About midway through my completion of Batman: Arkham Asylum I had to pop the controller down for an hour or so and go out to complete some menial everyday task. I’d just gotten around to thinking ‘that’s a touch inconvenient, I was just at a really good bit’ when the realisation dawned that not only had I been on a very good bit of the game, but I had actually been consistantly playing very good ‘bits’ since the thing had started some six gameplay hours previously. At no point had it wavered or stumbled; at no point had I discovered an awkward section, nor a dull, uninspired moment. As a single player action adventure title, Arkham Asylum was scoring big.

Had you not been made aware by now that the game is something special, this is the bit where you’d expect me to turn around and starting throwing ‘but then’ into sentences left, right and centre. It probably comes as no surprise to find out that not only isn’t this the case, but that the caped crusader’s latest adventure has batclawed it’s way right up to being one of my favourite games of this current generation. Yes chaps, this one fits its hype trousers just fine.

You find yourself in Bruce Wayne’s alter ego’s shoes as he attempts to stop the Joker from carrying out all sorts of extremely violent lunacy after he goes on the run whilst being shipped back into Arkham Island’s Asylum. From here you travel across the island and through various institutions whilst slapping enemy goons up a bit, sniffing around for clues, sneaking around stealthily and going all gung-ho with a selection of gadgets. Mould all that together and you have the recipe for something pretty good.

The reasons Arkham Asylum goes on to become more than just ‘pretty good’ are plenty, but foremost is the way it’s paced, and how little (if at all) the quality bar drops as you continue on through. At every turn there’s something to be doing, whether it be sniffing around cellblocks looking for clues, battling the odds against a number of marauding enemies or leaping about from ledge to ledge. It’s remarkably smooth in all areas, too.

Take for example the fighting, which could have been a clumsy mess quite easily. Instead, aiming the analogue stick toward an enemy and tapping the normal attack button will see you zooming up to the intended enemy no matter how far away they are and giving him a good old thump. Occasionally in groups of enemies one fella will have a little flash appear over his head indicating that he’s about to back attack you, at which point a deft flick of the counter button stops him in his tracks.

It’s a remarkably fluid and simple system that’s not only fantastically enjoyable to perform, but it’s also really fun to watch as well. In between flitting from enemy to enemy Batman performs all sorts of dives, jumps and neat sidesteps on the fly, making it appear at times to be some sort of slightly violent waltz. To those watching it looks like a highly impressive, intricate process, but in reality it’s simple enough to pull off that you find yourself always worrying about what your enemies are doing, not what your fingers are having to do next.

The stealth part of the game is also massively enjoyable, and really puts you into the right frame of mood for your character. Using your detective mode built into Batman’s cowl you can scan areas for gargoyles or raised areas that you can swing or hang from, and once there you are able to plunge downward and string a passing goon upside down from said vantage point to stop them bothering you. Sneaking along in the shadows and effortlessly gliding downward to kick an enemy in the back of the head are extremely useful methods of attack and, most importantly, make you feel like a badass. Sam Fisher and Solid Snake ain’t thing on this guy.

The navigation is also simple enough, and whilst initially the lack of a jump button seems like it may be a glaring omission you actually end up forgetting about it soon enough. Initially you’re a pretty lightweight bat fellow with but your fists and your Baterangs to go by, but as you progress through the game you’re gradually given new items that allow you to delve deeper into the island and take down enemies with a little more pizzazz.

This works pretty nicely in terms of merely progressing through the story, but it really comes into its own when you start working your way through the numerous little puzzles left scattered around the environments by The Riddler. These take a selection of forms, whether it be little stone tablets that you have to scan to progress an audio diary, trophies that unlock challenges, profiles and the like and little environmental riddles that require careful scanning of the surroundings to solve. Completing and collecting each will award you experience points alongside the bonus items it unlocks, hence you can get upgrades for your health, fighting prowess and various items much quicker too.

If the process of gaining all of these little snippets would have been tiresome then it wouldn’t have worked well at all, but it does. The island is, by design or just luck, pretty much just about the right size with enough variety in the environments to not only make the puzzle locations obvious (you even obtain a map for each area which tells you where the things are), but you also get new items regularly enough for you to be motivated enough to go back to previous areas and use them to gather more bonus material. The story itself might be a linear affair, but when it comes to collecting the thing spreads itself out and allows you to do what you want, when you want.

One negative comment you could assign to the above is that without all the collection and riddle solving, Arkham Asylum weighs in a little on the light side in terms of length. With all riddles solved it took me just over ten or so hours to work through the story, a figure which you’d presume could be almost halved if I had merely followed the plot through strictly. While it does last, though, the story is well told and is a great showcase for a brilliant license, no doubt helped by the excellent visuals and the presence of Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy from the animated series lending their excellent talents to the voice acting. The musical score more than holds up its end of the bargain too, with some fantastically atmospheric string-based songs floating along to accompany you at times.

Another bonus to add in are the Challenge Rooms, in which you are given specific challenges and plonked in an area to incapacitate a number of goons as quickly as you possibly can. Of particular enjoyment are the stealth missions in which you must knock out each enemy using only your sneaky stealth moves, leading to all sorts of tactical brainstorming on the fly. Smooth.

It’s a fantastic game, it really is. You can laud so many different aspects – the fighting, the story, the massively impressive bit near the end where the game actually messes with your mind good and proper – that it becomes obvious that Arkham Asylum isn’t a good game with a few good aspects; Arkham Asylum is a great game with pretty much every aspect pulling its weight and then some. There have been good comic-based games before obviously, but this one’s far above the rest on its own little platform… probably waiting to stealthily jump down and attack you when you’re not looking. In every sense of the phrase, this is a must-buy.