Batman: Arkham Asylum Final Review

This post Bactrim and breastfeeding is long Side effects Advair Diskus Buy Alesse Online 500 mcg of mirtazapine so if you want my quick take on Batman: Arkham Asylum, here it is:  This is one of the best games I have played in years.  It easily fits into my top five, if not higher.  If you enjoy a good video game, go buy it!  If you want (lots) more details, then, by all means, read on.

After having finished the story portion of the game I must say that it has exceeded my expectations.  It is rare to find something that you have high expectations for meet those expectations but even rarer still to find something that exceeds those already high expectations.  In my first review I talked about how this game took the best elements from other games and combined them into one then applied a very dark Batman feel.  The result is spectacular to say the least.   This thing reeks of high production values.  The visuals, sound, story, mechanics, pacing; the list can go on.  If Batman: Arkham Asylum attempted something, it did it well.  Nothing about it felt mediocre.

In my first take I talked Ibuprofen patch about the action, stealth, and exploration Buy Zithromax Online aspects of Buy Ceftin Online the game.   Everything I Grifulvin V 250 caps said then is still true.  As the game has progressed, things have just gotten better.  I will try to give some more detail on some of those elements and a glimpse at a few other pieces of the game.

Note to Parents:  This game received only a Teen rating but it can be quite dark and disturbing at times.  The fighting can be brutal and the language is sparse but a little rough.  Also, some of the female villain’s costumes are edgy.  This is not a focal point of the game but it does exist.

Combat

I think this is the best real-time combat I have experienced in a game.  You feel like Batman.  As the game has progressed, the combat has improved.  And it started off great.  When you begin the game you don’t feel handicapped in anyway but the further you progress the more you can do and the smoother it gets.  It is very rewarding to string together a combo, leaping from enemy to enemy, pummeling them all into the ground with fists, elbows, knees, and feet.  The combat style Batman uses is brutal and visual treat.  Keep in mind that Batman doesn’t kill anyone as a rule.  He just knocks them silly while throwing in the occasional broken bone.

Another aspect of the combat that I enjoyed is that it wasn’t constant.  You don’t fight guys in every room or area you enter.  It is spread out over the course of the game which is, perhaps, why it always feels fresh and engaging.  It doesn’t get old.  And you must change your approach to a fight depending on what weapons the enemies have (knives, tasers, guns).

Stealth combat is still just as fun and gets progressively harder as they add new hurdles like proximity-mined gargoyles that force you to stay on the floor.  Still very fun and challenging.

Challenge Mode

There are Prilosec and alcohol some games Zebeta 5 mg that I Metformin 850 mg enjoy because Stromectol 3 mg of the time that they take to finish and there are others that I enjoy because I can sit down and play for five minutes and be done.  With story mode and challenge mode, Batman: AA offers both styles of game play.

Since the combat is one of the highlights of the game, the developers were very smart to include Challenge Mode.  This mode puts you in either a melee or stealth combat situation.  In melee challenges you are trying to rack up as many points as you can while in a stealth challenge you are trying to complete it in as little time as you can.

Another great use for Challenge mode is practice.  Can’t beat a stealth action part of the game?  Practice a bit in Challenge Mode.  On top of the fun and practice you can get, this mode adds a very basic multiplayer experience to the game.  There are leader boards for each challenge that keep track of how you are ranked between your friends or everyone playing the game.

Boss Fights

This was an area that some reviews I read had some complaints.  They said that these parts felt awkward or tacked on, as if they were a last minute addition.  I didn’t experience these issues.  I felt that they were a good break from the normal action.  Most of them were very different from each other as well.  Some were very fast paced while others were very slow and menacing while the enemy toyed with you.  And I felt like they played out like Batman would handle them.  While definitely not the most enjoyable part of the game, they were still fun and sometimes challenging.

Setting

This was another area that I felt was pitch perfect.  Arkham Island was the perfect setting for this game.  Not only did it provide a dark foreboding place to explore, all the enemies you could hope for were already there.

Every area of the island was very detailed.  You can tell that much time was spent preparing the areas and buildings that Batman would explore.  The setting of Arkham Asylum is wonderful.

Character

This is something that is often overlooked in a video game but since the developer got a seasoned Batman writer (Paul Dini) to write the script and the voice talent behind Batman: The Animated Series you get treated to great characterization.   The Joker is wonderful as voiced by Mark Hamil (Luke Skywalker anyone?).  The dark (sometimes creepy/scary) setting is Glipizide dosage maintained by Omnicef 300 mg the fact Valtrex 1000mg - 30 pills that the Cymbalta 30 mg Joker is not afraid to kill people.  There are people you cannot save from this madman.  This just adds to the tension that continues to build throughout the game and is very true to the Joker’s character.

Batman himself is done wonderfully.  He is his normal silent, powerful, and to the point self.  This is conveyed through the way he talks, fights and even the way he walks.  I always enjoyed starting a fight, just standing in the middle of a group of enemies, letting them come to me and even letting them throw the first punch but then immediately countering and bursting into a flurry of punishment.  Very Batman.

Story

In many games like this the story takes a back seat to things like combat.  Developers focus their efforts on getting combat right and neglect the story.  Not so in Batman: Arkham Asylum.  The story and the devices it uses to tell the story are on par with the most recent Batman movies.  I won’t spoil any of the specifics but I will say that they used some story telling devices that were genius.  For example at one point you are walking down a long hallway after breathing some sort of mind altering gas (thank you Scarecrow) and as you walk and the gas takes effect the hallway begins to change into an alley where you get a glimpse of Batman’s past.  There are several parts like this in the game where I was blown away.

The actual story of the game is simple yet engaging, interesting, and original.  It takes place over the course of one night so as Batman jumps through the many hoops the Joker throws at him you get to watch as his suit takes damage and his cape starts to tatter.

The pacing of it is just right as well.   It doesn’t feel rushed or tacked on.  I hope other game developers (and movie makers) that make games like this take a lesson and put just as great a focus on their story as other elements.  Sometimes you can get away with it but your game will suffer.  Put the right effort into the story and it will make all the other elements shine as well.

Extras

There are plenty of extra things to do in the game besides finish the story.  There are 240 Riddler puzzles hidden throughout the island, there are Arkham patient interview tapes to find that give you lots of background on major villains.  There are trophies to unlock.  There are monuments to find around the island that tell the story of Arkham Asylum.  And, of course, there is Challenge Mode.  So even after you finish the story there is still plenty to do.

I know that I have written quite a bit here and, as a result, I might be outing myself as a gaming nerd.  The truth is, this game incorporates most of the things I enjoy about video games and does all of them very well so I feel justified in being nerdy about it.  So there!

In closing, Batman: Arkham Aslyum will envelop you in a very cinematic experience that seamlessly moves you towards the climax all the while fully engaging and entertaining you with wonderful attention to detail in every aspect.  Now, quit reading and go play it!

Brian