A darkened room, south London. We're here in Interactive's HQ for a behind the scenes snoop at the publisher's new game, being made by as part of new deal betwixt Eidos, and DC Comics. This is quite a coup for the former, given EA's barely concealed gloom at missing a trick with a Dark Knight game in 2008, and the publisher are clearly trying to make the most of this huge IP literally dripping with interactive potential.

With a brief glimpse at the comic book-influenced menus, our guide promptly starts a new game, the opening credit sequence ably showing off the power the Unreal Engine that lies at the heart of the game's dark-but-not-black visuals. The camera sweeps over Gotham, an orchestra swirls with drama, and we find ourselves presented with Arkham Aslyum, and the foreboding island on which it sits.

This is a third-person adventure, but unlike many a game based on a particular license, no specific film provides the game with its characters, setting and story, nor indeed is this focussed on the similarly titled Batman graphic novels, although they too have provided a degree of inspiration. Paul Dini is the man behind the game's plot, in fact, the well regarded writer having cut his teeth on the Animated Series, which has clearly influenced this new interactive adventure.

A gritty, and foreboding visual style is immediately obvious, but this isn't the Dark Knight, and the game world certainly offers more hues than merely various shades of black. A comic stylisation is present, and this is definitely the Batman of that world, and stage actor Kevin Conroy voicing the hero, while Mark Hamill provides the Joker, a piece of casting that could prove a masterstroke. But more on that later.

An interactive, BioShock-style introduction sequence opens the game, Batman delivering the Joker to Arkham after what he describes as a surprisingly easy capture. The credits continue to roll as we escort the Joker into the depths of Arkham, lighting, detailed visuals, and the never-ending jibes of the Joker himself adding richness and texture to the world as the tension mounts. must surely be an inspiration here, and it is immediately apparent that Rocksteady are working hard to create a game that won't simply be an expensively licensed cash-in.

As the introduction draws to an end, we bump into the Croc, who delivers us a menacing threat before we continue our journey through the dark, security-laden corridors of the asylum. Perhaps inevitably, a lapse of security (one of the IPs major creative themes), allows the Joker to break free, and so begins a claustrophobic adventure set entirely on Arkham island. The Joker, and his nefarious thugs, are out and the asylum is theirs. Will Batman fall for his trap? In a word, yes, the caped crusader leaping off in pursuit of the villain. This is where we get our first taster of combat, which looks a little more complex and varied than we might have expected.

Battling the Joker's minions hand-to-hand, we see Batman charging between his assailants, pulling off a variety of moves, drama heightened further by the occasional slow-motion instance as we deliver comic book-esque finishing moves. This 'Free Flow Combat', as its apparently called, gives the player the freedom to tackle multiple foes on the fly, stringing together moves and combos, and while Batman's melee repertoire is complete at the game's outset, we hear there will be gadgets to unlock as you progress too.

Also there to be found, as you move through the game, are a variety of character Bios, which will flesh out the story and once again add depth to the world, serving the same role as the tapes in BioShock, albeit in a paired-down fashion. Joker teeth chatter as we roam the corridors, and if these aren't dealt with using Bat-stars, they will explode with potentially lethal consequences. The orchestral soundtrack wasn't noticeable the whole time, but this too seems to play an important part, building the atmosphere and adding a cinematic feel.

A 'Detective Mode' is available at the flick of a button, and this piece of technology allows Batman to see the 'lay of the land', the positioning of enemies, and the structure of the level. This helps you sneak up on enemies, too, and we see Batman use a glide kick to take out one enemy, our hero gliding silently from the ceiling to pull-off a great looking finisher. As the story evolves these instances will string together into the larger plot, and it is at this juncture that we meet Harlequin, who has been given a sexy-but-evil overhaul, more in keeping with the adult style of the game; the dark Batman motif.

We're keen to know which Batman enemies we'll meet in the Asylum, and while our guide won't say, he does remind us that almost every Batman baddie has been in Arkham at some point. We then unlock A Riddler character Bio, and it is around this point that I start to get more excited still. The Bio bonuses are really for the fans, and indeed it seems much of the game has been put together with core audiences in mind, Batman's mutterings adding further depth, while the action sequences themselves seem heavily borrowed from the comics. With this in mind, the Detective Mode, and the game's structure, seems important, Batman charged with unraveling a scene before choosing which skills to use in approaching a fight. These are the puzzles of the adventure.

The levels are open to interpretation, then, and while the game itself follows linear progression, we're assured the player will have scope for creative thinking. Skipping what looks a little like a sub-boss fight with a mystery monster, we find ourselves once again taking on the Joker's lackeys as we approach another scene. This time, we string up one of the bad guys, his shrill cries for help unnerving the other thugs. Stealth elements are available, but you can of course go in all guns - or rather fists - blazing, should you wish to. Health automatically replenishes after encounters, which is an interesting compromise, while Eidos talk with genuine passion about their respect for the IP. Hamill, meanwhile, is wonderful as a menacing and insane Joker, and is in fact particularly impressive given how good the late Heath Ledger was in the Dark Knight.

The focus of the setting is perhaps a deliberate move by Rocksteady, but it could be a wise one, the developer looking to deliver a targeted but highly polished experience, as exemplified by the quality of the early code on display. The AI - another good indicator - is also looking fairly sharp, while the combat is far more refined than we might have predicted. With Dini involved in the game's plot, and seemingly sensible choices having been made with the source material itself, we're certainly intrigued to see how this PC, and game progresses as launch nears. Oh, and we won't be meeting Robin, Bruce Wayne or Alfred during Arkham Asylum's story apparently, which is certainly a brave and confident move by a developer who obviously believe their structured, tight approach will hold up under the microscope.

By Luke Guttridge