Very rarely does a comic based game give you the sense that you are actually in the shoes of the hero. Batman: Arkham Asylum delivers that rare feeling in a compelling and entertaining way. Arkham Asylum is a creepy, somewhat gothic complex that is home to the various super criminals that populate Batman's world. An elaborate trap by the Joker leaves you trapped on the island and in a rough spot. Escaping will require the use of all of the Dark Knight's gadgets, martial arts and detective skills. Getting through what is basically the worst night of Batman's life is a fun experience that will leave you wanting more.

The game opens with Batman personally escorting Joker into the facility. Shortly after arrival, he escapes, leaving you trapped and tasked with saving the asylum's warden, Police Commissioner Gordon, and countless more from the Clown Prince of Crime and his friends. In time, you will discover that Joker is using an updated formula of venom - a kind of super steroid that turns humans into Hyde like monsters - to develop an army of fiends to wreak havoc on Gotham City. In your attempts to stop him, you will run into a few old friends with their own sets of plans. By the time you reach the game's conclusion, at least seven hours will have been spent fighting through thugs, mutant plants and a few of Bruce's oldest foes. The subplots related to each boss give the narrative an excellent complexity that drives the story boldly towards its conclusion.

Being charged by a mutated super human can't be pleasant, but hey, it sure is fun.

Combat in Arkham Asylum is fully realized and deceptively simple. Using only a few buttons, Batman is capable of stringing together combinations that are simultaneously devastating and fun to watch. As you gain experience and special abilities, your moves will become even more complex and suddenly the button mashing becomes a strategic martial experience. Eventually, you will be stringing together combinations twenty moves deep while employing your Batarang, Bat Claw and even an occasional dose of exploding gel to creatively knock out Joker's cronies. This works well for most enemies, but as expected, bullets are Batman's great weakness.

You will therefore be required to use some excellent stealth tactics to take down armed goons. Each area has some great ways take care of foes from the shadows, whether the method is through ventilation ducts, atop hanging gargoyles, underneath grates in the floor, or even with the aid of detective vision that gives you the ability to see enemies through other objects. There are innumerable ways of eliminating those who would stand in your way. In fact, you eventually begin to strategically take down an enemy in one manner simply to set up a different attack on one of his pals. Leaving an enemy hanging by his ankle and then popping out of a grate to silently take down the guy who comes to help him never gets old. Even so, the best variety that Arkham Asylum offers takes place during the boss fights. Getting to fight against many of Batman's most prolific enemies is quite the challenge. Each character requires a unique and interesting strategy that will leave you to solve small puzzles, fight, and use stealth skills in one extended fight. Bouts with Scarecrow are especially noteworthy, as they employ a mixture of platforming and pure creepiness.

The spooky atmosphere is not just present when fending off scarecrow. The dark nature of the asylum stands out when Batman is tasked to follow forensic trails, search out hidden passageways, explore sewers, and even engage in a bit of modernized lock picking. Then there are the riddles to be dealt with. The Riddler has set up 240 puzzles in Arkham, and while solving them is not mandatory, it is quite fun to do so. The only drawback here is that some puzzles are presented at points in the game when you will not be able to solve them, and will leave you backtracking later if you are a completionist. These riddles often lead to a myriad of unlockables, ranging from character trophies to interesting audio tapes of psychiatric interviews with the criminals.

Another optional way to expand your game is by playing Challenge Mode, which has two types of challenges: Combat and Predator. In Combat levels, you must fend off waves of opponents while trying to string together extensive combos for bonus points. Predator tasks push you to silently clear a room of Joker's gunmen in the shortest time possible. With online leaderboards, these mini-games add a good bit of replay value, though there is a repetitive aspect to it that occasionally puts a damper on the action. A sort of routine is established when fighting in each of the different styles, and in time, it can get a little old.

X-Ray vision is cool, but the environments themselves are even cooler.

The graphics and sound are of such quality that you will soon forget any repetition in the gameplay simply because you will be too busy admiring the space around you. Environments are atmospheric and filled with small details from the comics that bring the Asylum to life. The visuals are artistically and technically superb, with each boss wonderfully rendered; even the run of the mill enemies look quite good. Things look so spectacular that you will regret walking around in detective mode, which minimizes the amount of color you can see. The sound is executed just as well as the visuals are. Voice acting is spectacular, with Mark Hamill's Joker standing out among the other considerable talent within the game. The music is great as well: creepy, foreboding and everything else it needs to be. In Arkham Asylum, the presentation really enhances the experience about as much as graphics and sound can.

The flaws in Batman: Arkham Asylum limit themselves to some repetition and a lack of multiplayer. Considering that the game is full of quality action and surrounded by a unique and interesting story, those missteps are easy to overlook. This atmospheric, action-packed romp through the nuthouse allows you to truly play like Batman. Very few video games provide that sense of immersion, so this one is definitely worth your time and money.