Brilliant though Snake's dive onto the tanker was, he doesn't quite get our #1 spot, no. Bear in mind, despite the thrilling shots of the Batmobile racing to Arkham Island and statuesque glimpses of Bats himself, we're not talking about Batman either. Batman might be the hero throughout Arkham Asylum, but the most entertaining character is easily The Joker, voiced superbly as always by Mark Hamill, who cracks wise and giggles manically as Batman brings him to the gates of Arkham to be committed. The superb graphics combined with Hamill's portrayal make for a very different but equally excellent Joker to Heath Ledger's equivalent. There's plenty of tension the second we get to control Batman, as The Joker is still being wheeled into the asylum, and we just know something's about to go wrong. After several minutes of taunting and a Killer Croc cameo, the Clown Prince of Crime finally hatches his plan, attacking a guard and getting to safety with the help of Harley Quinn. "Welcome to the madhouse, Batman!", Joker proclaims, having ensnared Batman (who gives chase) in his demented carnival of horrors for the next 10-12 hours. A large reason this game earned so many Game of the Year awards was the excellent character work on Batman's most popular foe: this 10-minute opening segment was laced with all the paranoia, violence and dark humour we expect from any great depiction of the character. Are there any other awesome character intros we missed? Let us know in the comments!
Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes).
General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.
