Much like Christopher Nolan with his revered The Dark Knight Trilogy, Rocksteady revitalized Batman in the gaming arena with their Arkham video game series. 2009's Arkham Asylum set the stage and raised the bar for superheroes in gaming, and spawned an entire series that was overall well-received in its mainline entries.

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Arkham City followed and arguably perfected Asylum in every way, Origins faltered by comparison but proved solid still, and Knight capped off this legend of the Dark Knight in satisfying fashion. A big part of the franchise's success was the various gameplay mechanics and features that showed the genre's viability in gaming, and despite having three successors, Asylum cemented itself as a modern classic.

Freeflow Combat

Batman fighting Arkham thugs in Batman: Arkham Asylum

It's the Batman: Arkham signature, as the freeflow combat is the core gameplay element to this series, making it so satisfying to play through. It's also what largely contributed to Batman's revival in gaming. In particular, City and Knight fine-tuned this mechanic immensely, but going back to the game that started it all doesn't render Asylum obsolete.

Weaving Batman through hordes of enemies acrobatically still feels smooth, and the gadget combos still help the game hold its own in the 12 years since its original release. If anything, it's a testament to how well the mechanic was implemented that it can still be fun and engaging to play despite the aforementioned games only making it more engrossing.

Stealth Combat

Batman in Arkham Asylum during a predator sequence

At the same time, the Dark Knight is known as a stealthy, nocturnal tactician, meaning that the Predator sequences need to be top-notch. Like with the hand-to-hand combat, stealth remains an exciting aspect of Arkham Asylum to play through a variety of different settings to test the player's mettle.

The limitations of what Batman can do creatively in predator situations compared to later entries don't hurt it much, as there are still plenty of possibilities for players to exploit. Environments and gadgets still allow for high-skill ceilings and satisfying takedowns in rooms full of thugs.

Challenge Maps

Batman in freeflow and stealth combat in Arkham Asylum

The perfect marriage of these two integral gameplay elements in a separate mode is the Challenge Maps. Both the freeflow and stealth combat sequences are as simple or complex as the player wants to make it, and the ingeniously simple foundation of these mechanics makes this mode an easy way to prolong game time clocked in on Arkham Asylum.

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With different difficulty settings, scores to set, and specific goals to clear, Challenge Maps are an addictive feature that still measures up impressively, even in the original game. Combat maps are thrilling, high-octane tests of spatial awareness and timing, while the Predator challenges encourage players to get as creative as possible with Batman's takedown executions, gadget usage, and efficiency.

Kevin Conroy's Batman

Conroy playing Bruce Wayne in Crisis on Infinite Earths and cover art for Batman: Arkham Asylum

It's obvious for most Batman fans out there, but another feature of Arkham Asylum that will always age gracefully is Kevin Conroy's iconic performance as the Dark Knight. For many, Conroy is the quintessential voice for Batman, as his debut in the early '90s in Batman: The Animated Series only improved exponentially over time.

With that, it's unsurprising that the original 2009 game retains a memorable performance today and even has some of the animated show's particular brand of whimsy in dialogue deliveries. It may get a bit too campy here and there for some, but Conroy's direction is an overall loving homage to his first iteration of the superhero in The Animated Series.

Mark Hamill's Joker

Mark Hamill as Luke in The Last Jedi and Joker in Arkham Asylum

If Conroy is mentioned for Batman, Mark Hamill as the Joker has to be as well. Hamill's best known for Luke Skywalker, but his debut as the Clown Prince of Crime in The Animated Series was just as iconic and it carries forward in Arkham Asylum as well.

Aside from the mindboggling way Hamill is able to contort his voice in such a way, his dynamic with Conroy's Batman continued to meet the high standard fans have come to expect. In his own way, Joker's puns definitely veer into camp, but it's also an overall entertaining and fitting performance that highlights the greatest duality in the comic book genre.

The Visuals Of Arkham Asylum

Screenshots of Arkham Island in-game in Asylum

It's definitely a game from the PS3 and 360 generation of gaming, but it's one that holds its own brand of luster thanks to the hauntingly beautiful visuals of Arkham Asylum. As is customary in a Batman world, the nocturnal element does wonders for the game in emphasizing the gothic architecture when out in Arkham Island's exterior.

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Inside and out, the aesthetics play to the strengths of the setting at hand. Different sections of the asylum visually add to the constant eerie and claustrophobic tension.

Metroidvania-Lite Progression

Batman gliding around Arkham Island and upgrading the Batclaw in Arkham Asylum

While open-worlds have now established themselves as major appeals for games (for better and worse), Arkham Asylum worked incredibly well with its self-contained world. The setting is perfect for a great Batman story and game, and the Metroidvania-lite progression structure fits well also.

The backtracking and gadget progression encouraged exploration of the nooks and crannies of the asylum, which amplified the atmosphere. Arkham's claustrophobic hallways make this Metroidvania influence also great for uncovering the game's many collectibles, including the audiotapes that add to the worldbuilding specifically.

The Killer Croc Fight

Killer Croc in the beginning of Arkham Asylum and during the boss fight

Frankly, Arkham City and Origins are the games that had the strongest showings in terms of bosses, but the incredible Arkham boss fight with Killer Croc in Arkham Asylum's sewers is an unforgettable moment in the game. It isn't a particularly complex fight, but it's how the simplicities of winning this confrontation are executed that make it tense.

Batman has to slowly walk over wooden planks in a maze of a sewer system, relying on quick reflexes and audio cues to fight off Croc. The fight was an exceptional way to establish tone and have the feeling of being hunted by an apex predator in his element resonate with players.

Scarecrow Nightmares

Scarecrow and his Nightmare sequences in Batman: Arkham Asylum

One of Arkham Asylum's most unique gameplay features was the Scarecrow Nightmare sequences that were sprinkled periodically throughout the story. He is another one of Batman's most notorious rogue's gallery members, and Scarecrow's signature Fear Toxin opened up a creative narrative opportunity to make him a threat in a video game capacity.

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These sequences were fittingly mind-bending and had players use some platforming mechanics that proved an engaging way to break up the conventional gameplay with something different. It was good for pacing, and the fever-dream settings fit like a glove thematically when it came to venturing into the psyche of Batman.

Riddler Trophies

Promo of Riddler in Arkham City and a screenshot of one of his trophies in Asylum

Fans have come to develop a love/hate relationship with the Riddler's trophies. Surely it's something that will run completionists ragged, at least in the later entries, as CityOrigins, and Knight expanded the size of the game worlds exponentially--which also meant growing the number of trophies and their complexity. Looking at it from a gaming perspective, it's a brilliant move when deciding how to make this infamous Batman supervillain have a good presence.

As far as the collectibles themselves go, Asylum had the right balance when it came to world size vs. the number of trophies to collect. The Riddler himself could've used a better literal presence, but his challenges in the first game arguably hit the sweet spot of being fun and not overstaying their welcome from sheer volume.

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