Spring-Loaded
Member
I was due for replay of all these Arkham games. I had played through each at least a couple times, but spent a lot of time just running through challenge maps for each, and dicking around in the maps of City and Knight.
While my overall opinions wouldn't be changed by these replays, I did gain some greater appreciation for certain aspects of each title.
Arkham Asylum
The intro for this one is still great, escorting Joker as he's pulled deeper into the asylum. Nowhere near as impressive as it was years ago, but still a solid introduction. Seeing what is a really typical scenario in the Batman mythos realized in video game form was really exciting, and the path taken makes the asylum feel expansive and labyrinthine due to all the twists and turns. Having played the game, and recognizing the areas you must pass through made it seem smaller. Still cool though.
Getting into the actual game, the early encounters are super, super basic. Like, three to five guys in a big-ass room with gargoyles you can always rely on. The core gameplay for those segments is still engaging, but a lot of the predator segments in the game, even by the time they start using booby trapped gargoyles, aren't demanding at all. Even after the initial three-guy predator room, there's no real change to those moments until you revisit that room for the initial gargoyle w/ bombs thing. Coupled with how limited the player options are, these segments left me wanting this time around. In challenges maps with certain specific criteria that needs to be met, they shine more, but in the main game they felt too easy, yet too simple too. They needed better progression from enemies throughout, maybe mix in snipers along with the booby-trapped gargoyles. More dudes alone wasn't enough.
The hand-to-hand combat is even more limited. I remember playing the hell out of the in-store demo for the combat challenge, and really getting into keeping a combo going. The fights throughout are pretty short, and it's still fun punching dudes' heads (or crotches!) into the ground. Most of the fights are short enough to keep that real lack of any depth or player agency from being a problem, and thankfully most of the longer ones introduce the two additional enemy types (titan thug and knife bro), along with weapon boxes. The final gauntlet is just too long though and doesn't feel any more epic than all the other long-ass fights (like the later one with the three elevators' worth of dudes). This aspect of the game didn't hold up as well as the predator gameplay imo. Using the bat claw during fights feels pointless since the cape stun does the same with less chance of a broken combo. The titan thugs often can't be beaten while retaining a combo since they have to do that PS1 Spider-Man Rhino-style charge before becoming vulnerable, not that matters much, but still. None of the fights standout, in the moment or in retrospect, since they're all the same. Fighting the titan thugs and Bane all feel the same, fighting normal dudes definitely all feels the same since the only weapons they get are bats and guns, the knife dudes barely mix it up and the deranged patients are rarely mixed with normal enemies (and they're a pretty fucked up depiction of mentally ill people that never seems to be properly addressed).
My biggest qualm with the game is all the portions in between the enemy encounters. Moving throughout the island generally involves just hoofing it on foot. There's pretty frequently new locations, but all too often, the locations, even those that have interesting design, are just window dressing. It wasn't that engaging getting around, and the only ways that's mixed up throughout are a couple underground areas in which the grapnel can't be used, some ventilation shafts, and that's about it. The standout areas of traversal are the cliff hopping near Batman's mini-Batcave where you actually get to glide around a decent bit, the couple rooms filled with Joker gas (but only one required some thought to get through) and the areas with Poison Ivy's toxic spores (but those aren't that elaborate). Even during my replay of the game back in '09, the progression seemed a bit empty. Now, eight years later, it's even more dull. There's so little going on in the asylum and what once seemed like a place teeming with life now feels really dead. That becomes worse with any unscripted backtracking where the game doesn't have any enemies to encounter. Even the scripted backtracking only ever adds a few scant enemies to fight. It got to be a real slog, and compared to something like Metroid, there's nothing interesting about any given room or overall location—no need to figure out where to go, all new gadgets are given at scripted points and there's never any real reason to backtrack on your own throughout the game. Just go wherever the game tells you because there's nothing going on elsewhere. And it takes forever to get from one end of the map to the other because of the doors, vents, etc. There are no shortcuts gained, and the way the game unfolds, there'd be no use for them—that in itself isn't bad, but doesn't make it like a Metroid game.
The only other type of encounter were the boss ones, and they just don't hold up from a gameplay perspective. When I first got to Killer Croc's lair, I was really on edge, and I didn't know that crouching lets you move real quick without alerting him. It did have a good build up—seeing Croc climb out of that elevator during the opening sequence, seeing him pop up at that one locked door, knowing that he was loose in the sewers, etc. Replaying it, it was still somewhat intense, as anything with one-hit kills will be, but it went on too long for its own good. The whole "with time to plan" and "unexplained plan" thing with Batman placing the explosive gel at the mouth of his lair was and still is cool. It helps with portraying Batman is even more badass than the player (similar to certain aspects of the combat and predator gameplay). The game was really lacking moments like that though, and too often reduces Batman to being reactionary and just a brute, though the circumstances of an unexpected asylum takeover helps with that (though Batman should've had a much better idea of the shit that was going down).
Scarecrow's little obstacle courses were pretty underwhelming, even at the time, but the first hallucination sequence is still really good. While it's clear Batman's under influence of the fear toxin, the mogue scene was still genuinely creepy, and seeing the trippy hellscape appear where there was once a wall is wild. Poison Ivy's fight was just weak, same with Bane which was just a rehash of the titan thug. Ivy at least was a unique scenario, but just tossing endless batarangs is kind of lame. The depictions of Ivy and Bane really suck though, and having Croc be that much of a beast that Batman can't go up against him at all is pretty meh. I really liked the Batman: The Animated Series episode where he and Batman face off in the sewer where Croc has an advantage, but doesn't require Batman to run from him. Something better could've been done for them all, but eh. They're not even decent typical video game boss battles, and didn't hold up at the time either.
The collectibles weren't fun to get. The Riddler trophies so rarely required any thought on how to get them, and just blowing up a wall or pulling down a vent cover got old. The riddles where you have to scan the answer were pretty easy. The question mark alignment was interesting however, even if in practice it was never very engaging. The Arkham Cyphers were cool, and have a better sense of progression since they tell a story that actually goes somewhere. I didn't complete either during this replay since it isn't fun, especially when I knew what was going to happen with both, but I do consider the Arkham cypher to be worth getting for newcomers. The Riddler trophies don't become and more engaging to collect ever, and the conclusion is just a sound file of Riddler getting caught.
The final boss battle is horrid, and was real bad at the time. I remember hoping that they wouldn't just have Joker on Titan as the final boss after learning about the Titan plot, and that's exactly what they did. Completely terrible final encounter through and through. The whole Titan plot was pretty straightforward super villain stuff, the fight itself in no way plays to what makes Joker a compelling villain, it was a hideous/absurd design even in-universe (Joker's vertebrae is sticking out his back and he has a mohawk...?), it's mechanically terrible as you don't even fight him, and the only potentially redeeming aspect (Joker wanting to show Batman as being a "monster" just like him) is relegated to a few lines of dialogue. The twist that the Warden was insane and believed himself to be the reincarnation of Amadeus Arkham hearkens to the comic A Serious House on Serious Earth—however, it's relegated to a collect-a-thon with the Arkham cyphers. It should've just been a part of the main game and its ending because the actual final encounters blows, and the ending itself is just "welp, we caught the bad guys, Joker's back to normal and Two-Face is robbing a bank" which leaves a lot to be desired. Without the existence of a sequel, one could fairly assume nothing of much relevance happened after that ending. Revealing that Joker was trying, in his own twisted way, to show Batman even the Warden was crazy and that he tried torturing/killing inmates would've been much better to end on. The story mostly entirely straightforward, with the presence of Bane being the lone surprise (though pre-release material showed him off). Nothing really happens outside of the deaths of two of the three unique-to-Arkhamverse characters. The plot just spins its wheels until the end, and then the ending is completely insubstantial.
In short:
Trailblazing at the time, did a good job realizing Batman's physical abilities in a 3D game Was a solid Batman game, not merely a good platformer/shmup with a Batman theme
But:
World design seems haphazard and plays like an imitation-Metroidvania without any of the stuff that makes the Metroidvania genre special
Final boss is the worst it could've possibly been
Batman says stuff like "I eat punks like these for breakfast" and has weird delivery throughout
Game does too little with its gameplay throughout, and the only sense of progression is "now fight even more dudes"
Don't think I'll go back to this any time soon. Or ever.
Arkham City post
I also played Origins and Knight recently, so I'll add stuff for each. when I get around to it
While my overall opinions wouldn't be changed by these replays, I did gain some greater appreciation for certain aspects of each title.
Arkham Asylum
The intro for this one is still great, escorting Joker as he's pulled deeper into the asylum. Nowhere near as impressive as it was years ago, but still a solid introduction. Seeing what is a really typical scenario in the Batman mythos realized in video game form was really exciting, and the path taken makes the asylum feel expansive and labyrinthine due to all the twists and turns. Having played the game, and recognizing the areas you must pass through made it seem smaller. Still cool though.
Getting into the actual game, the early encounters are super, super basic. Like, three to five guys in a big-ass room with gargoyles you can always rely on. The core gameplay for those segments is still engaging, but a lot of the predator segments in the game, even by the time they start using booby trapped gargoyles, aren't demanding at all. Even after the initial three-guy predator room, there's no real change to those moments until you revisit that room for the initial gargoyle w/ bombs thing. Coupled with how limited the player options are, these segments left me wanting this time around. In challenges maps with certain specific criteria that needs to be met, they shine more, but in the main game they felt too easy, yet too simple too. They needed better progression from enemies throughout, maybe mix in snipers along with the booby-trapped gargoyles. More dudes alone wasn't enough.
The hand-to-hand combat is even more limited. I remember playing the hell out of the in-store demo for the combat challenge, and really getting into keeping a combo going. The fights throughout are pretty short, and it's still fun punching dudes' heads (or crotches!) into the ground. Most of the fights are short enough to keep that real lack of any depth or player agency from being a problem, and thankfully most of the longer ones introduce the two additional enemy types (titan thug and knife bro), along with weapon boxes. The final gauntlet is just too long though and doesn't feel any more epic than all the other long-ass fights (like the later one with the three elevators' worth of dudes). This aspect of the game didn't hold up as well as the predator gameplay imo. Using the bat claw during fights feels pointless since the cape stun does the same with less chance of a broken combo. The titan thugs often can't be beaten while retaining a combo since they have to do that PS1 Spider-Man Rhino-style charge before becoming vulnerable, not that matters much, but still. None of the fights standout, in the moment or in retrospect, since they're all the same. Fighting the titan thugs and Bane all feel the same, fighting normal dudes definitely all feels the same since the only weapons they get are bats and guns, the knife dudes barely mix it up and the deranged patients are rarely mixed with normal enemies (and they're a pretty fucked up depiction of mentally ill people that never seems to be properly addressed).
My biggest qualm with the game is all the portions in between the enemy encounters. Moving throughout the island generally involves just hoofing it on foot. There's pretty frequently new locations, but all too often, the locations, even those that have interesting design, are just window dressing. It wasn't that engaging getting around, and the only ways that's mixed up throughout are a couple underground areas in which the grapnel can't be used, some ventilation shafts, and that's about it. The standout areas of traversal are the cliff hopping near Batman's mini-Batcave where you actually get to glide around a decent bit, the couple rooms filled with Joker gas (but only one required some thought to get through) and the areas with Poison Ivy's toxic spores (but those aren't that elaborate). Even during my replay of the game back in '09, the progression seemed a bit empty. Now, eight years later, it's even more dull. There's so little going on in the asylum and what once seemed like a place teeming with life now feels really dead. That becomes worse with any unscripted backtracking where the game doesn't have any enemies to encounter. Even the scripted backtracking only ever adds a few scant enemies to fight. It got to be a real slog, and compared to something like Metroid, there's nothing interesting about any given room or overall location—no need to figure out where to go, all new gadgets are given at scripted points and there's never any real reason to backtrack on your own throughout the game. Just go wherever the game tells you because there's nothing going on elsewhere. And it takes forever to get from one end of the map to the other because of the doors, vents, etc. There are no shortcuts gained, and the way the game unfolds, there'd be no use for them—that in itself isn't bad, but doesn't make it like a Metroid game.
The only other type of encounter were the boss ones, and they just don't hold up from a gameplay perspective. When I first got to Killer Croc's lair, I was really on edge, and I didn't know that crouching lets you move real quick without alerting him. It did have a good build up—seeing Croc climb out of that elevator during the opening sequence, seeing him pop up at that one locked door, knowing that he was loose in the sewers, etc. Replaying it, it was still somewhat intense, as anything with one-hit kills will be, but it went on too long for its own good. The whole "with time to plan" and "unexplained plan" thing with Batman placing the explosive gel at the mouth of his lair was and still is cool. It helps with portraying Batman is even more badass than the player (similar to certain aspects of the combat and predator gameplay). The game was really lacking moments like that though, and too often reduces Batman to being reactionary and just a brute, though the circumstances of an unexpected asylum takeover helps with that (though Batman should've had a much better idea of the shit that was going down).
Scarecrow's little obstacle courses were pretty underwhelming, even at the time, but the first hallucination sequence is still really good. While it's clear Batman's under influence of the fear toxin, the mogue scene was still genuinely creepy, and seeing the trippy hellscape appear where there was once a wall is wild. Poison Ivy's fight was just weak, same with Bane which was just a rehash of the titan thug. Ivy at least was a unique scenario, but just tossing endless batarangs is kind of lame. The depictions of Ivy and Bane really suck though, and having Croc be that much of a beast that Batman can't go up against him at all is pretty meh. I really liked the Batman: The Animated Series episode where he and Batman face off in the sewer where Croc has an advantage, but doesn't require Batman to run from him. Something better could've been done for them all, but eh. They're not even decent typical video game boss battles, and didn't hold up at the time either.
The collectibles weren't fun to get. The Riddler trophies so rarely required any thought on how to get them, and just blowing up a wall or pulling down a vent cover got old. The riddles where you have to scan the answer were pretty easy. The question mark alignment was interesting however, even if in practice it was never very engaging. The Arkham Cyphers were cool, and have a better sense of progression since they tell a story that actually goes somewhere. I didn't complete either during this replay since it isn't fun, especially when I knew what was going to happen with both, but I do consider the Arkham cypher to be worth getting for newcomers. The Riddler trophies don't become and more engaging to collect ever, and the conclusion is just a sound file of Riddler getting caught.
The final boss battle is horrid, and was real bad at the time. I remember hoping that they wouldn't just have Joker on Titan as the final boss after learning about the Titan plot, and that's exactly what they did. Completely terrible final encounter through and through. The whole Titan plot was pretty straightforward super villain stuff, the fight itself in no way plays to what makes Joker a compelling villain, it was a hideous/absurd design even in-universe (Joker's vertebrae is sticking out his back and he has a mohawk...?), it's mechanically terrible as you don't even fight him, and the only potentially redeeming aspect (Joker wanting to show Batman as being a "monster" just like him) is relegated to a few lines of dialogue. The twist that the Warden was insane and believed himself to be the reincarnation of Amadeus Arkham hearkens to the comic A Serious House on Serious Earth—however, it's relegated to a collect-a-thon with the Arkham cyphers. It should've just been a part of the main game and its ending because the actual final encounters blows, and the ending itself is just "welp, we caught the bad guys, Joker's back to normal and Two-Face is robbing a bank" which leaves a lot to be desired. Without the existence of a sequel, one could fairly assume nothing of much relevance happened after that ending. Revealing that Joker was trying, in his own twisted way, to show Batman even the Warden was crazy and that he tried torturing/killing inmates would've been much better to end on. The story mostly entirely straightforward, with the presence of Bane being the lone surprise (though pre-release material showed him off). Nothing really happens outside of the deaths of two of the three unique-to-Arkhamverse characters. The plot just spins its wheels until the end, and then the ending is completely insubstantial.
In short:
Trailblazing at the time, did a good job realizing Batman's physical abilities in a 3D game Was a solid Batman game, not merely a good platformer/shmup with a Batman theme
But:
World design seems haphazard and plays like an imitation-Metroidvania without any of the stuff that makes the Metroidvania genre special
Final boss is the worst it could've possibly been
Batman says stuff like "I eat punks like these for breakfast" and has weird delivery throughout
Game does too little with its gameplay throughout, and the only sense of progression is "now fight even more dudes"
Don't think I'll go back to this any time soon. Or ever.
Arkham City post
I also played Origins and Knight recently, so I'll add stuff for each. when I get around to it
