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Batman: Arkham Asylum for PlayStation 3
Batman: Arkham Asylum for PlayStation 3 is an action-adventure in which you bring Joker to the Arkham psychiatric institution. That handover turns into a trap. Joker takes control of the complex, and Batman must cross its buildings and island to stop his plan. You encounter familiar enemies while investigating what happened inside the institution. The story uses the enclosed setting to keep fighting, searching and unsettling encounters close together.
In open combat, you alternate strikes with dodges and well-timed counters. Against armed enemies, a favourable position is preferable: observe their routes, move above them and take someone down before disappearing again. Detective Vision helps identify enemies and clues. Tools such as the Batarang and explosive gel also do more than assist in fights, helping you tackle obstacles and puzzles.
New equipment gives you reasons to revisit earlier areas. Riddler's riddles add further searching alongside the main objective. You play the campaign alone, constantly switching between investigation, stealth and direct combat. Arkham Asylum mainly asks you to learn a connected complex; it is not a freely drivable version of all Gotham. The standard edition and Game of the Year Edition Platinum share this base story, with differences stated separately for the relevant copy.
Region and language
Our PlayStation 3 games are European editions and come with a Dutch or English box, unless stated otherwise. By default, you receive the version for the European market. We note it in the product details if the region is different or the box is in another language. In almost all cases, the game is playable at least in English, and often in the other five common European languages too.
Manual
Batman: Arkham Asylum for PlayStation 3 includes the manual unless the product title states otherwise. If the booklet is missing, the title says “No Manual”. This lets you see before ordering whether the game comes with a manual.
The manuals included with our games usually contain at least English and often around six European languages. The exact languages vary by edition, so Dutch is not always included. The booklet explains the controls and the main rules. You can use it to check how to control the game, which actions are available and how its different features work.
The history of Batman: Arkham Asylum
Rocksteady Studios developed Batman: Arkham Asylum, released for PlayStation 3 in 2009. Eidos and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment published the adventure with an original story by Paul Dini. The game therefore told its own Batman story instead of following the scenes of one cinema film. The institution and island formed a defined setting where familiar characters could meet without constantly travelling to another city.
The combination of Batman as fighter, stealth specialist and investigator determined the structure. The FreeFlow combat system emphasises timing and responding correctly to different attacks. In other rooms, keeping your distance and moving unseen make the difference. Detective Vision then offers another view of the same surroundings. This variety explains why equipment does more than strengthen attacks: a new tool may also provide another way to understand or reach a space.
The European Game of the Year Edition followed in 2010 with extra challenge maps on the disc. Its Platinum version remains a reissue of Arkham Asylum, rather than a new story. Rocksteady continued with Arkham City in 2011, expanding the setting to an enclosed urban district. The first game retains its own character through the smaller island and continuous journey through the institution. The original PS3 presentation should also be distinguished from the later Return to Arkham release on newer consoles.
Similar games for PlayStation 3
Batman: Arkham City expands the PS3 setting into a walled urban district. You glide between rooftops and more often choose your own detour to a side mission. Asylum connects its buildings within a more compact island adventure. Combat, detective work and silent takedowns remain recognisable in both, but City allows more travelling while Asylum guides you more firmly through one connected complex.
Batman: Arkham Origins takes place earlier in Batman's career on PS3 and uses a larger part of Gotham as its setting. Several assassins hunt him on Christmas Eve. It shares the rhythm of counters, gadgets and stealth with Asylum. Rocksteady's first game centres on Joker and the institution, while Origins spreads its conflicts across more urban locations.
Assassin's Creed II also lets you observe from high positions and approach targets quietly on PS3. Ezio climbs through Renaissance cities and can fight with swords when discovered. Batman uses more specialised equipment and clue investigation in Asylum. Where Ezio travels between different cities, Batman increasingly learns the routes of an isolated island.
Dishonored offers spaces on PS3 where you read enemy routes and seek a quiet approach. Corvo has supernatural powers and can avoid many conflicts without being discovered. Batman relies on equipment and physical abilities. Both make preparation useful, but Asylum explicitly alternates its stealth rooms with separate fights where you chain attacks and counters together.
BioShock likewise uses an isolated location on PS3 with a past you uncover through recordings and the surroundings. In Rapture, you combine firearms and bodily powers while supplies restrict your approach. Arkham Asylum follows Batman from the outside and emphasises fistfights, stealth and detective tools. Their similarity mainly lies in gradually understanding one enclosed, disturbed world.
