Batman: Arkham City is the direct sequel to the highly acclaimed Batman: Arkham Asylum. Set after the events of Arkham Asylum, Batman has to enter Arkham City jam packed with villains from the Batman franchise to rescue Catwoman. Little does he know that something bigger is about to happen.
Main Story
Batman: Arkham City is an open world game meaning that the story progresses at the pace you want it to. Essentially it is non-linear meaning if you want to do a side quest you can or if you want to beat up inmates you can do that as well. The main story sees Batman mainly deal with prominent villains from the franchise, namely The Penguin, Ra’s al Ghul, Hugo Strange and the Joker. Along the way there are cameos from Clayface, Solomon Grundy, Talia al Gul, Harley Quinn and Mister Freeze who all shape the story through their involvement. Generally games that try and work multiple villains into the main story can cause the plot to turn into a bit of a mess or result in a weak ending but Batman: Arkham City does this quite well filling out each story arc so that it has a satisfying conclusion.
As part of purchasing Batman: Arkham City* players have access to the Catwoman DLC which has its own story centred around Catwoman which occasionally interacts with Batman’s story arc. Catwoman’s story focuses on Catwoman trying to one up Two-Face and eventually Hugo Strange’s Tyger Personnel in the quest for loot. Along the way she is attacked and assisted by Poison Ivy in a nod to fans who know the history between both of these characters. Although only four acts long the Catwoman DLC provides another way to break up the story which highlights the non-linearity of Arkham City.
As a whole the main story here is every bit as satisfying as the original while also introducing more characters from the Batman universe compared to the original while not diluting the
Gameplay/Mechanics
Moving around Arkham City is easier now with the improved Batclaw which when upgraded allows players to propel into the air for that next glide after latching onto an object. With this upgrade it allows players to move across the map quickly and efficiently, this also has the potential for a player to traverse from one side of the map to other without ever touching the ground.
The freeflow combat system makes a return to the Arkham franchise which incorporates not only basic hand to hand combat and counters but also the usage of gadgets as well as counters to thrown objects to increase combinations. Timing again also plays a key in the freeflow system as this allows more damaged to be done if the right button is pressed at the right time.
Not all of Arkham City is based around direct combat. At times both Batman and Catwoman will come across enemies who guns which will require stealth to get past them. The stealth element involved in Arkham City is the exact same as Arkham Asylum which is a good thing since these require the use of strategy as well as the use of gadgets to get around these enemies. The layout of stealth areas play a part as well with gargoyles serving as vantage points. This allows for takedowns of enemies which can also be done using certain environmental aspects such as weak walls, ledges or even vents.
Graphics
Simply put, Arkham City is outstanding. It is completely understandable for players to stand atop a vantage point or tower and just look into the distance. As Arkham City represents the slums the dark, depressing and decrepit place the bleak and dark setting the game takes on is appropriate. Furthermore each of the main villains as made their headquarters distinguishable from the others. The Penguin will have an ice themed headquarters, while Hugo Strange’s headquarters will be more formal and structured. Overall expect to see a lot of bleak colours that resemble the slums of Gotham City mixed up with the themed headquarters of the main antagonists.
Sound
Returning to the reins for voicing Batman is Kevin Conroy while Mark Hamill does another wonderful performance in voicing the Joker for the final time. Other notable inclusions to the cast are Corey Burton, Nolan North, Dee Bradley Baker and Grey DeLisle who voices Hugo Strange, Penguin, Ra’s al Ghul and Catwoman respectively. The voice acting in Arkham City does a great service to the characters with nobody sounding out of place in terms of voice or dialogue. For example Hugo Strange is very authoritarian and proper while the Joker sounds completely insane.
The second part of the sound is the in game portion. While traversing through Arkham City you will pick up conversations from inmates concerning aspects of the game that have occurred. This can lead to hearing phones ring, gaining information on characters or prisoners assaulting other prisoners. Fights also sound authentic as punches and kicks sound brutal while weapons being fired sound authentic and attract the attention of nearby thugs.
The voice acting and in game sounds of Arkham City is believable as it does not go over the top while the combat portion is crisp with actions such as punches sounding realistic and brutal. Arkham City manages to achieve this without going of the top or becoming corny which is a great accomplishment from the development team especially when as this is a superhero based game.
Replayability
Outside of the main story, Arkham City is packed with side quests that introduce more characters from the Batman universe. Firstly the Riddler trophies and puzzles are pack and are even more numerous that before, when enough Riddler tasks are completed a hostage can be rescued from the Riddler’s grasp. All this leads to the newly introduced Riddlers Revenge aspects of Batman: Arkham City which consists of combat challenges and stealth based challenges with medals given when a certain amount of points are achieved or certain stealth based techniques are completed. Aside from this, players can undertake side quests that involve other villains from the Batman franchise such as Hush, Bane, Mad Hatter, Deadshot and the enigmatic Azrael means that aside from the main story players will be able to gain a greater insight into more characters from the Batman universe.
Arkham City also has a mode called ‘New Game Plus’ which allows players ot go through the story again but it is much harder with tougher enemy formations and boss fights. This mode also allows players to take on the story again in a much more challenging setting.
Overall
When Batman: Arkham Asylum was released it was deemed the perfect Batman game and Arkham City has exceeded it in every way possible. With more side quests, Riddlers Revenge and New Game Plus in addition to the main story, players will have a tough time putting this game down as there will always be a new challenge for them, whether it is a faster time, a higher score or a higher difficulty for players to undertake.
Final Score: 10/10
*Note: Only applies to those who purchase the game new.
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