Two years ago, Rocksteady Studios did something the gaming world thought was practically impossible: make an amazing superhero video game. Batman: Arkham Asylum set the bar for superhero video games and even entered the Guinness Book of World Records for the “Most Critically Acclaimed Superhero Game.” With the bar already set extremely high, Rocksteady went back to the drawing board to craft a sequel that manages to surpass its predecessor. Arkham City is an immersive experience that draws you in from beginning to end; not only will you play Batman you will become Batman. Flying through the air, interrogating enemies, and going toe-to-toe with the baddies make for one hell of a blood pumping experience.
Batman: Arkham City is set one year after the events of Arkham Asylum. After Batman defeats the Joker from ravaging Arkham Island, mayor and Arkham warden Quincy Sharp purchases a large section of Gotham City and turns it into a giant prison for all the city’s criminals and supervillians. Sharp steps down as warden and gives complete power to Hugo Strange who lets all the criminals run rampant in the new prison and even captures a bunch of political prisoners, such as workers on the prison or news reporters, who could use any info against Strange’s plans. Bruce Wayne arranges a press conference directly outside the “city” acknowledging that it needs to be shut down immediately, and in doing so is captured by Hugo Strange’s security personnel and taken into Arkham City. There he learns that Strange knows that he is Batman and, should he even attempt to interfere with Strange’s plans, his secret will be revealed to everyone.
Just as its predecessor, Arkham City brings back the “Freeflow Combat” system that made fighting in the first game so fluid. One button attack and one button counter might seem very simplistic, when you find yourself surrounded by about 50 enemies (each with different types weapons such as riot shields, machine guns, swords or even body armor), that is when the combat system truly shines.
Unlike the first game, Batman comes into this story with a slew of gadgets ready to tackle any obstacle. From his smoke pellets to his grapple hook and his remote-controlled Batarangs, Batman is prepared to handle business. That is not to say he is stuck with what he has though. By completing missions, or just by advancing the story, Batman can receive new upgrades and unlock new combat moves and gadgets by leveling up. While it is an RPG element; rest assured that Arkham City is far from an RPG.
Batman also comes with a few new navigational moves. One is his new slide which can be used for both navigation and offense. By holding the run button and hitting crouch Batman will slide across the ground for a bit providing him with the ability to slide under low spaces to access new areas or even catch an enemy off guard. Another new ability is Batman’s dive bomb. During a glide, if you hold the crouch button, Batman will free-fall straight towards the ground allowing him to pick up speed and use that speed to add more height and distance to his glide when he pulls up (or you could use it to slam straight into an unsuspecting enemy for a vicious takedown attack). Some of Batman’s combat upgrades are special button combinations that provide him with both offensive and defensive skills. One such move allows you to stun all enemies in a specific range for a limited time while another allows you to take down one enemy with an instant attack. Don’t get too excited, though; while these moves are pretty easy to input, they’re a bit more difficult to pull off because you will need to reach a certain score multiplier. If you played the first Batman this should be a cakewalk, but new players might need some time to adjust.
Everyone knows the world’s greatest detective is also a master martial artist but Batman wouldn’t be complete if he couldn’t stalk his prey. The Dark Knight can cover corners for silent takedowns, perch on gargoyles, and grab enemies from ledges without alerting others to his presence. “Detective Mode” returns, which allows Batman to scan for clues, solve riddles and even locate all of the enemies in any given area. Detective Mode not only lets you know where enemies are; it even tells you what kind of equipment they are wearing and if they’re are armed or unarmed. Rocksteady claims that they have changed the way it works from Arkham Asylum, but detective mode is still an extremely powerful addition to Batman’s equipment. It might even be better than it was before.
Unlike Batman’s first outing, Arkham City is open world straight off the bat. As soon as Bruce Wayne dons the mask he can go where he wants, when he wants, with no repercussions. The map is cut into several sections, each controlled by a different villain–some sections actually have goons who work for two villains to “keep the peace”. The Penguin, Two-Face and The Joker each run most of the city, but you will find yourself running into an amazing cast of characters throughout the entire game. From news reporters like Jack Ryder and Vicki Vale to the heavy hitters like Bane and Mister Freeze to even some lesser known villains (if you don’t follow Batman comics). You will even see cameos of characters that you don’t have to fight, but I won’t ruin it, and even mention of other characters not in the game.
As a singleplayer game you would expect it to be done after you complete the main story, but Arkham City has so much for you to do. There are 400 Riddler trophies to search for and collect throughout the world. Some of them go from really trivial to mind-boggling but they unlock even more stuff for you to do in game. Some Riddler trophies unlock 3D character models and concept artwork and even fill you in on some of the stories outside of Arkham City such as what happened in that span of one year between Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. There are also trophies that unlock Riddler challenge maps for players to test their skill in hand-to-hand combat or stealth activities, but we’ll come back to that.
By far, one of the biggest things to keep you playing is the option for a New Game Plus. New Game Plus is unlocked after you beat the game once on either normal or hard and it is automatically set to the hardest difficulty and the counter icon no longer appears when enemies are about to attack you. Not only that, but the game can add new types of enemies not seen in the first playthrough. For example you may find an enemy who is not only armored but also wields a sword or an electronic disrupter that blocks detective mode.
After all of the things you can do in the main campaign the game still isn’t done throwing challenges at you. Riddler challenge maps to be exact. There are several maps for players to fight their way through. Maps come as stealth or predator challenges and require patience as well as a good amount of skill to play through as the difficulty ramps up with every map. Complete a set of objectives in the maps and you shall receive a medal, with up to three medals being attainable in any given map.
Batman isn’t the only character that goes out and kicks ass in Arkham City: He is accompanied by Robin the Boy Wonder and the sensual Catwoman. Robin is only available to players in the challenge maps, but Catwoman can be played throughout all of the modes and even has her own little side story to complete. Catwoman is not Batman by any means. She is agile, quiet, and doesn’t come with the same amount of gadgets the Dark Knight has but Catwoman can handle business and she does it in her own sexy way.
Arkham City’s visuals are extremely beautiful. The games lighting effects are next to none and textures are absolutely stunning. From buildings and particle effects Arkham City is easily one of the competitors for the best looking games this year. Even the sound effects are on point. From footsteps to gun blasts and even the musical score, which is a mix between orchestral and rock music (depending on the menu), is simply amazing. Even the voice acting is top notch. With Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprising their roles as Batman and the Joker respectively and so realistically, they will send chills down your spine with every conversation.
Rocksteady Studios has once again shown that it stands among the AAA game studios. Batman: Arkham City is easily a Game of The Year candidate.
Staff Editor Avion Foster-Jarvis is a native Brooklynite with a passion for video games. He owns a PS3, an Xbox 360 and a Nintendo DS–he also considers himself a multi-genre gamer. When not working on his Computer Graphics major or playing his PS3, he enjoys sleeping as much as he can.
