Been spending most of my time offline so forgive me for the extremely late review. Anyway, I was actually reluctant on playing this game due to the fact that almost all super hero games I've played are too straight forward and dull (i.e. Marvel Alliance, Superman, Spider Man, and earlier Batman games etc). Reema, after many attempts finally convinced me that we should give this game a try. To my surprise, it's not as straight forward as I thought.
First off the basics, Batman: Arkham Asylum's combat play is a fluid transaction between offense and defense. Some moves are a bit unrealistic (Batman actually leaps unbelievable distances just to reach an enemy) but has a purpose. The combat system uses a combo meter where in you have to dispatch the enemy as fluid as possible, that means each hit MUST hit an enemy and each counter must be successful, also don't forget you must not be hit else the combo falls back to the beginning. This combo system is the main source of Batman's upgrade points, the higher the combo you have the more points and upgrades you can purchase. Other games has this feature which means, button smashing will kill the combat in an instant.

Second is the stealth, we all know Batman uses stealth in more ways than one. And it is no different here. Stealth is another form of puzzle in Batman: Arkham Asylum in which you have to clear the room without the enemy putting some extra holes in Batman, seems fair enough don't you think? Along with stealth are the gadgets, it seems that aside from getting somewhere inaccessible by other means, gadgets play a role in stealth not so much in a combat scenario (well, aside from one gadget *cough* batarang). And if you do use the batarangs in combat without scoring a combo first, the enemy will either dodge it or you'll just piss them off making it ineffective unless you take advantage of the combo system.

The final part of Batman: Arkham Asylum that made it such a winner is the story itself. The game offers information about different villains from the comic without slapping you with a wall of text. Other than that it focuses on Batman himself and how the other criminals view him. It is a great way to know the villains and the Dark Knight without sacrificing the game play itself. It doesn't force you to know the details but it doesn't take too much effort to look for it either, it has a perfect balance. Batman: Arkham Asylum offers great experience for new and old Batman fans alike.