Batman: Arkham Asylum was probably the biggest surprise of 2009 next to Wolverine. A big-budget super-hero game that actually captured the feeling of being Batman and was a blast to play? Almost unheard of in the video game industry, but developers Rocksteady pulled it off. Of course, a big success means sequels, and Arkham Asylum is no exception. Originally teased last year at Spike’s Video Game Awards show, the follow-up to AA will take place in Arkham City, a “heavily fortified” district in the heart of Gotham. Presumably this means more gargoyles to hang on.
Besides being in a different locale, Arkham City will feature a new cast of villains like Mr. Freeze, Two-Face, and Catwoman. Nothing much has been announced for the upcoming title, but Rocksteady promises this game will “deliver the ultimate experience as the Dark Knight.”
I think we can all agree that Arkham Asylum was fun, but there were things that needed to be improved about it, most notably the poorly designed boss fights. Almost every single boss encounter in that game was gimmicky or totally out of context (Scarecrow being the notable exception). What do you guys want to see from this bat-sequel? The game is dropping on PC, PS3 and the 360 in Autumn of 2011.
Source: CVG
Can’t wait! 1 good Batman game was a miracle, but 2 will prove that there is a god. Or that Rocksteady didn’t just get lucky!
One thing I hope they do again is how they make things harder for you. I absolutely loved how they slowly eliminated your options for takedowns (explosive gargoyles) and punished you for successful takedowns (alarm collars). Those were brilliant ways of forcing you to adopt new tactical approaches and it made the game a greater challenge without using the ‘slightly-tougher-gun-weilding-henchman-with-a-bit-more-health-and-slightly-more-health-than-the-last-one’ method.
So excited about this. While the first game was short, it was still a great new entry for Batman video games, and one of the more fun stealth games I’ve ever played. Can’t wait to see what they do in the second, though I worry that having it take place across the city will remove that Metroid-vania feel.
I had a hard time playing it. I don’t like 3rd person games where the camera is over the right shoulder… The mouse is on the right side (for most people), so the camera should be over the left shoulder. (Red Faction: Guerilla has this same problem).
At least give us PC users the ability to choose left or ride sides =/.
Couldn’t get further than a few hours into the first one.