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I just picked up the game a little while ago so these are just my first impressions. I'm not going to discuss in depth gameplay or graphics; these things have been covered to death in the past couple of months. So to get it out of the way, it's a great game, especially if you're a batman fan and it looks great on the PS3.
The meat of this review will be focusing on the collector's edition and it's contents.
First off, the box for it is huge! Not obnoxiously huge, but substantial. The case that holds everything is a nice plastic batarang shape with sturdy feeling hinges. They did a good job there. Inside foam pieces keep everything from moving around.
As stated on the message boards, the batarang is in fact plastic and it is attached to the stand, though it doesn't look like it would take much effort to detach it. It looks like there's just a small tab holding it in. I would have been much happier with a metal version, even if it drove the cost up a bit. Also of note, the batarang (at least the one I got) has what appear to scratches all over it. I'm not sure if this is normal, but this is how mine showed up. I'd be interested in hearing how others' batarangs are condition-wise. Also, I was under the impression it was a gray color. It's actually black.
The leather bound book is decent in quality but the pictures make it look more substantial than it actually is. It's actually quite thin. The book inside is nice though, with matte pages and lots of pictures. Great for reading up on arkham's finest criminals.
As for the game package, they really dropped the ball on this one. I was expecting a nice case, like those that come with metroid prime trilogy or resident evil 5. Not so, you get a cheap looking and feeling cardboard outer sleeve and inner sleeve that holds the game and bonus DVD. Again, I'd have gladly paid more for a metal case. Or even just the regular game case with a slip case for the DVD, like the fallout 3 collector's edition. Being a collector in the truest sense, I removed the DVD and game and put them in standard ps3 cases and put the cardboard case back in the box to prevent any damage to it. Cardboard cases for games are extremely primitive in my opinion. They show wear way to easily.
The discs themselves are also non-standard in that they both look like old film reels and are labeled as disc one and two. Again, give me the retail game and the bonus DVD separate. I might just pick up the retail game later on and put the collector's edition back in the box.
All in all, I love the game but feel iffy about the collector's edition contents. If they would have just included the retail game and not the cheap cardboard box and colorless discs I'd probably have been satisfied. As it is now, I don't regret the purchase at all, I just feel a bit let down by the contents. It'll bug me until I buy the retail version of the game and I know it's just more money thrown at the game but I'm extremely anal about keeping my collectibles in pristine condition.
So my verdict:
The game gets a 5/5. It's a great game and even more so if you're a batman fan.
The collector's edition content gets a 3/5 for being average. The game's packaging is what really let me down here.
So the average is 4 stars and my score overall. If I were reviewing just the game it would get 5 stars.
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I know this title is pretty much a spin-off of the other review. I just think the differentiation in the gravity of the terms used had to be done. In all fairness, all that you may or may not have read about the game is true: it's an overall excellent gaming experience, a lot of fun and very satisfying for different types of gamers (there's a lot of good fighting, lot's of exploration, trophies and treasures, upgrades which resemble a bit of an RPG customization system, etc.). Even if you are not a big fan of the Batman, if you like video games, you will like this one, and if you ARE a Batman fan, then you will be glad to finally see a well achieved translation from the complex comic book character to a video game (and not a sad Final Fight rip-off where Cody is replaced by Batman[sorry for the retro reference, young readers]). If there were more than five stars to rate this game's fun factor, I'd give'em to it! Now, I will give a detailed comment on each extra item contained in this set in the following paragraphs, but if you don't want to read the whole thing, you can skip directly to the conclusion in the last paragraph.Now, the sad truth: I purchased the Collector's Edition as an enthusiast of the Batman. However, here in Mexico the normal edition of the game sells for US$69.00, whereas the Collector's Edition sells for a good US$125.00, which is, to me and most non-Donald-Trump-related buyers, a significant difference, which made me look closely into the differences between one edition and the other, in order to determine if the price difference corresponded to the product's value. As a regular Amazon customer, I decided to check here first, and I am sad to say, for the first time, I was mislead by good ol' Amazon =( You see, in the Collector's Edition Page at Amazon, the "Joker Action Maps DLC" is listed under the "PlayStation 3 Batman: Arkham Asylum Collector's Edition Bonus Items Include" list, and upon seeing that, I decided that the Collector's Edition was, by all means, the way to go! However, I was sad to find out TODAY that the Joker's additional content is NOT exclusive to the Collector's Edition, but to the PS3, so either edition of the game will give you access to such additional material!! Now, since my main reason to purchase this edition of the game had been absolutely shattered, below you will find my comments on the rest of this edition's contents, and why they are not even close to a justification of the price difference between the Normal Edition and the Collector's Edition.
As I eagerly unpacked my Collector's edition on Tuesday in my car (Yes, I'm sad to admit I am like a five-year-old when it comes to video games and self control), I was truly disappointed when I saw the Batarang, which is made out of VERY low quality plastic, and looks like it was hand made by yet another five-year-old! Even Fallout 3's Bobble Head figure was of a much better quality (and this is NOT to be interpreted as if said Bobble Head was a quality item either)! You can even see unpolished marks of the cutting tools and sandpaper used in (what I would have thought) was the pre-finish phase in the production of this item. If it at least made it look like a battle worn item, I might be inclined to roll with it and be more lenient in this review, but it really isn't. It just looks and feels like a very, VERY low quality product.
As regards the little "Dr's Journal" accompanying this set, I must start by saying that I have always been a big fan of this kind of extras! To follow on the previous paragraph's reference, I totally loved the Fallout 3 Art Booklet contained in the Collector's Edition, and it actually (along with the "Making Of" Bluray in that kit) washed the bad taste of the badly painted, badly finished Bobble Head off of my mouth (figuratively speaking, of course ;-) Kids, don't put things in your mouth that don't belong there!). However, in this case, although the "Bios" of the characters presented in the Journal are interesting and nicely presented in the form of an Arkham's Dr. point of view, they were all rather short for me, and the fact that they used the exact same illustrations as in the Bios you get to unlock during the game was a true disappointment. Honestly, if the Journal is one of the items that are supposed to provide additional value to the set, at least they could have used other drawings, even from the preparatory stages of the game (as is the case in Fallout 3's Booklet), and not repeat what we already got in the game. This just gives the impression of an abusive and greedy company behind all this, and this is definitely not the impression I want to have when spending over a hundred bucks in anything.
The extra DVD is good if you enjoy (like myself) learning about the work behind the creation of a good game, and seeing how an idea becomes a very good game (which is something we rarely think about as end consumers of all kinds of products in general). However, despite the valuable information contained in this Bluray, again, it hardly suffices to justify such a huge price difference between Collector's Edition and the game alone.
Lastly, the usually overlooked container: The whole thing comes inside a rather large batarang-shaped case, which lid is kept close by little magnets. To be quite honest, I was more inclined to setting this as decoration in my room than the bloody batarang thingy. This may also serve a purpose as a container for whatever it is you like to keep in a container (wouldn't pass as a fresh enough cookie jar, though), but still, it is nothing but a glorified tupper-ware-like item which must have cost less than a Dollar to make. As a marginal note, I must also say I didn't like the fact that the game disc comes in a less-durable, carton sleeve along with the referred DVD, instead of its usual, plastic PS3 case.
So, in Conclusion: Although the game is a Must-Have, the Collector's Edition is a true disappointment, which is not worth the extra money; not even if you are a big fan of the Batman (the contents don't amount to valuable collectibles), nor if you have loads of extra cash to spend (you probably became opulent by spending your money in an intelligent fashion, and this is most certainly not one). As I have tried to establish in this review, I am an enthusiast of this kind of thing, and actually proud to say that I always make good research before purchasing anything (will be more careful when reading Amazon Product Features from now on ;-). This reviews have helped in the past in such research, and I hope this will help you too. THIS IS AN EXCELLENT GAME, BUT THE COLLECTOR'S EDITION IS NOT WORTH A SINGLE EXTRA PENNY! Get the normal edition Batman: Arkham Asylum, get your extra downloadable content for free in the PlayStationStore and use your extra money to buy another game (for instance, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune Greatest Hits edition is finally out, and for less than the extra $47 Dollars you'd pay for this, and is also a Must-Have game in my list ;-).
The video shows the unboxing of the PS3 Collectors Edition of Batman Arkham Asylum.
My review. I have completed the game with one play through and am happy to say it's without doubt the Best Batman game ever made!!! It even got into the Guinness book of world records for crying out loud!!!
"Guinness announced this morning Batman: Arkham Asylum has become 'Most Critically Acclaimed Superhero Game Ever' due to its average Metacritic score of 91.67, surpassing Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for Dreamcast which averaged a score of 90."
"We are so pleased to be awarding Batman: Arkham Asylum a Guinness World Record," said Gaz Deaves, Manager at Guinness. "It is a fantastic new game and due to the reaction of gaming experts we believe it has a well deserved place in the Guinness World Records book!"
Gameplay 5/5
The gameplay is smooth and very responsive, whether your beating the crap out of groups of villains or swinging across the room undetected, it just feels like you are Batman! The gadgets add more in-depth gameplay allowing for some unique combos, takedowns and much more! The best and most often used tool in Batman's arsenal is not actually a gadget but a mode called Detectivemode which allows Batman to view the world of Arkham in a whole new way! You can view henchmen's weapons, pulses and view if they are a bigger threat than some of the other inmates, allowing for strategic planning for taking out the heavy hitter's first! The detective mode also allows you to scan the area for potential clues that will lead you to a hostage or villain (depending on the situation)and also scan for The Riddler's infamous Riddles!
Graphics 5/5
The look and presentation of this game is outstanding. Not only did they nail the beefy and serious look for our masked hero but they did a great job on the devious Joker and the overall landscape of Arkham!The other character's in the game are amazing! They're detailed and put into well thought out sketches that resemble ,that of which they came from, the animated cartoon series! When your walking, gliding or fighting in or outside of Arkham you'll notice that the environment changes! It's as if they planned ahead to make sure your not seeing the same old walls or floors every minute.....it's very detailed and I love it!!
Story 5/5
If you have played the demo (if you haven't I'd recommend you do it's very good!) then you pretty much know the idea or plot of the game. Batman captures Joker with ease so Batman is suspicious and Joker breaks loose and takes over the Asylum using all the demented inmates and villains inside to assault Batman with deadly force!! I've seen so many villains it's mind boggling! It's so great to see where they are heading with this and they put huge efforts into thinking like Batman to get it right and from what I've played so far they've nailed it!!!
Overall 5/5 Perfect Score
I just finished the game and am very pleased with the game! The Beginning, Climax and Ending were superb and I don't want to spoil anything for you but.....you'll love how it ends!! I was so excited when I heard Kevin Conroy (the voice of Batman) and Mark Hamill (the voice of Joker) were coming back to reprise their roles from the old cartoon series which I am a huge fan off!! Thanks for watching and reading my review hope it helps and please comment!
Have a great day!!!
Read Best Reviews of Batman: Arkham Asylum Here
Overall, I love the game, and the collector's edition packaging is great. My only problem is the "Batarang" that came with it. from the picture in the description it looks metal, and nothing is said to determine otherwise; especially with the price being what it is. It's plastic, it's has scratches on it, and it just looks cheap. I Know the game costs $60, the book is probably worth [....] there is no way that that Batarang is close to $10 to make up the difference. Overall the collector's edition bundle is kinda lackluster at best. :-/Want Batman: Arkham Asylum Discount?
Buy the regular edition of the game. The game itself is phenomenal.This collectors edition is not worth the extra money for a crappy plastic batarang.
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