hit the marketplace of the respective platforms a little earlier than anticipated.