Arkham Asylum Demo

[Setzer]

Well, I picked the demo off of Steam, and so far I like what I see.

The combat system worked very well for me. I had no trouble moving or attacking. It's a very simple setup, WASD for movement and left click for an attack. Right click is for a counterattack, and the opportunity for one is easy to spot, when a henchman gets Spidey sense style lines over his head.
Rather then having precise controls for fancy combos, the special attacks are performed automatically, becoming more elaborate as you beat down a particular target.
I was also pleased to find that the Batarangs had an auto aim. When I saw the gameplay videos I was worried I'd have to manually aim each one.

My favorite part by far was when I was in a room, hiding up among the ceiling statuary while unnerving the Joker's men. There were 5 of them total, all armed, and in this game you tread softly around men with guns. The first I took out silently, then I got up top thanks to a conveniently placed gargoyle and my grappling hook. I noticed that getting around with the grappling hook was also very easy as well. Sometimes I was able to use it without even having to look where I was shooting towards, and considering it's the quickest way to get out of a henchman's crosshairs, it really helps not having to aim. From there on in it was pure predatory fun, shooting around the ceiling and picking the men off one by one, watching them grow more and more nervous as their numbers shrank, much like the warehouse scene from Batman Begins.

The game itself looks magnificent, but computer users might need a modern machine to play it. I had to update my NVidia driver to get the game to run properly, and I have a very powerful laptop. The dark look of the Asylum fits perfectly with the setting. If Shumaker is ever allowed to make another Batman movie, he should be strapped down Clockwork Orange style and made to look at the artwork for this game. I don't like Harley's redesign, it looks ridiculous. To be honest, I think her clown outfit looks stupid too, but at least she didn't look like a reject from a JRPG.

Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, and Arleen Sorkin are in their usual top form with the voice work. Even though this game seems to draw more from the comics for its background material, I kept thinking of the animated series while playing. I was a bit miffed that they didn't get Tara Strong to do the voice of Oracle, but this is more a personal preference and it in no way makes the game any less fun.

In short, get the demo if you can, and Steam is letting you preorder the game itself too.

[General Zod]

I thought it was a little strange you couldn't jump, but otherwise the demo played very well. My only concern is how repetitive the full game is and whether or not it's too short, but I'm looking forward to the full version.

[white_rabbit]

It looks to be a great game, although I hope theres a lot more stuff to do than the demo showcased, despite how fun it was, because I can see it getting old pretty fast.

Batarangs were fun, and judging by what my brother was doing five minutes ago, apparently theres some limited guidance !

On the Xbox, double tapping A lets you dodge/jump in some fashion.

[Rahvin]

The demo looked beautiful on my PC. The gameplay itself was extremely entertaining - I enjoyed the "detective mode" mechanics, even if they seem overly simplistic. They add to the feel of the game and don't get in the way of the action.

It definitely felt like a Batman game - this isn't a Rambo-style run-in-and-murder-everyone beat-em-up. Neither does it feel like a Splinter Cell-esque stealth game. There's a great mix of the two along with a bunch of Batman-flavor attacks, like dropping upside down from a gargoyle to silently take out an enemy below, or gliding with your cape into a powerful kick. Damage hurts, so combat is quick and brutal.

Definitely something I'm picking up.

[Erik von Nein]

It could be fun. The biggest problem I had with the game was how the characters were animated. They seemed arbitrarily wobbly at times, or stiff. It was just strange. I did like that they got the voice actors from B:TAS to voice for the game.

Combat could be fun. There were quiet a few "takedown" types depending on where you were in relation to whoever you were after. Though, the amount of gargoyle statues in the place became kind of absurd even in the demo.

[Superboy]

I loved the demo and will be buying the game as soon as it's released. I normally hate stealth based games, but this felt great. It was a very nice mix of combat and stealth that always made it feel like I was a badass stalking my prey rather than hiding from them.

The full game will apparently let you upgrade your items and get new tools to use, like explosive gel to get through certain walls. I'm not sure how they'll explain him finding new bat-tools as he goes though.

It did annoy the hell out of me that the camera is over Batmans right shoulder, rather than directly over him. It just felt wierd and made it a little hard to steer him at times.

Personally, I loved Harley's new outfit. Creepy and hot at the same time.

I love that you have unlimited batarangs. I hate trying to conseve ammo in a game like this. I hope they do the same thing with his other bat-tools.

[General Zod]

It did annoy the hell out of me that the camera is over Batmans right shoulder, rather than directly over him. It just felt wierd and made it a little hard to steer him at times.

The camera's a little awkward at first, but it's similar to Gears' 3rd person perspective, so for me it didn't take long to get used to.

[Setzer]

Personally, I loved Harley's new outfit. Creepy and hot at the same time.

Personally, I'd like to ask her why she bothered dressing up like a naughty nurse when it's obvious her Puddin's idea of a good time is chasing after a muscular man in tights.

[RogueIce]

Personally, I loved Harley's new outfit. Creepy and hot at the same time.

Makes me want to rev up Harley if you know what I mean.

And it was great to hear Kevin Conroy as the Bat once again. He hasn't lost it.

[Setzer]

He's been in that part for quite some time now. Since what, 92-93? He's been able to stay in practice. They really made a great choice giving him the job.

[Rahvin]

My girlfriend saw Harley in the demo and immediately said "I want to do that for Halloween."