It’s been played, it’s been reviewed, it’s sold a ton of copies.  But none of that matters as the insightful minds at MMOMFG.com have yet to weigh in on Eidos and RockSteady’s latest superhero action title.

Batman: Arkham Asylum has already racked up a giant stack of accolades and good reviews.  So much so that it’s in the Guinness Book of World Records.

But with so much hype around this game leading up to launch, can you trust all those shining reviews?  The answer is a word I just made up: Batyes.

What’s Good

The Story – This isn’t some watered down version of a Batman storyline put through a Hollywood script-writing factory.  Arkham Asylum’s plot comes from a popular Batman comic from the 80′s.  Beyond the linear path of the narrative that progresses as you go through the game, the game goes to great lengths to expand on the story of some of Arkham’s more colorful inmates.  Interview tapes hidden throughout give the player a glimpse into the psyche of Gothams greatest villains.  Tapes of specific villains are often found on your way to a boss battle with said villain, working well to slowly ratchet up the tension leading up to these showdowns.

The Beauty of it All – This game is straight up gorgeous and I’m not even factoring in the porn-star-esque bodies and costumes of villainesses Ivy and Harley.  The graphics are jaw dropping – to be expected with this generation of HD games – but what really makes this game beautiful is it’s dark art direction and atmosphere.  Scenes around Arkham and views of Gotham are of a breathtakingly gloomy beauty.  Beyond the visual, the sound effects and music add to this dark atmosphere most positively.

Quite the place you've got here.

The Ass-Kicking – Historically, I have not been a huge fan of the type of combo-driven combat that features in a lot of adventure games like this.  However, Batman’s combat system has proven to be incredibly entertaining.  It’s a pretty simple system, but it’s executed in a way so beautifully chock full of ass-kicking that it makes my jaw drop.  Batman doesn’t just beat up henchmen in Arkham Asylum, he destroys them.  My favorite part of these fights is the way the camera zooms in and slow-mo kicks in when you deliver the fatal blow to the area’s last henchman, giving the game an action-movie like feel.  Furthermore, the game does well to incentivize combo-combat, the better you are at taking down a group of enemies with one long chain of attacks, the more EXP you receive and hence the quicker you are able to purchase combat and gadget upgrades.

Too much pwnage for a henchman to handle.

The Stealthy Ass-Kicking – Perhaps part of the reason that the combat system hasn’t worn on me is that the game mixes combat scenarios up quite nicely.  Some rooms you enter will hold a group of unarmed henchman ripe for glidekicks and full out frontal assaults.  But other rooms will contain only armed henchman who can’t be taken out so easily.  These rooms become puzzles in themselves, forcing the player to figure out how to use Batman’s stealth and gadgets best in order to take down Joker’s men one by one without drawing the attention of the rest.

He's behind you, he's got swine flu.

The Voice Acting – Dear Mark Hammil, will you record a voicemail message for me?  I will pay you handsomely in Republic Credits.  But seriously, this game is voice acted superbly, and not just by Hammil (whom we should expect this from after his work as Joker in the animated series).  Each villain really comes to life on the screen with the help of the quality voice acting.  This is one of those things that you may not really notice unless you’ve known really BAD voice acting.  If you don’t, I suggest you pick up a copy of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion.

The Consistency – Hollywood movie studios have people whose entire jobs are to ensure that each scene, each shot of a movie is consistent with those before.  For example, someones got to remember that after the scene where Actor A is attacked, his shirt needs to have a corresponding rip in it for all scenes following.  Apparently RockSteady Studios pays someone to do that.  Not only does Batman carry the scars and rips to his suit through the entire game – but even his stubble grows as the game progresses.  That’s gotta be a first in video games, right?

What’s Bad

Too short – Granted, I say this about every game that isn’t at least 20 hours long, but 10 hours is just too short.  Especially when the game is this good, I don’t want it to end.  They could have packed boss battles with every Batman villain EVER into this game and I would have loved it.  The gameplay and art direction/atmosphere of this game are so impressive that it makes me wish it took place in an open-world Gotham City.  My fingers are crossed for a much bigger sequel.

The Upgrade System – I feel like the list of upgrades available to Batman is a little weak.  Once you get past some of the combat upgrades and armor upgrades, there isn’t much too choose from.  Why would I want to upgrade my Baterang power when I barely use it during combat, instead opting to punch, kick, and counter my way through enemies?  Also, the descriptions of these upgrades before you purchase them aren’t very in-depth.  This is made more annoying by the fact that if you find you’ve purchased one you don’t want, you’re stuck with it.

You Say “Jump”, I say “Can’t” – There’s no jump button.  Double-tapping A (on the XBOX360 version) performs a bit of a running jump or an evasion in combat, but there’s no straight up jump button.  Is it entirely necessary?  Perhaps not.  I just find it hard to believe that Judo Master Wayne can’t jump up straight in the air.

What’s With Your Eyes? – Characters’ eyeballs and eyelids are rendered weird.  When the camera gets close up during bits of dialogue, the people that Batman talks to have the weirdest looking eyes.  Something about the way those eyelids blink skives me out, man.  Also, everyone has gigantic hands in this game.  OK, so neither of these are a big deal at all.  Can’t you see that I’m really scraping the bottom of the negativity barrel for this review?

Worth Remembering – Kicking the crap out of Joker’s henchmen NEVER gets old.  The combat is that good, whether you’re busting in to a crowd and bashing skulls or lurking in the shadows trying to separate and quietly take out clowns with guns.

I can do this all day long, guys.

Worth Forgetting – The multiplayer offerings for this game are just weak.  That’s not RockSteady or Eidos’ fault, I’m just of the opinion that multiplayer doesn’t translate well to these games unless it pits player versus player.  Timed challenges and little beat-em-up arenas are just not enjoyable to me.  Where’s the competition when your opponent is just a name and number on a board?

Final Decision

In conclusion, buy this freakin game.  It is, without a doubt, the most entertaining game I’ve played all year.  My only real gripe is that I wish it was longer, but I say that about everything not called Fallout, Elder Scrolls, or Final Fantasy.

Batman: Arkham Asylum is, most definitely, worth the $60 price tag.  It’s games like these, where a compelling story keeps you enthralled, the gameplay keeps entertaining without getting old, and the art direction has you stopping mid-mission to gawk at the scenery, that makes me think this medium is well on it’s way to overcoming even the movie business in popularity and entertainment value.

*All images courtesy of Eidos and Rocksteady

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