Just completed my second playthrough of the phenomenal Batman: Arkham Asylum, and what an experience on Hard. Almost exclusively, the game was balanced very nicely so long as you properly Countered and used Take Downs, with most battles feeling tough but not unachievable or designed to be ridiculously hard for the sake of being ridiculously hard.
There are, however, a few battles that fall into that unfortunate negative category, mainly because for all the game's polish and its supreme, fluid, freethrow combat system, the dodge system is sluggish and clunky. So many times I tried to dodge out of the way of a Titan Henchman, only to be smacked anyway. There was a lot of frustration in this regard, particularly in the battle with Bane (that took several tries and a whole lot of cursing), the battle when leaving the Caves after preventing the poisoning of the water supply, and the game's second final battle. Especially the game's second final battle!
While I loved the combat system, it's rich, fluid, and very satisfying, I was often annoyed when I was knocked out of finishing a Ground Take Down and more than once, much more than once, I wished there was a quick finisher available. Some battles against multiple foes just dragged on without one, and some battles, like Poison Ivy and Titan-Powered Joker, where much harder than they should have been because of this.
Still, these short comings and the crying orphans from all my swearing aside, Batman: Arkham Asylum is a superb game with exceptional pacing, story, and voice acting. It was also incredibly addictive, and I found myself playing in 4 hour sessions, which I never do anymore.
Hats off to Rocksteady Studios for developing such an exceptional product, and I'm really looking forward to details on the sequel.
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