Daily iPhone App: Batman Arkham City Lockdown

When I first talked to Netherrealm Studios' Ed Boon about Batman: Arkham City Lockdown, I told him it was very "Infinity Blade-esque," and even he readily agreed. The game is an iOS version of Batman: Arkham City, which liberally borrows assets from the console title (including graphics, models, and audio), and gameplay from Infinity Blade.

The game has you fighting various enemies with swipe attacks and various tapping motions in one-on-one combat. But while Infinity Blade is a well-cooked steak of a game, requiring finesse and care, Batman: Arkham City Lockdown is much more like fast food -- it's quick, relatively cheap and less refined.

That's not a bad thing, however. Infinity Blade tells its stories in a well-rendered world, but Batman:ACL shoots between a menu and a series of stages, in which you have to fight a series of goons to complete each stage and move on. By swiping in various directions, Batman can hit, dodge, counter strike or use gadgets. Overall, the gameplay is satisfying.

The progression is as well. You can use XP earned to unlock more gadgets, and even buy new skins for Batman with in-app purchases (a recent update added the 70's skin to the game for free) . iCloud integration and Game Center features further enhance the experience, and the game will likely see even more updates going forward.

Netherrealm Studios created the game with input and assets from Rocksteady, and while it's not nearly as complete as the console game, Batman: Arkham City Lockdown is still a fun hack-and-slash experience that does capture just a little taste of its console cousin. It's universal \ for US$5.99. If you can't get enough of Infinity Blade and want to get another developer's take on the mechanics, you should definitely check it out.