Batman: Arkham Asylum is a unique adventure featuring quick action and large-scale fighting scenes, performed in a dark, survival horror-style setting from a close third-person perspective. The game opens with Batman delivering the Joker to Arkham Asylum, Gotham City’s mental institution for criminally ill patients. An army of thugs and many lethal convicts help the villain set a trap and take over the facility. The twisted tale unfolds in a free-roaming recreation of the institution and the surrounding island. In addition to stalking Arkham’s hallways, Batman may explore the outside regions, utilizing his equipment to reach high points and glide safely back down. The three-button combat control system is designed for free-flowing techniques and chains of combo strikes against numerous opponents. It is ideal for the game’s one-versus-many fighting approach. Batman also carries a belt full of handy tools, like x-ray scanners and chemical tracers, that allow him to see through walls and follow invisible trails. Stealthy prowling provides location and surprise advantages, rewarding the hero’s prudence and patience with one-hit takedowns. Combat, exploration, and experimental experience allow Batman to design superior equipment that is more finely matched to the tasks.
Along with the Joker and his clever ally in evil, Harley Quinn, Batman must contend with other super-powered asylum patients like Bane, Killer Croc, and Zsasz. As is customary, both wits and muscle are necessary to decipher the Joker’s outrageously clever strategy. Paul Dini, the writer and producer of Batman: The Animated Series and Batman Beyond, wrote the plot for Batman: Arkham Asylum. Voice actors from the animated series include Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, and Arleen Sorkin. Rocksteady Studios created the 2006 first-person shooter Urban Chaos: Riot Response for Eidos. The Game of the Year Edition of Arkham Asylum includes the whole game and all of the original release’s features, as well as three-dimensional effects using TriOviz-brand stereoscopic technology and two pairs of special glasses for use with the game. The 3D technology is compatible with any standard television or monitor and requires no additional equipment. The GOTY re-release also includes four other challenge maps that were not featured in the original editions of the game.
