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Quick news bits: Deadpool, Felicia, Dante and Captain America have been officially added to the Marvel vs. Capcom 3 roster. They join Ryu, Wolverine, Chris Redfield, Iron Man, Morrigan, Hulk and at least 20 other yet-to-be-named characters for the game releasing next spring!

High Moon Studio has released a video explaining the multiplayer customizations for Transformers: War for Cybertron. See it here! This game keeps looking better and better! June 22 is too far away.

Batman Arkham Asylum was one of last year’s biggest and best video games and was even awarded Game of the Year by GamesRadar.com. This year it’s being honored with Game of the Year Edition re-release with a few new features from the standard edition.

The added bonuses of the GOTY version aren’t exactly anything new, just the challenge map DLC already made available on Xbox Live Marketplace and Playstation Network, and today we’re breaking down a few of the maps I found particularly interesting and their specific challenges. But the Arkham Asylum GOTY Edition also tries something drastically new and different in video games: Games in 3D.

Batman Arkham Asylum: Game of the Year Edition

Publisher: Eidos
Developer: Rocksteady
Platforms: Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC
Release Date: May 11, 2010
ESRB: Teen

I’ll be honest…I don’t need the 3D gimmick in my games, just like I don’t need it in my movies. While it’s nowhere near similar to the 3D experience you’ll find in a movie like Avatar, the 3D definitely works, even though it is lesser-quality old-school-monster-movie 3D. It’s kind of fun the first time just to experience it, but the awe wears off really quickly. As seen in the picture above, the GOTY Edition comes with 2 pairs of 3D glasses, and the Trioviz 3D technology is compatible with all high and standard definition televisions, but after about the first half hour I started getting a headache and just got sick of wearing the glasses.

But enough about the multidimensional transition the Dark Knight has taken. This game isn’t great because of some crutch inspired by Hollywood’s latest trend, it’s because of the awesome gameplay!

Batman fans who were hardcore enough to pick up the collector’s edition of BAA not only got an amazing Batarang replica (mine sits proudly atop my entertainment center) but got a code for the Crime Ally challenge map, meaning yes, you can beat some Joker goon ass over the place where Batman was born.

Those who picked up their copy of the game at Gamestop received a Gamestop exclusive Dem Bones Scarecrow challenge map, where you take on your worst fears in the form of the green glowing skeletons like what you’ll find in the campaign mode.

Both of these map packs are now available in the new Game of the Year Edition, but sadly, the PS3 exclusive Joker challenges are still PS3 only.

For those unfamiliar, BAA has 2 different types of challenge modes: FreeFlow combat challenges and predator challenges. The combat challenges are pretty self explanatory. You have 4 rounds to beat an escalating number of Joker goons in X amount of time while aiming for the highest score possible. Each map has specific score goals that, if met, award you with a medal. The predator challenges are a totally different game requiring stealth and strategy. These also have specific goals that reward you with medals when accomplished.

The first of the DLC maps added to the GOTY Edition is the Insane Night map pack including the Nocturnal Hunter predator challenge. On the difficulty scale, this map ranks at about a 3 out of 5. The 3 goals to accomplish here are…

1. Knocking a goon off a ladder while he’s climbing it.

2. Preforming an inverted takedown on a goon through the glass platform in the room.

3. Taking down an armed goon last.

If you’re quick enough, the map and its 3 goals can be conquered in under 2 minutes. One little trick is that your first instinct may be to knock a goon off a ladder using a Batarang. The easier way is to spray your explosive jell on the ledge near the top of one of the ladders and detonate it when the victim is about half way up.

Next is probably my favorite of all the challenges — Totally Insane! Totally Insane is a FreeFlow combat map where the idea is to take on an endless horde of Arkham inmates and Joker thugs until you drop. It’s really addicting to just see how long you can go and great for racking up huge combo scores and capturing any combo achievements you may be missing.

The next map pack, Prey in the Darkness, is another PS3 exclusive, those lucky bastards. The Heart of Darkness FreeFlow combat map takes place in the pumping station area of Arkham Island while the Hothouse Prey Invisible Predator map will be at the abandoned glasshouse. Again, each is filled with its own medals.

Batman Arkham Asylum is a great game and we even named it Best Game of 2009, but while the addition of the DLC on the disc is a great bonus, the 3D doesn’t really add anything too exciting to the initial gameplay. If you’re absolutely ridiculous and haven’t picked up Arkham Asylum yet, the Game of the Year Edition is your best value, but don’t buy this game hoping to be blown away by 3D graphics. The incredible action and storytelling will take care of any needs to be blown away.

Batman Arkham Asylum: Game of the Year Edition gets a 4/5.

Checkout The Comics Console next week when we play Comix Zone!

Andrew Hurst
andrewhurst@comicattack.net