Outside of the world of comics, Batman has a bit of a chequered past. The first two films were classics, but the two Schumacher-helmed efforts were real stinkers, with 'Batman & Robin' routinely finding its place in Worst Movies of All Time lists the world over. Likewise television, with the horribly campy series from the 60's a stark contrast to the superb 'Batman: The Animated Series' of the 90's. And, as is always the case, the videogames have been just as hit and miss over the years, ranging from Ubisoft's great Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu to the average Batman: Vengeance to the woeful Batman: Dark Tomorrow that thankfully never saw the light of day in Australia. Now there's a new film and a new game to go along with it'the question is, are they bat-tastic or simply guano?

Batman Begins follows the storyline from the film quite closely, so if you're familiar with the movie there'll be no surprises. For those of you living in a bat-cave, Batman Begins is something of an origin story for the Dark Knight; it follows the evolution of the man and the myth, as well as Batman's first adventures in Gotham City. Without spoiling it entirely, the plot revolves around a nefarious plan to release some sort of mind-altering toxin on the unsuspecting citizens of Gotham, and it's up to Bruce Wayne's new alter-ego to save the day.

The game is a blend of third person combat and stealth elements- Batman, unlike many superheroes, is just a man underneath that sculpted black rubber after all, so you'd have to be batty to go charging into the fray against Uzi-wielding thugs. As such, Batman spends a lot of time skulking in the shadows looking for opportunities to scare the bejesus out of his enemies before he swoops in for the take-down. This is achieved by using the environment against your opponents: blowing up gas pipes, breaking scaffolds to bring the roof crashing down, that sort of thing.

This where Batman Begins starts to unravel unfortunately, due in no small part to the excessive hand-holding present in the game. You see, rather than having to work out how exactly to use the environment yourself, walking within the range of anything useful causes a pop-up on the screen to elucidate exactly what gadget to use or what button to press. You don't even have to aim or be able to see what they're talking about- just do as they say, and voila! The problem with this is that there are no alternatives or other options; it's their way or the bat-cemetery. The result is a join-the-dots gameplay experience that rigidly directs you from one combat encounter to another'everything in between is barely fitting of the term 'interactive.'

So is the combat any good? Not really, because it suffers from the exact same problem! Pop-ups tell you exactly when to whack the B-button, which is the equivalent of pulling off some sort of impressive combo/special move without any thought or effort at all. Press B to do a multi-attack, press B to do a finishing move, press B to do a ground attack or a jump attack or'you get the picture. It's so utterly simplistic that it would be offensive, if the rest of the game wasn't exactly the same.

Likewise, the stealth/fear elements are horribly watered down. Despite the fact that the levels are packed with shadows, it doesn't matter if you're in them or underneath a light-bulb, so long as there's something between you and a baddie. Conversely, even if you think you're hidden in the shadows, enemies will spot you from a mile away if they have a clear line-of-sight. It's incredibly frustrating when it happens, not to mention disappointing that all the potential goes untapped.

On the plus side, at least it looks good, especially for a cross-platform title. The graphics are sharp, the locations look great, and the characters- especially Batman- look wonderful. Having virtually unfettered access to the film sets, props and designs has really paid dividends for Batman Begins, which does a brilliant job of capturing the look and feel of the movie. The game also supports 16:9 widescreen for a real cinematic experience for those of you so equipped, and it looks great! The frame-rate is rock solid too, and the only quibble is, not surprisingly, with the camera, which can be a real pain at times, especially during combat.

Batman Begins sounds fantastic though, with all the cast lending their voice (and likenesses) to the game, and they take to their roles with genuine enthusiasm. The music gets a bit repetitive after awhile, but fits the game perfectly and is very reminiscent of the film. The game boasts Dolby Digital surround sound too, which drips with atmosphere.

The highlight of Batman Begins would have to be the Batmobile levels though. In a stroke of cross-marketing genius, Electronic Arts put the Burnout 3: Takedown (XBW: 95%) engine to work, rendering Gotham City, the Batmobile, and numerous vehicles for your smashing pleasure! While there are only two driving levels, they capture the high-octane destruction of both the film's Batmobile sequence and the Burnout series as well, and if they don't make you rush out and grab a copy of Takedown then nothing will!

Batman Begins isn't a very long game, weighing in at just under 10 hours for the average gamer, probably less for videogame veterans. The hand-holding linearity of the main game really doesn't lend itself to replaying either, though the unlockable Batmobile levels are certainly enough fun to tackle a few times. There's a great range of extras present: a few interviews with the cast, director, writer and Warner Bros/EA executives, as well as a bunch of clips from the movie. You can also unlock alternative bat-suits, including the black & grey outfit from the Animated Series and the original blue & grey outfit from the Adam West TV series. Whether a costume change warrants a second play is ultimately up to you, but don't expect the game to add 'KAPOW!' text to your combat.