History NightmareFuel / BatmanArkhamAsylum

*** Not to mention what happened to the REAL Amadeus Arkham. After his family was murdered by a mental patient named Martin "Mad Dog" Hawkins, Amadeus fried him in the electroshock chair, with everyone assuming it was an accident due to Amadeus spending time ostensibly treating Hawkins. Amadeus himself was eventually committed to his own asylum and died there. The game takes a lot of inspiration from ''ComicBook/ArkhamAsylumASeriousHouseOnSeriousEarth''.

*** There's another layer of Batman's fear referenced in this sequence. There have been hints in other media about Scarecrow knowing or at least correctly suspecting Batman's true identity. It gets referenced in this game when Scarecrow, acting as Batman's therapist, sighs that he has been like this ''since his parents died''. Just think about that for a minute.

* While walking through the hallways during the "rescue the doctors" section before entering the morgue. You'll hear pre-recorded announcements about Arkham's many facilities. Which at some point mentions a "kid's facility" for children and teens requiring psychoanalysis. This brings whole new levels of horror. There were kids there? Though most likely they only came for appointments during the day. Like a regular psychiatry.[[note]]Hopefully.[[/note]]

** And don't think for one second you're in the clear once you collect all the spores necessary for the anti-venom. As you make your way back to the entrance, Croc will come after you more frequently. Culminating in him smashing every single platform, forcing you to run back to the entrance. But before you can exit, iron bars will land in front of you, trapping you with Croc. Don't trigger the explosive gel Batman laid before entering and you're treated to a unique first person cutscene of Croc ''devoring'' you!

NightmareFuel in ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum''.

* Just the sheer number of people who die over the course of the night. Batman can see corpses of dozens of doctors, guards, and inmates around the island. [[https://www.reddit.com/r/BatmanArkham/comments/872u1q/arkham_asylum_final_body_count/ According to a player who searched the whole map for corpses, 168 people died during the events of Arkham Asylum.]]

*** The UncannyValley renderings of Zombie Thomas and Martha Wayne.

*** [[UpToEleven Even worse when]], instead of playing that PA jingle, ''warped, insane, [[LaughingMad creepy laughter plays]]'' before the announcement.

*** And at the end of the sequence, Joker shoots Batman in the face, prompting the game to inform you that [[GameOverMan you failed the mission]], prompting you to "use the middle stick to avoid being shot." [[FissionMailed Choosing 'Retry' will take you to the next part of the game]], but the moment you see that screen is just terrifying. It probably won't be the first time you see the GameOver screen, but in this instance, you're left feeling utterly helpless since ''you have no idea what you did wrong''.

*** Then, there's Batman's interaction with Joker on the monitor in the elevator. Good 'ol J tells Batman, with his trademark sadistic glee, "Prepare to face your fears. ''All'' of them." As he finishes saying this, Batman starts coughing. ''[[OhCrap Uh oh.]]''
** The second time Batman is exposed to the fear toxin as he exits the library, he's still in the mansion corridor but the screen text indicates he's in Wayne Manor. He turns the corner and finds [[EldritchLocation an extremely long hallway that gradually transforms into Crime Alley]] as he relives his parents' murder.
** And the third and final time Batman succumbs to the fear gas, with the [[FissionMailed faux console freezing]]. There are several hints for the alert player that this is a Scarecrow moment, but it's still masterfully done.

*** Listen close to the background chatter during the scene. The "prisoners" that are making a ruckus for the "guards" off-screen? That's Gordon, Sharp, Cash, and Dr. Young (who was killed earlier in the game). They're being herded outside by Joker's gang [[ShotAtDawn to be shot]]. And they're ''begging'' Batman to save them all the while, as he lies there on the gurney unable to move.

** For added nightmare fuel, there's no music whatsoever except when Croc attacks and when you collect the spores. No soundtrack, just the sound of water dripping, your footsteps, and Croc sniffing the air and making threats at you.

--->'''Joker:''' Are you scared? Lonely? Good. I said protect Medical and ''{{you have failed me}}''.

** The fact that all the damage that's been done to the place is still there (no one's even tried to remove Young's corpse) and the few remaining guards and doctors, like Aaron Cash, are still standing around as if they're still trapped. Go to the medical ward and you find Cassidy and company still hiding out behind stacked hospital beds. Even though they're free, they haven't escaped; they're still afraid of what will happen if they walk out the door.

** Before that, Croc apparently ''eats'' Scarecrow. However, one of the after-game cut-scenes shows and from ''[[VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight Knight]]'' that Scarecrow survived [[BodyHorror albiet with horrific injuries]].

*** Arkham Island is a low-level war zone, filled with insane inmates, gun-toting nut-jobs, and several other Bat-rogues, all of whom seem to either fear/respect/get gassed by [[BadassBookworm Scarecrow]] enough to let him pass by without question. The ''whole time''. It's damn creepy at best, and a serious showing for the not-so-good doctor.

* [[ImAHumanitarian Killer]] [[NeverSmileAtACrocodile Croc]]'s lair. You're walking through an abandoned labyrinthine sewer, supported only by panels of rotting wood, walking as slowly as possible so that Croc doesn't get the drop on you, knowing full well that he can surface at any time, with only a short warning. And then, once you have made your way to the most remote corner of the area, Croc gets hungry. Oh, and if you fail, one of Croc's [[HaveANiceDeath Game Over screens]] ends with a [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou horrific]] case of EatTheCamera.

** Before that, Croc apparently ''eats'' Scarecrow. However, one of the after-game cut-scenes shows that Scarecrow survived.

---->''[[ParanoiaFuel You shouldn't be here... You shouldn't be here... You shouldn't be here... Get outta here... get outta here... get outta here...]]''

---->''[[ParanoiaFuel Get outta here... get outta here... get outta here...]]''

** If try to access your map during the Scarecrow segments, all you get is [[NothingIsScarier a black void]] with the message "Map Not Available" at the bottom.

** For one of the Riddler Challenges, you find Scarecrow's lair in one of the elevator shafts in Intensive Treatment. It's a RoomFullOfCrazy with map layouts of the whole island and photos of Batman in the Asylum. ''He is stalking you the whole time''.
*** Arkham Island is a low-level war zone, filled with insane inmates, gun-toting nut-jobs, and several other Bat-rogues, all of whom seem to either fear/respect/get gassed by [[BadassBookworm Scarecrow]] enough to let him pass by without question. The ''whole time''. It's damn creepy at best, and a serious [[TookALevelInBadass upgrade]] for the not-so-good doctor.

* The Visitor Center. Dear God, the Visitor Center. The fact that it is the only area in the entire game in which you're forced to use first-person view makes it worse, as does the implication at the end of the game that ''Joker was in there every time you entered it''.

* The part where Zsasz grabs Dr. Young and drags her around a corner with a knife to her throat. She's screaming for help and pleading with him to let her go, Joker's watching from the security cameras ''cheering him on'', Zsasz is on the verge of [[AxeCrazy snapping completely from the pressure]] and killing her anyway; and you're around the corner with a Batarang aimed. Oh, and if you miss, she's going to die. Good luck!

*** Not to mention what happened to the REAL Amadeus Arkham. After his family was murdered by a mental patient named Mad Dog, Amadeus fried him in the electroshock chair, with everyone assuming it was an accident due to Amadeus spending time ostensibly treating the psychopath. Amadeus himself was eventually committed to his own asylum and died there. The game takes a lot of inspiration from ''ComicBook/ArkhamAsylumASeriousHouseOnSeriousEarth''.

*** Little wonder why he's ''NEVER'' appeared in the cartoons.

*** Then, there's Batman's interaction with Joker on the monitor in the elevator. Good 'ol J tells Batman, with his trademark sadistic glee, "Prepare to face your fears. ''All'' of them." As he finishes saying this, Batman starts coughing. ''[[OhCrap Uh oh.]''

** The morgue, where Batman falls prey to Scarecrow's literal NightmareFuel for the first time. Since it's the first time, you know ''something's'' wrong but you don't know what--just like Batman. The times afterwards as things increasingly freak out, you realize what's going on more quickly--again, just like Batman.

*** About the only clues to the hallucinations are Batman coughing and some distortions in the air due to the gas. For the last one, the coughing follows a female voice asking over the intercom, "Did anyone catch the game last night?" That itself is creepy, but it barely masks the coughing. Then the game freezes and restarts. Even for those aware of the scene, it can catch you off-guard, first time it's seen until the twisted BatSignal appears, even past where we see Joker driving the Batmobile, it very much looks like the game had crashed.
** When Batman is brought into the Asylum on a gurney in the hallucination, he screams that he's not insane. Just the thought of the always calm and stoic Batman ''[[OOCIsSeriousBusiness screaming for mercy]]'' is chilling.

*** Listen close to the background chatter during the scene. The "prisoners" that are making a ruckus for the "guards" off-screen? That's Gordon, Sharp, Cash, and Doctor Young (who was killed earlier in the game). They're being herded outside by Joker's gang, [[ShotAtDawn where they'll be shot]]. And they're ''begging'' Batman to save them all the while, as he lies there on the gurney unable to move.

** For one of the Riddler Challenges, you find Scarecrow's lair in one of the elevator shafts in Intensive Treatment. It's a RoomFullOfCrazy with map layouts of the whole island and photos of Batman in the Asylum. ''He is stalking you the whole time.''

*** About the only clues to the hallucinations are Batman coughing and some distortions in the air due to the gas. For the last one, the coughing follows a female voice asking over the intercom, "Did anyone catch the game last night?" That itself is creepy, but it barely masks the coughing. Then the game freezes and restarts. Even for those aware of the scene, it can catch you off-guard, first time it's seen until the twisted BatSignal appears, even past where we see Joker driving the Batmobile, it very much looks like the game had crashed. [[FridgeBrilliance Bonus points for the line being something that would cause a crash in a faulty game.]]

* The game can make you nervous even before you start playing it. When you first load the CD into the [=PS3=], the game's download screen shows a series of shadowed images of characters, whilst a soundtrack plays. Only catch is that the soundtrack is made up of the echoing sounds of [[LaughingMad insane laughter]].

* And then you actually have run-ins with Scarecrow and his fear-inducing toxin. With little more warning than a cough from Batman, you get told off by his zombified parents, relive the night of their murder from the perspective of little Bruce Wayne, and get eerily unusual radio messages. To top it all off, each hallucination culminates in a platforming segment through an area that is part black hole and part ''Franchise/SilentHill'', evading the killer gaze of a [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever twenty-story tall Scarecrow]]. And then, he starts messing with you, the player, directly...

->''"Prepare to face your fears... All of them!"''

*** Listen close to the background chatter during the scene. The "prisoners" that are making a ruckus for the "guards" off-screen? That's Gordon, Sharpe, Cash, and Doctor Young (who was killed earlier in the game). They're being herded outside by Joker's gang, [[ShotAtDawn where they'll be shot]]. And they're ''begging'' Batman to save them all the while, as he lies there on the gurney unable to move.

*** About the only clue to the hallucinations is Batman coughing. For the last one, it follows a female voice asking over the intercom, "Did anyone catch the game last night?" That itself is creepy, but it barely masks the coughing. Then the game freezes and restarts. Even for those aware of the scene, it can catch you off-guard, first time it's seen until the twisted BatSignal appears, even past where we see Joker driving the Batmobile, it very much looks like the game had crashed. [[FridgeBrilliance Bonus points for the line being something that would cause a crash in a faulty game.]]