Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009) Review

Ahead of the upcoming Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, I thought I would go back and play the Arkham games that lead into that spin off. This starts with the first game in this franchise Batman: Arkham Asylum, I played the game when it originally came out and have replayed it as part of the Return to Arkham remaster recently and here is my review for the game. The premise of the games sees The Joker taking over Arkham Asylum, Batman has one night to figure out his plan and stop him and the other super criminals from taking over. 

Characters

Reprising his role from Batman: The Animated Series, the late great Kevin Conroy reprises his role as Batman and he is phenomenal here. He just fits the role incredibly well, his stoic nature nails the quiet confidence that he has. It really feels like this is an experienced Batman and that he has a built in relationship with all the other characters in the universe. For me, Conroy is in the discussion for the best ever Batman and that is no different here. 

Also reprising his role is the tremendous Mark Hamill as The Joker. He is such a star here, Joker is amazingly well realised and comes straight out of a comic book or the animated series this game is heavily inspired by. He has so much recorded dialogue here that you probably here him more then Batman and it is written and delivered incredibly well. The two of them are amazing together and the best part of the game. 

This game is filled with comic book characters that are all handled really well. Harley Quinn is once again voiced by the late Arleen Sorkin and she is also brilliant. She is really playful and evil as she should be and Sorkin is just what every other actress who has played the role has had to live up too. 

Other characters such as Scarecrow, Killer Croc and Poison Ivy are given quite a lot of screen time as secondary villains and they are a lot of fun. The boss battles are all different and unique and fit the characters really well. 

Story 

The story is really good. It is really interesting seeing Batman work his way around Arkham Asylum searching for ways to stop Joker and the other villains. It is the atmosphere created by the location and the feel of the narrative that drives the game through. The relationship between Batman and Joker is at the forefront and even though they only share a few scenes together you really understand the dynamic. 

Side Content

Unlike the other Arkham games, Arkham Asylum is not an open world game and is a more linear experience. It has some challenge maps where you can play as either Batman or Joker and they are entertaining to play and I definitely got a kick out of it but there isn't that much depth to it. The collectibles and Riddler trophies in the main game are just window dressing to the overall game. 

Gameplay

The gameplay for this game actually turned out to be revolutionary, it inspired so many other games to use combat styles just like this game and it is good here. Batman moves pretty quickly and is able to take down a group of thugs pretty easily which is fun to play as. The boss battles are mostly fun too with Poison Ivy and Scarecrow being unique and fun to play. It is just there are some issues with the combat in that I found it hard to string combos together at times and it feels like this is the start of this idea and will be improved in later games. Also the final boss battle falls really flat and doesn't feel like a boss battle that fits this games high quality. 

Style

With the remastered version, this game looks beautiful. The character models (Apart from Gordon) all look fantastic and the cutscenes flow incredibly well. As I mentioned above, the overall feel and intimacy towards this location using sound and style is one of the best highlights of the game. 

Overall

Overall, Batman: Arkham Asylum is a great game that is a clear starting point for a new video game Batman franchise and I had a great time with it and any fan of this franchise needs to take the time to play this game. 

Rating - 8/10