Batman Vengeance review

Fans of the recent Batman cinema blockbusters are in for a surprise.

Batman Vengeance is based on the imagery, voices and characters of the animated TV series, rather than the films. The Caped Crusader is up against the Joker, Mister Freeze, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn (the Joker's madcap sidekick), while the plot revolves around a fake kidnapping that's designed to draw Batman into the Joker's evil clutches.

A brief tutorial in the Batcave helps you get to grips with the basics, and you have access to a range of useful gadgetry, from batarangs and bat-cuffs to flash bombs and a bat-scope. Your foes cannot be killed, only disarmed and knocked unconscious, and they'll come at you again unless you cuff them immediately. Although you earn points for this, it does get a bit annoying as the game progresses.

The gameplay alternates between a third-person view (during which you can fight and perform actions, but you can't throw batarangs or hurl a grappling hook), and first-person mode, in which you can move and use gadgets, but you can't engage in physical fighting. This is a serious design flaw, especially when you're in the middle of combat. It also interrupts the flow of the game, as you have to keep going into menus to equip yourself or change gadgets.

Despite this, the game itself has plenty of atmosphere and an excellent soundtrack. Colourful locations range from the moody Batcave and the top of a Gotham train to the Gasworks and the Funnybones Warehouse. The bosses can take some time to conquer, but taking out their underlings (including Mister Freeze's rather fetching 'ice babes') isn't too demanding - and you do get to take a drive in the Batmobile!

The controls can be fiddly and the storyline is linear and predictable, but it shouldn't stop avid Bat-fans lapping up the arcade-style action.