Well, put me in a tacky purple suit and call me Jack Nicholson! Arkham Asylum's actually pretty awesome! Hate me forever but there was a time earlier this year I was convinced it would suck. Turns out it's a wonderful combination of stealth, brawling and puzzle-solving that must be played.
The game starts with Batman speeding through the streets of Gotham with Joker tied up in the back seat. Once he delivers him to Arkham's front door, a neat in-game sequence starts where you walk with the security and get to check out the surroundings of Arkham's Intensive Treatment facility, with an appearance by the somewhat lesser-known Batman villain, Killer Croc. As usual, the Joker has an incredibly convoluted plan already. He releases all the prisoners, captures Warden Quincy Sharp, and puts himself in charge of the Asylum. Now it's up to you to put a stop to the madness.
You'll first get to check out the fighting mechanics, which starts out simply with just attack, counter and stun buttons. The animations are fantastic and as fun to watch as they are to control. Most players can get by with just those basic moves, but more self-motivated players will level up and learn to work in batarangs and special moves to really build up their combos. Big combos get you extra XP in story mode, and are a necessity for earning medals in challenge mode.
Then there's stealth. Armed thugs are very dangerous and take you out quickly. You have to pace yourself and outsmart them. What's great is that you're very vulnerable while at the same time, you have an almost god-like hold over your enemies. You can use all sorts of gadgets to get around, and use detective mode to spot enemies easily and isolate them. Throw a batarang to draw their attention, sneak up behind them while they look the wrong way and knock him out silently; glide kick right onto a guy's head; pop out from under a floor grate or even string them up from a statue on the wall. There are a lot of ways to take out baddies and it feels great when a plan comes together. And it's even more fun when there's one guy left and he's too busy trying not to crap his pants to really do anything when he sees you.
Outside the battlefield, there are a fair number of collectibles. The Riddler has given you 240 little challenges to solve. The couple that are actual riddles involve finding and scanning certain objects that answer them. For example, one rooms riddle is "Are you going to take your hats off to Harley?" You can find a small booth where the Joker's favorite henchwoman Harley Quinn was staying before the takeover, which contains the cap from her original costume. Scan that and get your points. Aside from those you have the trophies hidden in nooks and crannies. Then there are the very Bioshock-ish audio files of interviews with asylum patients and messages left behind by the spirit of the Asylum's founder himself, Dr. Arkham. None of these tie directly into the story, but each series of interviews tell a story all their own and Arkham's messages lead to a very satisfying plot twist surrounding a key character and a mystery the player really has to solve on his own.
Speaking of Bioshock, the environments certainly deserve their comparisons to everyone's favorite steampunk underwater dystopia of Rapture. They're well-designed and look great from the blooming Botanical Gardens (I know what you're thinking. Yes. That's where you fight Poison Ivy) to the aging Arkham Mansion to the run-down sewer system. The scenes are well-directed and well-acted, featuring voice actors from the animated series. But the coolest parts are definitely when the Scarecrow's fear gas infects Batman and you experience trippy and haunting hallucinations. Not a lot in the way of gameplay, but they are very memorable, especially the last time this happens (mostly 'cause the first two are just like "boo-hoo, my parents died.") But none of them are as scary and tense as your venture into Killer Croc's lair.
Not all is perfect though. Enemy variety is lacking. There are these mutant thugs that are really just clones of your boss fight with Bane. If they're supposed to be bosses, there are too many to keep you on your toes; if they're supposed to be just stronger enemies, like Cerberuses (Cerberi?) in God of War, there aren't enough to justify having them. And again like Bioshock, they run out of ideas for bosses near the end. You've fought dozens of bosses like Poison Ivy. And beating Joker is rather simple. Though, while I do advocate that the player should score the last hit on the final boss, rather than it happening in a scene, Batman does give the Joker the most badass non-Falcon Punch in recent games.
Those faults however, are almost completely overshadowed by the game's strengths. If you're an action gamer who could enjoy a pinch of stealth, a trip to the asylum is just what the doctor ordered.
Here's a list of Xbox 360/PS3 games that would be great on the Nintendo Switch (at a modest, reasonable price of course). These games could really flourish if given a new lease on life, introducing a new generation to their greatness.
I'm sure R* knows the Nintendo Switch install base and probably dont really care to port over more R* games to the Nintendo Switch tho i gotta say playing GTA4 & RDR1 on the go on the Nintendo Switch would be dope
I would buy Lollipop Chainsaw, Alice Madness Returns, Enslaved, Splatter House, Brutal Legends, Dante's Inferno, and Dead Space for sure if they were ported to the Switch.
Deus Ex Human Revolution would be a great title to The Holy Grail of All Consoles aka The Nintendo Switch*. Also Haze Remastered, Grand Theft Auto 4 and 5 Remastered, Silent Hill HD Collection, Max Payne 3 Remastered, Call of Duty World At War Remastered, The Orange Box Remastered, Halo Master Chief Collection, Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 Remastered, Metal Gear Solid 4 Remastered, Afro Samurai Remastered, Demons Souls Remastered, Xmen Destiny Remastered, Jack and Daxter Collection, Def Jam Icon Remake, Folklore Remastered, Spiderman Edge of Time Remastered, Persona 5 remastered, the list goes on. (*Best Selling Console of All Time)
Seriously? Isn't it time Nintendo make a Switch successor? I mean they have the sales and money.
"From winks & nods to straight-up gameplay-altering sequences, video games often break the fourth wall. Read on for some of the best moments." Mike @ Thumb Culture
Open world games are usually praised these days for their freedom, but what about linear games? Will Heath shares why linearity is important in video games, too, and why he prefers them over open world games.
Linearity is fine so long as everything else is good = characters, music, story and gameplay.
Great write-up! I've always found it funny when people complain about linear games. Have they never watched a movie, read a book, listened to an album? This article is point-on. It allows developers to really add intricate detail, flesh out specific characters and story. I really wish more games would go back to linearity and less fluff.
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