Games of 2009: Batman: Arkham Asylum

By Dan Whitehead Published 27 December, 2009

Bat to basics.

If you'd told me in January that my favourite game of the year would be Batman, I would probably have scoffed in your face. Scoffed. If you'd told me that the game in question wouldn't just be a great superhero game, but simply a great game, I might have even ROFLed with a side order of LMAO. Superhero games, particularly those drawn from the DC Comics properties, just aren't supposed to reach thsse giddy heights.

Even when the initial Arkham Asylum trailers arrived, there was little to assuage my disinterest. Batman, beating up goons, in gloomy, gritty and grimy environments. How original. Even when interviews with developer Rocksteady made interesting noises, my rocklike cynicism remained mostly unmoved. Too many developers had made too many similar boasts. This comic-book nerd wasn't going to be caught out again. My hopes would not be raised.

So you can imagine my surprise when the demo was really good. Atmospheric. Varied. Addictive. My resolve was starting to crack, the monkey of doubt on my back chattered a little less insistently. Not to worry, I reassured him, they've probably put all the best bits in the demo. The game itself would surely be a weak watery repetition of these initially impressive ideas.

Fast forward again, and I'm playing the review code. And loving it. The familiar elements from the demo are scattered throughout the first few hours of play, but what surrounds them is even better. Depth. Context. Character. This, I immediately realise, is a phenomenally well-written game. I'm drawn in, engaged, invested in Batman's situation.

'Games of 2009: Batman: Arkham Asylum' Screenshot 1

Wonderfully, this is the Batman I know from the comics, not the growling, brooding thug of Christopher Nolan's movies. This is a Batman who is confident, assured and intelligent. His fighting skills back up his mind, not the other way around. Whether I'm tracking chemical particles in the air, solving clues from The Riddler or just working out the best way to use my array of gadgets to navigate a perilous underground cavern, I'm in the cowl, thinking like Batman. Fists are the least of my weapons.

This is a character driven by internal monologue on the page - just consider that great scene in Frank Miller's Batman: Year One where the emergent caped crusader painstakingly drags a stunned street punk to the top of a building and dangles him over the edge. "The scream alone is worth it," reads the caption. Rocksteady understands that voice, that calculating determination, and weaves it into the gameplay at every opportunity.

I ended up playing the game through three times. My first playthrough was stalled by a corrupt save-file right before the end. As annoying as this was, I didn't actually mind starting over. With the review out of the way, I found myself looking forward to the release date, so I could pick up a boxed copy that I could play on my civilian console, mopping up those addictive Riddler challenges.

It's rare indeed that I feel the urge to replay a game, especially so many times and in such a compressed manner. It's rarer still that it feels as fresh as it did the first time. This is what reviewers hope for every time we put a new disc in the tray - games that we start playing for work, and finish playing for pleasure.

The cracking story certainly plays a part in that. Key puzzles and encounters feel like revisiting a beloved movie scene, not rote tasks dulled by repetition. Deeper than that, however, is the fantasic construction of the thing, the way that the different gameplay elements - combat, stealth, exploration - are distinct without feeling disjointed. It's not just the fighting that slips effortlessly from one beat to another, the whole game just flows. It's a pleasure to play, to climb, to smash an elbow in the face of yet another over-confident henchman and watch him crumple.

Looking back, perhaps what's most remarkable is that Arkham Asylum is not all that original. You don't have to look hard to find the obvious inspiration for each gameplay element, but in a year that found mainstream games mostly content to tread water, Rocksteady remembered that sometimes polish and passion are all you need.

By carefully selecting the aspects of Batman's world that fit snugly into a videogame template, the British developer crafted something that feels solid, muscular and real. After falling out of favour in the post-GTA gaming landscape, between Batman, Shadow Complex and Uncharted 2, this was, in many ways, the year that the linear action-adventure reclaimed its mojo.

That's not to say that the game doesn't have flashes of its own inspiration. The ideas that linger are the things that Rocksteady didn't have to do. The decision to tell the story ambiently wherever possible, using conversations rather than cut-scenes, participation rather than passive exposition, helps keep you immersed in Batman's world. The only times the game takes control away is when Batman needs to do something that the player wouldn't know to do - grabbing Joker in the blacked-out elevator, gliding down to the secret Batcave.

'Games of 2009: Batman: Arkham Asylum' Screenshot 2

Yet still there's more, life and colour injected into areas most games leave blank. The way dialogue changes depending on your actions, for example. Take down a thug while he's talking to The Joker on his radio, and your nemesis takes notice. The game responds to the player, creating just enough elasticity in its otherwise rigidly defined world to make it feel like it's reacting to your presence.

And it's not above extending the experience beyond the screen either. The hallucinations caused by Scarecrow's fear gas are cunningly conceived slices of pop psychology, turning Bruce Wayne's darkest thoughts into platforming landscapes.

But it's the moment where the game freezes, reboots and starts over with Joker as the hero that really showcases how Rocksteady went above and beyond what we usually settle for in a licensed title. Turning the Joker's anarchic sensibility loose on the very framework of videogames themselves, it's a brilliantly twisted prank that sent unwary gamers to the internet, trying to discover if it really is possible to dodge a fatal bullet by using their "middle stick".

So many great ideas, so confidently threaded together in service of a character too often given short shrift by the games industry. As I began to write this drooling love letter, the teaser trailer for the sequel appeared online. I drooled some more, and immediately regretted selling my copy on eBay for Christmas present money. Maybe I should buy it back and start playthrough number four.

Check out the Editor's blog to find out more about our Games of 2009.

Picture of Dan.

About Dan Whitehead

Dan has been writing for Eurogamer since 2006 and specialises in RPGs, shooters and games for children. His bestest game ever is Julian Gollop's Chaos.

Read more articles from Dan by visiting the Dan Whitehead archive page.

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Comments (53) Latest comment 2 years ago

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  • macksed #1 2 years ago

    heh, I just came on EG having ended a session playing this, almost completed it now. It is indeed very good.

  • bad09 #2 2 years ago

    "the whole game just flows"

    Could not have put it better myself, can't wait for the sequel!

    "But it's the moment where the game freezes, reboots and starts over with Joker as the hero that really showcases how Rocksteady went above and beyond what we usually settle for in a licensed title."

    At first I thought my new graphics card was dodgy when that screen goes screwy, I wasn't expecting that MGS1 tribute!

  • Faldrath #3 2 years ago

    Great game, but the boss fights were extremely disappointing. I suppose that's one problem with the Batman license - most of the villains actually aren't physically imposing, and since the game, despite all the variety, still focuses first and foremost on combat, and Batman would pretty much just one-shot most of the traditional villains, the bosses felt very awkward (and the last boss was pathetic. Really.).

  • El-Dev #4 2 years ago

    The story was brilliant, the voice acting even better but the combat was rubbish. Basically bash square with the odd block thrown in. Also the boss battles could have been brilliant but they just weren't. I hope they can work on these aspects for the sequel. It was an enjoyable game, but it wasn't great.

  • roz123 #5 2 years ago

    Personally the thing that bugged me most was some of the voices, i thought jokers was good, so were some of the recordings you found but batmans was dreary and harley quinns was just annoying.
    Overally it was a good game but just short of brilliant, the highlight for me was the scarecrow bits

  • SixFootHalfling #6 2 years ago

    ""But it's the moment where the game freezes, reboots and starts over with Joker as the hero that really showcases how Rocksteady went above and beyond what we usually settle for in a licensed title."

    At first I thought my new graphics card was dodgy when that screen goes screwy, I wasn't expecting that MGS1 tribute! "

    Is this where the intro video plays after a load of artefacts appear?
    I thought the game was fucked, and was shit scared of the autosave overwriting my save, and returning to the beginning, so I've been force-quitting it before you regain control

  • JediMasterMalik #7 2 years ago

    I agree with the article, but a bit disappointed that the terrible combat wasn't mentioned, It'd be nice if combat was as optional as it initally seems, but there are quite a few situations where it's not, and, particularly on higher difficulties, these situations can be very frustrating.

    Not quite finished it yet, but I think I'm pretty much at the final battle.

  • Postumo #8 2 years ago

    game of the year for me, gotta replay it

  • TheSnotGoblin #9 2 years ago

    I never got the impression that combat was optional. Certainly not after the demo. And I'd I'd also disagree with the 'terrible combat' assessment. Okay it's not that difficult and on Normal and below you can get through it by just hammering the punch button but (And I realise this is the number one ''I disagree' cliché) if you do that you're missing the point.

    It's all about that score multiplier. Sure you can slog your way through, but really you want to make the entire fight look effortless and classy (Which the scoring system rewards). It's all about the combos and variations and take-downs. Dodge, block, counter, BAT-CLAW!! Make Batman act like Batman (So fucking awesome when you pull it off on Hard without the visual aids).

    There's a good chance I'm talking bollocks. But that's because I'm a drunken Irishman on St. Stephen's Day. But that also means that if I think Batman: Arkham Asylum is awesome and you disagree then I will fight you. I'm quite surly that way.

    For the record Batman: Arkham Asylum is awesome.

  • Roland_on_the_Ropes #10 2 years ago

    The scarecrow setpieces are possibly the greatest computer game sequences created to date. Superb game

    Finally figured out how to use the spoiler tag !
    Edited by 8 at 27/12/09 @ 05:09

  • Kostabi #11 2 years ago

    Only started playing this in the last couple of days but it easily eclipses everything else I've played this year. Utterly fantastic game.

  • SleepyDeathFred #12 2 years ago

    In an effort to bleatingly defend Nolan's Batman, it's important to remember that he's relatively new to the job still... The later Batman of most comics and the game is more lived-in and comfortable.

    Game was excellent, though as of yet I've had no desire to replay it...

  • Trevlac #13 2 years ago

    This has to be my favourite game of the year too. Kudos to RockSteady for pulling it off. Now this can be found for a bargainous £18 online there's no excuse for not picking this up
    Edited by 1 at 27/12/09 @ 08:36

  • Trevlac #14 2 years ago

    Typo at the end of the first para btw: thsse :-)

  • frankfurter209 #15 2 years ago

    Such an outstanding game, playing through I repeatedly thought back to playing Half-Life for the first time nine years ago.

  • TheNinkyNonk #16 2 years ago

    Sorry EG but these re-reviews / appraisals are a bit yawnsville in comparison to the old top 50. Shame on you for bottling it becuase of fear of what people might say. Peter Moore FFS?!

    Dumbing it down, one page at a time :(

  • BOFH_UK #17 2 years ago

    Yep, this would easily be the game of the year for me. Sucked me in and had me playing to completion without a second thought - a very rare event these days as I just don't have that much time anymore. The levels were superb, the gadgets were great and the fighting was easily the best I've played for years. And no, I'm not kidding on that one. There's such a sense of impact and weight and momentum to the fights coupled with a need to keep your head on a swivel for targets opening gun cabinets or throwing heavy objects at your cowel. Doing one of the challenge rooms and finally getting that 50 hit combo was, hands down, one of my all time favourite gaming moments. As others have said, it's all about chaining combos together, using some of the unlockable moves to take down high priority targets ASAP and, well, fighting like Batman is supposed to fight. Treat it as a 'mash the punch button' game and you miss out on a huge part of the experience.

  • figaro7 #18 2 years ago

    Gotta agree about these articles being a bit ho-hum. How about taking gamespys approach and having each editor make a top 5 or 10, including things such as biggest disappointment, etc. I understand the exclusion of the top 50, editors just cant play every game released and if you combine a pc editors with a wii editors it just doesnt work.

  • kentmonkey #19 2 years ago

    I've no idea what that Joker 'becoming the hero' section was, and I completed it, getting every artefact. I just don't remember it at all.

    Gotta agree with not really liking the new approach this year. If I wanted to read about why a game was worth buying...and finding out all of its strengths...surely I would just read the review? An article with commentary from all/lots of reviewers/contributors is entertaining and different to the usual reviews that we get throughout the year. I understand wanting to try something different, and you don't know how something is going to work until it's tried, but personally I would be happy not to see this system used again next year.

  • lucky_jim #20 2 years ago

    Top game, but I agree with those saying these articles aren't grabbing me like the old list used to!

  • bad09 #21 2 years ago

    A lot of people not liking the new format it seems, I have to agree TBH.

    Never mind readers top 50 is where it's at this year, and I reckon this is gonna be top!

  • Hypercube #22 2 years ago

    I thought the combat system was great. It felt like fighting with Batman's proper fighting style - efficient, flowing and responsive to enemies actions. The challenge rooms really drove home the difference between simple buton mashing (which never got a good score) and timing moves and blows in response to incoming attacks.

    A very good game indeed!
    Edited by 1 at 27/12/09 @ 10:37

  • udat #23 2 years ago

    It was Batman, the Dark Knight Returns in which Batman hauls a large member of the mutants gang up to the top of a tower and dangles him over it, not Year One. Both are ace books by Frank Miller though.

    I loved this game. I was completely expecting to put it at the top of my top five list this year, but then Borderlands and Assassins Creed 2 came out, and it became a lot harder to rank everything.

  • ParanoidZombie #24 2 years ago

    Batman's combat system is great in theory, but in practice it kinda falls apart if you push it too hard (while trying for the 24 medals achievement, for example). Controls aren't that responsive, and everything goes to shit everytime you get too close to a wall.

    The stealth system is exactly the other way around, though: it's an uinderused feature in story mode, but the stealth challenges are top notch, tons of ways to dispose of your enemies, the Ai is solid, level design is great, could have been one of the best stealth games ever IMO.

    Rocksteady's scarecrow is better than Nolan's, but Nolan's Joker is better then Rockstaedy's IMO. But the point is, this game is so good, it's now really part of the Batman universe, Rocksteady should be proud of themselves. If it wasn't for L4D2's dark carnival campaign, AA would be my GOTY.

  • gelf #25 2 years ago

    I was very impressed, I've been calling it metal gear batman. Shame they couldn't have made the bosses as good as that games though, they were very boring and generic. Particularly since it contains giant plant boss #187871345779.

    The scarecrow bits where excellent, very psycho mantis.

  • feistycheese #26 2 years ago

    While not my fave game of the year, I still loved this game, read the reviews with a pinch of salt, but got completely absorbed by it from the first minute of playing.

    The Joker for me has to be one of the best video game villains of the decade, whoever did his acting/voice was superb.

    And its also nice to see a British development team create such a cracking game.

  • rotmm #27 2 years ago

    @feisty, "whoever did his acting/voice was superb."

    That'll be Luke Skywalker himself.

  • byakuya83 #28 2 years ago

    This game doesn't do anything that hasn't been done before, it's not remarkable or original but simply a well-made game. I think it's great throughout but sadly it speaks volumes about the quality of its competition - what makes this game so highly rated is that it does well what it set out to do. Something many games fall short of.

  • makeamazing #29 2 years ago

    From what Ive played so far, its a great game, the only bit ive not enjoyed much is the big boss fights, seems theres very little skill involved more like luck... but still cant wait to get back onto it soon (so many games to finish from before Christmas)

  • Gibryl #30 2 years ago

    Great game...but got the save corruption near the end too. still haven't gone back to the game yet. Hate when sloppy programming breaks great experiences. Don't suppose they've patched a better save mechanism in yet??

  • Mr.DNA #31 2 years ago

    Batman was fun and engaging from beginning to end, and it was certainly one of the best games that I played this year. However, it won't be remembered, by myself at any rate, as a classic. Its various constituent parts- such as the stealth, the combat, and the exploration- were all done well, but no one aspect was particularly exceptional or original. All of Arkham Asylum's game mechanics have been done before and done better in other games; it was the skilful implementation of these mechanics that made the game seem so slick and polished. The game's pacing was excellent, and I didn't have an opportunity to become bored because the developers were constantly introducing slight tweaks to the basic gameplay that had been quickly and expertly established. It's a worthy 9/10 effort, but not as worthy as various other 9/10 efforts this year. *cough* Demon's Souls *cough*

  • Sharzam #32 2 years ago

    Iam still working thourgh the main game and i also thought my graphics card was screwed when 'that' scene came up. Totally brillant game it just shows that superheroes, spin-offs and tie ins dont have to be bad. But i will be honest i thought it was going to be till i played the demo that was.

  • gammonbanter #33 2 years ago

    Nice article, enjoyed reading it! I'm not ready for the second play through on hard, but did get all the riddler challenges! Will there ever be a brilliant superman game?

  • VMerken #34 2 years ago

    Brilliant game. Game of the year for me.

  • busboy33 #35 2 years ago

    @theSnotGoblin:

    "It's all about that score multiplier. Sure you can slog your way through, but really you want to make the entire fight look effortless and classy (Which the scoring system rewards). It's all about the combos and variations and take-downs. Dodge, block, counter, BAT-CLAW!! Make Batman act like Batman (So fucking awesome when you pull it off on Hard without the visual aids)."

    Absolutely. In this aspect it reminded me of Kameo. You could flail your way through the fights (at least on lower difficulties), but once you tried the pure battle scenarios in AA (or the co-op combat game in Kameo) you realized that there was a massive gulf between just winning the fight and doing it without a scratch.

    . . . and when the flow of combat clicked, and you started plotting 4-5 moves in advance, you FELT like a professional combatant. All the skill came down to thinking, not dexterity. I didn't need to input a complicated button/stick combo to snap some fool's arm . . . I just had to appreciate that a fool's-arm-snapping opportunity was about to present itself, and make sure I was in the right place at the right time to make them respect mah authority.
    Batman isn't struggling with fights -- he's a surgeon. To me, it was very Dark Knight (the mni-series, not the movie):

    "There are seven working defenses from this position. Three of them disarm with minimal contact. Three of them kill. One of them . . . hurts."

    Batman is GOING to win the fight -- he's Batman. But once you felt comfortable with the combat, it stopped being the sort of thing you had to "beat" and became interpretative dance. I didn't HAVE to judo throw this fool into his buddy -- I felt like it. Should I swoop down on these guys and explode on them, or perhaps I'll just step out of the shadows and make eye contact, daring them to make the worst mistake of their young life and throw a punch at me? Ah, one of them is actually charging me. I like his spunk. I'm saving him for last . . .

    I've heard alot of people decry the combat in AA . . . but I don't see too many people that aced all the combat challenges on their gamercards.

  • kentmonkey #36 2 years ago

    Let me try again...what is this about Joker becoming good in a scene? I don't remember this at all. When did that happen?

  • creepylizard #37 2 years ago

    It's certainly in my top five of the year.
    Saying that, I do generally only buy about five or six games a year..
    But, yeah, it was great and one of the only games where I'd spend time looking for collectibles and secrets..

  • onyxbox #38 2 years ago

    This game was pretty good but I didn't think it came anywhere near game of the year. It was enjoyable and well crafted but it was pretty avarage to look at, the combat was good but not great and for me it got very predictable and repeattative towarda the end.

    Don't get me wrong I liked it quite a lot but I couldn't see what all the fuss was about personally.

  • JEPC123 #39 2 years ago

    @ kentmonkey

    They mean the scene in which the player controls the Joker for a minute or two, after he shoots Batman, who is tied down on a trolley-like thing.

  • kentmonkey #40 2 years ago

    Ah. Thanks jep. For me that was a farely throwaway section, it certainly didn't register as one of the more memorable moments. Loved the game though.

  • StooMonster #41 2 years ago

    Was completely sceptical of the game when I first hear about it, and it was not on my radar at all; saw the reviews and then wanted to try out a good implementation of PhysX so purchased it. Loved it to pieces, cannot wait for the sequel.

    So many highlights, especially the Scarecrow pieces. PhysX made the game even more beautiful too.

  • Demiath #42 2 years ago

    He loved the game...and sold his copy on eBay for Christmas money? Either he's not as committed as he sounds, or someone forgot to pay his salary...

  • LordMorpeth #43 2 years ago

    This gets my GOTY vote too. Completely snuck up on me the way that Bioshock did 2 years ago, ie didn't give a monkeys until the demo came along. I would rate the game's beginning up there with Bioshock and Half Life as so enthrallingly setting the scene for greatness to come. The first Scarecrow nightmare sequence had me applauding for its sheer inventiveness; the fact that there were several more lying in wait was pure bonus, which together with the pure brilliance of the story, voice acting, combat system and overall game engine simply adds to one hell of a satisfying package. Its existence proves as a huge kick up the arse to other developers for how to deliver a great combat system (AC2), how to reboot an existing franchise (H3:oDST), whilst wrapped in an engrossing and semi-plausible narrative (MW2),

    I personally don't have great hopes for the sequel. I hope I'm wrong, but producing that same amount of brilliance in 12 months feels a challenge.
    Edited by 1 at 27/12/09 @ 22:37

  • organica #44 2 years ago

    Anyone who says the combat system was easy or button-mashing only clearly hasn't either played the game on hard or seriously tried the freeflow challenges. Which is, y'know, fine. But it takes quite a lot of practice, timing and tactics to get through those.

    I've seen a couple of people down on the voice acting for Batman and Harley, but for me as a fan of the DCAU it's great to have the actors reprising their roles - since Harley started out in the cartoon before making the transition to the comics, I couldn't imagine her with another voice. And I love Kevin Conroy's Batman. Grim, determined and all that. Who else you gonna get? Adam West?

    Of course, Mark Hamill goes without speaking. Different takes on the character, but I like Hammill as much as Ledger in the role.

  • harrisimo #45 2 years ago

    Playing this at the moment and loving it. "Polish and passion" are exactly the ingredients that elevate it above many other, superficially similar games. It doesn't do anything particularly original, but it does everything with style, and every aspect of the design is spot-on.

    The scarecrow levels with Batman walking through his own nightmares are particularly well done.

  • Rack #46 2 years ago

    Who else you gonna get? Adam West?

    Probably the only thing that could save the sequel :)

    Aside from another year in development of course

  • muscleblade #47 2 years ago

    The combat is amazing. I just couldnt stop doing the challenges until i got gold on every one.

  • SirScratchalot #48 2 years ago

    Best combat system in a brawler ever. Still replaying the challenge rooms over and over and over months after. When you get in the zone, it's just fantastic.

  • raion #49 2 years ago

    [link url=http://www.escapistmagazine .com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/926-Batman-Arkham-Asylum
    ]    http://ww w.escapistmagazine.com/videos/v...[/link]

    this pretty much sums it. spoilers ahead.
    Edited by 1 at 28/12/09 @ 11:22

  • b00n #50 2 years ago

    Nice reads, but missing the old Top 50. Don't care about the fact fanboys or pubs didn't like them. We did!

  • DeltaBravoNiner #51 2 years ago

    Best news yet- for those of you who dont yet have it, Tesco are currently selling for £16! Bought today, played a bit and am very impressed!

  • stryker1121 #52 2 years ago

    Couldn't believe how good this game was...most superhero games (some of the recent Spidey titles for example) don't have this kind of polish...getting Conroy and Hamill to play Bats and Joker respectively was a brilliant stroke and showed me how serioous Rocksteady was about getting the world just right...Combat is awesome, and you will get your butt kicked on "hard" difficulty, which elimantes the indicators over the henchmen's heads. Play this one on hard, fellas, it's far more satisfying. GOTY w/o a doubt for me.

  • MetalDog #53 2 years ago

    I really don't understand the people decrying the combat system - it's the best melee I've ever come across. Once you get your head around it, you are never, ever button bashing. Every punch, kick, throw, block and takedown you mean to do. Pulling off a long string of combos is the most satisfying thing ever and makes you feel like Batman - which is the whole point.