Batman: Arkham Asylum (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows)
common sense media says
Dark yet thrilling action game based on the Caped Crusader.
parents & educators say
- 70% say violence is an issue
- 53% say there are positive role models
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this action/adventure game depicts a dark tale based on the DC Comics superhero Batman. Players engage in combat with a variety of supervillains and common inmates. Batman uses his hands and feet for most attacks, but will occcassionly use an enemy's own weapon against him. The game also features mild language and female villains wearing very little clothing.
Educational value:
Not applicable.
Positive role models:
Players control Batman, who must restore order to a psychiatric hospital filled with supervillains. Batman never kills an enemy, instead opting to render them unconscious.
Ease of play:
The game employs the FreeFlow combat system, where attacks are handled through two buttons: an attack and counter. Lightning bolts flash above an enemy's head, signalling the opportunity to counter an attack. Prompts appear throughout the game, showing players how to execute specific moves in various scenarios.
Violence:
Batman uses mostly his hands and feet to pummel enemies. Occassionally, he will counter an attack by grabbing an object from an enemy, such as a metal pipe, and hit him with it. Batman also uses Batarangs to hurl at foes. Blood is shown on environments, but isn't visible during combat.
Sex:
The two female villains dress rather provocatively, showing lots of cleavage. A portion of one character's buttocks is also visible.
Language:
Some cuss words are used, such as "bastard" and "damn."
Consumerism:
Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
During two sections where Batman must search for a person of interest, he tracks smoke from tobacco and the scent of whiskey. Neither item is shown.
More on Batman: Arkham Asylum
Screenshots
Review It
Based on 30 parent & educator reviews:
- 70% say violence is an issue
- 53% say there are positive role models
- 40% say language is an issue
Most useful reviews by all members
FezesAreCool
kid, 12 years old
kid, 12 years old
Dark themes and some violence, mild language, 12+
I like this game and anyone who likes Batman will. However it is more dark and grim than other Batman games. Mild language like b**ch, b***ard, d*mn, h*ll and a*s. Bloodless violence but Batman never kills anyone. Harley Quinn talks in a slightly suggestive way to Batman but nothing sexually innapropriate. Batman is a good role model. The Joker is crazy and references some violent stuff. Good for 12+ nothing over the top.
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SithLordBeast
teen, 13 years old
teen, 13 years old
really cool game
So I thought this game was really really good. I loved the gameplay and how you can counter the thugs attacks. If you like batman stuff then you should definately get this. There are some frightening encounters with scarecrow and killer croc may scare little kids. There is some violence where batman beats up people. Dead people are seen around the island. Blood is seen sometimes on environments. Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy dress innapropriately. The language is pretty is moderate while characters use b---h about 3 times, d-mn, h-ll, and a-- multiple times throughout the game. I agree with the ESRB rating except i would change the "mild language" to "language". Also, if you have seen The Dark Knight then you can definately play this game. Great game for tweens up
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Joe smo
teen, 14 years old
teen, 14 years old
BEst Game EVERRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!
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Lady Kataana
parent of 6 , and 12 , 12 year old
parent of 6 , and 12 , 12 year old
Love this game.
Batman is my favorite superhero, and I love this game.
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muzzy12
teen, 17 years old
teen, 17 years old
best if teens and adults play it
i loved it! my favorite thing to do is play as the joker
i like how the game has a twist in it
and the gadgets are really useful when it comes to henchmen with machine guns
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cptresnov
parent of 12 year old
parent of 12 year old
Awsome game but way more of a Marvel fan
Arham Asylum is a sometimes dark and gridy action game. He has a whole belt of gear that can be disposed at anytime, and can be upgraded. Its the best superhero game of 2009-2000 but still has its problems. Now once the parents acully see it thats when they turn off the power to the machine and trade it in for batman brave and the bold game. It does some scary parts that when I played through it creeped me out and almost made me throw my controller up and just save it. Plus parents dont like all dead guys laying on the floor after Joker and his goons killed the. There is not a massive amout of blood in the envierement.One last thing parents might not like the part where theres a guy being strapped to a while being electrocuted in a chair but you save him.
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PlaystehPiano
teen, 15 years old
teen, 15 years old
Dark, but brilliant
I recently purchased this game, and have found it quite fun. It is, however, quite dark and at sometimes pretty violent. There are scenes in the game where players can see people being mercilessly killed, or tortured, but as Batman you can usually apprehend your enemies with little conflict. (i.e. silent takedowns) As Batman, you kill no one but "knock out" your enemies; slap 'em silly. The action is very realistic, but with realism comes some foul language. There are some colorful phrases that include the "b" words, the "d" word, and the "s" word, but there are no f-bombs dropped. The language is not commonly used, but will be heard by your enemies throughout the game.
Other than that, the Batman is the Caped Crusader, a bringer of justice, and (being a superhero) is a good role model in every situation placed before him in the game. The game also uses the "free flow" combat system, making combat easy and fluid. The game also includes puzzles, mysteries to solve, and indepth story.
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Matt Diaz
teen, 17 years old
teen, 17 years old
The truth
I couldn't find any good concerns or highlights so im just going to write this out. This is a great game, awesome graphics and intense scenes. I haven't seen one good review that really shows what this game is, so ill tell it here. This is a very scary game, batman spends most of his time fighting other guys. Scenes of people being killed of being tortured to death are shown. All of the bosses are very creepy and all talk of killing batman. In game scenes show of some of Arkham's inmates talking of killing people in very descriptive ways. One character Victor something, makes a mark on himself with a knife every time he kills someone, id say he has like 50 marks on him, so this could be very frightening for a small kid. Overall I think if you really want to see more on this game, look at some gameplay videos on youtube to see how it really looks.
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Shinigami1994
teen, 17 years old
teen, 17 years old
Very scary for a "T"
This game is wonderful. They have finally mastered the cross between superhero, detective, and morally conflicted person that Batman is. This game features many gadgets that can be used at anytime, thrilling action sequences, and very scary moments. Several times, I have been shocked that this game was rated "T." If it were my say, I would have rated it "M." Batman never kills his enemies, but Joker is not so merciful. Regardless of how quickly you filter out gas in a room or beat up the henchmen, the people you want to save always end up dead. This may be unsettling to some small children. There are 3 unforgettable run-ins with the Scarecrow, which even scared me. There is some gore when the Joker mutates his henchmen with Titan, and Batman can be shot if he breaks cover in a room with armed thugs. If you fail some hostage missions, characters are shot off-screen. Dead bodies are littered throughout the game, often posed in macabre but humorous positions. Harley Quinn also shows some cleavage, and Poison Ivy wears a thong made of plants.
In short, if you think that this is a game for your 7-year-old Batman fan, think again, unless you want to be kept up for weeks by his screaming after waking from nightmares.
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tommy18
teen, 15 years old
teen, 15 years old
Good, But scary scenes for young kids.
Don't be fooled by that its batman, OH MY 8 YEAR OLD WILL LOVE THIS, He won't sleep for weeks. You have scary villians and you go round beating the holy crap out of people. The sexual bits are only suggestive really and wearing skimpy costumes doesn't make it bad. Scary? Yes Violent? No Sexual? Ish
Language is not much of a problem really, I hear worse at school every day.
Enjoy this game. Almost GOTY 2009.
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Celtic1962
parent of 11 and 15 year old
parent of 11 and 15 year old
Excellent action game even for non-comic fans
While the atmosphere and violence aren't appropriate for very young players, preteens and up that enjoy action games should have a great time playing as Batman. Outstanding graphics, audio and playability make it one of the best video games of all time.
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Gamemaster3513
teen, 16 years old
teen, 16 years old
Great for Mature Kids and Teenagers
This game shows the darker side of Gotham on Arkham Island a pshycatric hospital for the criminaly insane. The game takes place after Batman transports his arch-enemy the Joker, an insane criminal overlord. Once inside the hospital the Joker escapes custody and runs away from Batman behind an electric fence. From this point on the player must control Batman and solve mysteries while restoring order to Arkham by defeating escaped thugs and other supervillans. The game does feature some brutal violence in which the last move of a combo is in slow motion. However, Batman never kills anyone, he only knocks them out. Overall this is a great game with flawless graphics and countless hours of gameplay. I do not want to spoil the ending for kids reading this but parents Good Prevails.
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Justino4
teen, 14 years old
teen, 14 years old
Are You Joking?
Although this game is good, it is on the edge to becoming an M game, due to some major violence and sexual stuff. There's guns everywhere and Ivy shows her bare butt a lot.
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Jim Henderson
teen, 15 years old
teen, 15 years old
Intese, and dark, I love it.
This game is so beast, Batman is all like,punch,punch,disarm,stun,kick,punch,BWAH!!!!!
It's great for mature minds like mine.;)
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CptDrake
kid, 12 years old
kid, 12 years old
Great for teens, but not entirley out of the question for mature tweens
This is a dark, violent, and not to mention scary game. Batman can hurl sharp batarangs at Joker's henchmen, break their bones, pull them off catwalks 10-15 feet in the air, and much more. Also when Joker transforms into a titan monster, he is covered in blood. I almost soiled my pants on the Killer Croc part, maybe because it was around 9 p.m... But you have to admit Batman is a great role model. Sure he uses non-lethal violence as his main problem solver, but he does heroically stop Joker from destroying the Island and killing everyone in Gotham.
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Caxlo25
kid, 13 years old
kid, 13 years old
Scary for younger ones.
Violent, but not to. Batman does not kill, but will break hands and legs. Female villins are skimpy. Villians are scary for young children.
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cambrun
teen, 15 years old
teen, 15 years old
Good Game with few Problems
it was an ok game. It really kept me playing for a while, but had a reputation for boring parts. The violence isn't terrible, the language isn't too bad either. The only true downside is the way the female villains dress. However it had great messages, good role models and easy to play.
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TeenZork
teen, 13 years old
teen, 13 years old
BEST GAME EVA
ITS MY FAVE GAME EVER!!! A little scary (Joker is a beast) but it is not an inappropriate game, unless you are like 8. I HIGHLY recommend it
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ToonThom
kid, 11 years old
kid, 11 years old
Batman Arkham Asylum: Fun,Dark,Scary and GOTY 'nuff said!
This was a fantastic game although some parts are intense and scary it was really fantastic. Batman never kills he will just knock the inmates out witch is still bad as you will hear bones crunch and snap. Killer Croc, Scarecrow and even Joker are frightening and may scare young players and let me tell you know they gave me the shivers with Scarecrow's dream world and Killer Croc's lair where he would just jump out on you. There is a lot of cursing most is a**,dam* and hell but sometimes you may hear son of a bit** or basta** apart from all of that it is really one of the best games ever.
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