It's easy to understand why Batman is such a compelling character. We've all thought that with the right amount of money, training, and some slightly science-fiction-level gadgets, we too could fight crime. Batman turns into kitsch when he has items in his utility belt that seem custom-designed for whatever random situation he finds himself in; the best writers understand that Batman works best when he relies on his wits and a small number of tools. If you're lucky enough to punch Batman, he bleeds—this is no superhero. He has simply spent the majority of his life making sure you never get to throw that punch.

Title Batman: Arkham Asylum Developer Rocksteady Studios Publisher Warner Bros. / Eidos Interactive Price $59.99 for console, $49.99 for PC Shop.ars Platform PS3 (reviewed) 360, PC (on September 15)

The Batman portrayed in Arkham Asylum is everything that's great about the character. He's not blessed with a dozen gadgets that get him out of every scrape; the Joker caught him oddly flat-footed when he took over Arkham and set this collection of super-villains after the world's greatest detective. "I'm not sure I can stop him this time," Batman says wearily at one point in the game, and it's an unusual moment of vulnerability. His suit is ripped, he's underarmed and underprepared, and his number one advantage—planning—has been taken away from him. This game puts you into Batman's suit in the rare circumstance where he may very well be in over his head.

The Joker does give our hero one final shot before he sets his trap in motion. All Batman has to do is kill him, and all of this will be over. Arkham will be back under the control of law. No one will die. Batman goes free. The Dark Knight fights his own nature for a moment, but he doesn't take the shot. "So predictable," the Joker sneers, and the game is on.

It was wrong to move the Black Gate inmates here

This isn't a tie-in to any of Christopher's Nolan's films, and it doesn't operate in the same world as the animated series. It's not even in lockstep with the comics. This is unique take on the characters and the setting of Arkham Asylum. Written by Paul Dini, it's a very mature look at Batman, no matter what the Teen rating may have you believe. People die. The language is coarse. Batman may not kill anyone, but his style of combat is based on brutalizing his opponents until they can't get up.

There are two forms of combat in the game. The hand-to-hand fighting is limited to one button for attacks, but the action is far from simple. You'll have to continually attack while careening from one target to the next, all while countering their attacks and dodging blows from pipes and knives. It only takes a moment to understand the combat, but mastering it will take quite a bit longer. The more I play the game, the more elegant I find the combat, and it never becomes tiresome.

The second type of combat comes in the Invisible Predator areas where you have large spaces to terrorize your opponents. As the game continues and you unlock different attacks, you'll be able to quickly snatch enemies from above, glide down and land with both feet on their chests, or string up the baddies from your perch. As you take down your enemies one by one they become increasingly scared, agitated, and erratic in their motions. This is when you feel like you have become Batman; in any fair fight the Joker's henchmen would beat you easily. It's your challenge to make sure the fight is anything but fair.

You can soften up enemies with batarangs, you can take one down before zipping away and making another pass, or you can simply jump in slugging and brawl your way out of the situation. The combat is open to your own ideas on what it means to be Batman, and finding all the different ways to inflict pain on your enemies is an absolute joy.

Fighting the demo

Many gamers became skittish after playing the demo, which was both short and linear. The real game has more than a passing resemblance to Metroidvania games like Shadow Complex in that you visit different locales around the island of Arkham Asylum, and the more you explore with each new power, the more you can find and collect. Not only are you struggling against the grand designs of the Joker to break both your body and your mind, but you're also constantly taunted by the Riddler, who has hidden any number of puzzles and collectibles around the Asylum.

You can collect Riddler statues, you have to find different items in some rooms based on vague or misleading clues, you collect audio logs from interviews with the villains, you can smash certain amounts of the Joker's chattering teeth you find around the levels... there is a lot to do in order to unlock content from the game. You can fly through the game and ignore all these diversions if you'd like, but revisiting old rooms knowing you can now get to a previously unexplored area with a new power stretches your play time significantly. The game is relatively linear, but you're given the entirety of Arkham to explore and tackle at your own pace, and the island does not give up her secrets easily.