Now you can download two new challenges for Batman: Arkham Asylum. They're free. However, being a videogamer with a typical sense of entitlement, I am now going to look these gift horses in the mouth. The first is another combat challenge.

In the 'Totally Insane' FreeFlow Combat map, players' will be tested to their fullest as scores of escaped lunatics bear down upon BATMAN as they make their escape through the asylum's secure records facility. These fast-moving foes will challenge all but the most practiced players, with quick reactions and expert timing needed to fend off wave upon wave of insane inmates, bent on taking down the DARK KNIGHT.

I haven't done all of the challenges that are included in the game -- in fact, there are a few I have yet to unlock -- but I can say that there's nothing quite so annoying as this one. You have to fight a bunch of thugs while yammering asylum inmates try to jump on your back. It's like being in a barroom brawl and having the other dude's girlfriend get involved. Not cool. And by "not cool", I mean "difficult".

The other piece of the free DLC is a fairly typical stealth challenge, about which I don't have a lot to say, so I'll let the announcement say it for me.

In the 'Nocturnal Hunter' Invisible Predator map, players take on a wholly different approach, practicing their predatory skills to remain in the shadows, utilizing the Arkham watchtowers and Batman's arsenal of gadgets to gain the upper hand on The Joker's army of goons patrolling below.

One of the things I really like about the challenges in Batman Arkham Asylum is that they're synced to your progress in the single player game. Whatever upgrades you've earned for Batman are in effect during these challenges. They aren't strictly canned scenarios. Instead, they're interactive with how much progress you've made in the game world. For instance, in the single player game, I didn't fuss much with Batman's armor upgrades. I figured if I was getting shot or punched, I was doing it wrong. But with an escaped lunatic on Batman's back and a new high score at stake, it's not so easy to be cavalier about hit points.