Why Everyone on Your Friends List Are Batmen or Batwomen

Being a Comic Book Super-Hero adaptation, I went in thinking this game wouldn’t be as good as I hoped. After all, the bar’s set pretty low for video games like this. Things like story, repetitiveness, and voice acting have plauged the genre of Superhero Video Games; but all that has changed with Batman: Arkham Asylum. This video game is great from start to finish. While, nothing is perfect, Arkham Asylum is well worth the buy. And if you’re still on the fence after that wonderful paragraph I just wrote, then read on. 

Due to the fact that I didn’t follow this game at all through its production, all I gathered as to what this game would be about came from the title itself: Batman running around Arkham. Sure, I was a little on the “meh” side of things because the sandbox element was immediately taken out of the game upon hearing that…or was it?

Yes, Batman AA does have the sandbox element. How? Well, it’s a giant island separated into sections. It’s no city, but it’s definitely fun to run around while taking down enemies and investigating alike. So even though you’re on a somewhat pre-destined course via game story, you still have the option to go somewhere else, if you choose.

As far as the artistic viewpoint goes, Batman AA looks wonderful. Everything looks neatly polished. From the trees on the island, to the sometimes broken down architecture, the environment truly makes the game feel darker

Each of Batman’s super-villains are well represented. Not once was I confused on who’s who. There were even a few surprises for me. Other than that, you fight only a handful of henchmen. Sometimes there’s a few surprises that will throw you off or even completely change the way you fight. Is it repetitive to the point that you need to stop playing? Not at all. It’ll only get boring to those who get bored easily.

 As you progress through the game, you gain XP and level up. Each time you level up, you’re allowed to upgrade one of Batman’s abilities. Whether it be throwing multiple batarangs at once, or simply a larger amount of health, it’s your choice what you want to excel in when kicking someone’s, or everyone’s, ass.

The controls are pretty simple. Attack with X and counter with Y. If you get a combo going, you can move Batman around to simultaneously fight a group of baddies. It’s not always that easy, though. Gadgets do play a major role in the game, which makes it even more enjoyable to knock a henchman out. My only complaint: You can sometimes miss a target, thus ruining your 16x combo.

  

      

What really brought me into the game were the characters, how they were portrayed, and and the voice acting. Being a fan of Batman: The Animated Series, hearing the same voice once again was more than awesome. The Joker, Harley Quinn, and other regulars seemed like themselves, mostly due to the script. Each character actually sounded like themselves, compared to other super-hero adaptation games like anything Spider-Man. And trust me, there are more than enough villains and other characters in the Batman universe to keep you entertained throughout the game. And, when you’re done with the game, you have a whole load of riddles to figure out. If that doesn’t interest you, then playing on Hard mode will surely be a challenge for you.