Batman: Arkham City (2011) Game Retrospective/Review

Batman: Arkham Asylum was an absolute gamechanger when it came out in 2009. It helped set a complete new gold standard for not just superhero games but licensed games in general. Due to the enormous critical and financial success of that game, no doubt a follow-up would be in the works. After Arkham Asylum was basically the pitch-perfect Batman game that just made you feel like The Dark Knight himself, how exactly do you top that? By going bigger, bolder, and more open world of course. Fans would only have to wait two years for the next entry in the Arkham series in 2011’s Batman: Arkham City, a game which Rocksteady already had in mind even before Arkham Asylum was even completed. In some respects, you could possibly even look at Asylum now as being somewhat of a building block strictly for City. Was lightning able to strike twice for the Caped Crusader or does going open world end up being too big for his own good?

Plot:

Taking place roughly 18 months since the events of Arkham Asylum, Bruce Wayne finds himself in a sticky situation at Arkham City. After arranging his own press conference in Gotham to protest the infamous Arkham City itself, he is captured and imprisoned by TYGER mercenaries led by Professor Hugo Strange. During his interrogation with him, Strange discovers that Bruce Wayne is Batman and that his master plan in the so-called, “Protocol 10” is in the works. After Bruce is released into the prison’s criminal populace, including running into a familiar foe with the Penguin and delightfully spraining his hand, he is able to free roam the city and obtain his Batman equipment via airdrop from his great butler, Alfred.

With very limited knowledge of Hugo Strange and Protocol 10, Batman enlists the help of Selina Kyle, A.K.A. Catwoman, whom he believes is the person with the most knowledge of Arkham City. Despite initially being captured by Two-Face after trying to steal something from him, Catwoman is aided by Batman to her rescue. Selina tells Bruce that she has no knowledge of Protocol 10 but has heard rumors about Strange potentially working with the Joker to take Batman out once and for all, suggesting that might be Protocol 10. After Joker attempts to assassinates Catwoman, Batman goes to track him down to his secret location, believing Mr. J., who has been very sick after injecting the Titan formula into his blood, may know the truth behind Protocol 10.

Once Batman tracks the Joker down, he is captured by him and Harley Quinn along with having a blood transfusion performed on him, affecting him with the same disease as the killer clown. Batman initially makes peace with the notion that him and the Joker will die together until it’s revealed that Joker’s blood has been sent to hospitals all over Gotham, potentially poisoning the City as well. Joker reveals that Mr. Freeze has the cure but has not been keeping contact with him.

It’s at this point where Batman finds himself in the fight of his life. Not only having to discover the secrets of Protocol 10 before it begins but now has to find a cure to save himself, Gotham, and possibly his number one arch-nemesis. Can Batman accomplish all of this before the end of the night or will this finally break the Bat as we know it?

It’s also worth noting that if you bought the DLC when it came out or waited until you got the Game of the Year edition that was released several months later, there was also a storyline involving Catwoman in the main campaign. Despite initially not needed to complete the game, it did mostly become available in future ports for free that it’s basically part of the main experience for many players.

During her story, Catwoman is looking to find a way into Hugo Strange’s vault, giving her all the loot she needs before she escapes from Arkham City. After being captured by Two-Face and rescued with the help of Batman, she goes to Poison Ivy for help to get into Strange’s secret base. Ivy at first refuses as she still has a grudge against Selina after letting her flowers die by forgetting to water them but agrees once she suggests that she’ll get the remaining plant that Strange has left in that same base she is trying to get in (which *spoilers* ends up being complete BS!).

It’s during this part of the story where the stakes becoming increasingly higher with Protocol 10 being mere moments of starting. As she tries to claim her loot and discovers that Batman might be in danger, Catwoman finds herself having to come to making a decision that could jeopardize her mission but will also save Batman in the process. Will she commit to her own personal goals or does she have that heart of gold needed to do the right thing and save the man she deep down has strong feelings for?

That’s all I reveal for Catwoman’s side of the story but it is worth noting that it’s nowhere near as long as Batman’s main story. Despite being mainly DLC at the time of the game’s release, it is a main thing that I believe the majority of people who have played Arkham City have likely experience for themselves. Whether they bought the DLC when it came out or waited for the Game-of-the-year editions/future ports, everyone knows Catwoman plays a part in this story and is definitely worth acknowledging.

Overall, the main core story of Arkham City is MASTERFULLY done! It’s able to find that right mix of main characters and villains without losing cohesion, even better than Arkham Asylum did. Even if certain characters don’t get as much screen time as before such as Harley Quinn (who basically doesn’t get much to do after the main plot gets underway), the ones that do get the most focus serve a great purpose to the main story of Batman fighting for his life for the sake of Gotham City, himself, and even the Joker.

The main big improvement here is that of the Joker’s plan which feels more in character than that of just “Let’s make an army of Banes!” His overall goal of making Batman give him the cure he needs to survive by bringing Gotham in the mix is an absolute stroke of genius on the clown prince of crime’s part. Joker knows deep down that Batman is just as much a part of his world as he is of Batman. He’ll accept death as long as the Joker dies with him but never at the expense of Gotham. With what could be his last stand as Batman, we see Bruce fight at war within himself, as he is looking to discover who he is underneath, who he is trying to really save, and whether or not he can still be Batman after the Joker or himself is gone. This honestly makes for an even more engaging final conflict between Batman and Joker than even The Killing Joke. (On a side note, I love that Joker has an opportunity to know Batman’s true identity early on in the story but doesn’t want to know.)

Another thing the plot does well is able to add in side characters and subplots in the exact right way. Throughout the whole game, you find yourself hitting plenty of stopping gaps with plenty of other characters thrown into the mix such as Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Ra’s Al Ghul, and Talia Al Ghul but it never feels like a drag. If anything, you find yourself hoping there is more to the story than just going from Point A to Point B to find the cure. You want to see the way the story expands itself and the twists and turns it is willing to make. Not only to see the way the universe of Batman himself unfolds but to see how much more personal this conflict is for Batman.

If there is a downside to the story is that Hugo Strange himself doesn’t have as much of a role than what was initially teased. Despite one of the game’s main trailers showcasing he would be a main villain, he doesn’t serve much of a purpose aside from the very beginning and very end of the game. Not to mention, him knowing Batman’s identity doesn’t seem to matter all of that much with the exception of a side conservation with another side character and one important plot point that is revealed during their final confrontation. The only main threat he possesses throughout the rest of the story is constantly taunting you to let you know how long it will be until Protocol 10 actually begins. Also, having perhaps a bit more Catwoman in the story would have been nice.

Even so, I did find himself to be INCREDIBLY engaged throughout the entire story of Arkham City in spite of some minor gripes. Even if you have never read a Batman comic before or have watch an episode of a series, you will likely find yourself with a great bit of knowledge of nearly every character that is presented throughout the game and will make you want to learn even more. It’s a shame that this ended up being the last game which legendary Batman writer Paul Dani would tackle as he would eventually be let go by Rocksteady after this game as the company would later decide to hire their own writers instead of freelance ones. This might have been the end of the road for Dani but it was sure one great one to go out on. It also worth giving a shout out to Paul Crocker and Sefton hill as well as they are two other credit writes for the game.

Gameplay:

Similar to Arkham Asylum, Batman: Arkham City is an action-adventure game that takes place through a third-person perspective with stealth elements thrown into the mix. The main hook this time is that there is a much more open world as the player is allowed to explore and realm through freely within it’s boundaries. The majority of the combat elements and gadgets from Asylum are still here with a few new tweaks and features added to it.

The “detective vision” makes a welcome return and is just as satisfying to use as before. It’s still the visual mode that highlights elements of interest on-screen, such as character status, collectables, and clues needed to get to your next objective. This mode is useful to perform forensic activities such as tracking the source of a sniper rifle round, which is not just included for the beginning of the campaign where you have to track down Joker by using evidence from his gunshot from a sniper rifle. Also, the player has access to an in-game criminal database which includes forensic puzzles, as well as a network hacking communication frequencies.

A main difference this time around is that there are sections of the game where detective vision will become corrupted. These will occur during sections when these network hacking communication devices are placed and active in certain areas which might prevent the player of moving on to the next part of the game. The only way to deactivate those devices is by defeating all the enemies in the area and destroy them yourselves. Aside from that, almost every detective mode feature that was present in Asylum is still here and you might just even find yourself using it even more this time out than you did before.

When it comes to Batman’s gadgets, most of what was presented in Arkham Asylum is still available here with a couple of new ones. There are some gadgets that you obtained in Asylum are present at the start of the game while others you have to work your way through the story to get. Nearly every single one of them have features that are either improved or have new capabilities.

You have the Cryptographic Sequences, the gadget used for hacking security consoles, that can also be used for monitoring shortwave radio channels and the line launcher which can now be deployed as a tightrope and can alter direction when using it. Other returned gadgets include the remote-controlled batarang, the explosive gel, and the grapnel gun. All of these that have been tweaked and upgraded to make it more useful in combat, stealth, or free roaming Arkham City. With a game that is much bigger in scale and scope, Rocksteady clearly needed to make these items more useful than before and they did exactly that.

The new featured gadgets include smoke bombs, a remote electric charge (REC) gun, freeze blast grenades, and the disruptor. The smoke bombs are used to disorient opponents and make them lose your location along with being helpful during stealth. The REC gun can electrocute enemies for a brief period of time and temporarily power motors. The freeze blast can freeze enemies and be used to travel on water. The disruptor can be used to disable enemies weapons and explosive mines. Just like with the previous gadgets, they will always come in handy at the exact right moments when you need them most and will likely find yourself using at least one of these at some point.

The combat system that was implemented beautiful in Asylum of course is presented just as well here if not more so. The biggest feature of this is with the improved version of “freeflow” mode. The player can now defeated enemies in many other different ways such as countering multiple blows simultaneously, catch hurled items thrown at them, attack aerially, and of course, the delightful string of consecutive strikes which raises your combo meter at maximum level.

Many of Batman’s gadgets are now useful for combat, which is good considering there is much more enemies to encounter here than before and will need some of these gadgets to properly defeat certain ones. Bad guys from all around are armed with either their own personal armor or weapons that they have. Certain enemies with weapons such as a baseball bat and pipe can be countered attack while ones with guns can not and need to be disarmed using a certain gadget to prevent any or further damage Enemies with stun batons can only be attacked from behind as attacking head on will do nothing and can inflict damage on the player. Enemies with shields require aerial attacks to disarm while enemies wearing body armor must be stunned with the bat cape and a range of successive punches before they can be defeated. The bigger enemies must be tackled with stuns and combo attacks and can even be manipulated to take out their allies.

Just like before, combat will reward the players with experience points after taking out a group of enemies that can be use to level up Batman abilities and purchase upgrades to strength your Batsuits, gadgets, and skill system. Each one will contain at least 15 different upgrades in order for it to reach it’s absolute maximum point. While that might sound overwhelming, it’s not considering how much there is to do throughout the game and how you will always find yourself fighting enemies no matter what you are doing.

Arkham Asylum receive minor criticism for it’s combat system being nothing but mindless button mashing. While I’m not sure folks who took issue with that will be satisfied here, there are at least certain enemies that takes more strategy to beat this time around and not just by simple punching and kicking. And with much more focus on upgrades this time around, you do feel progressively getting stronger and stronger as the game goes on where you feel like a much more badass Batman than you were at the start of the game. And you already started off as a badass!

And if you are wondering how the boss fights are, which was my main complaint with Arkham Asylum, they are much better here. While some are still a tad repetitive, they are much more inventive and fun to play and actually feels like you are fighting different enemies than the one you are facing. The best one in the game is the one with Mr. Freeze, where you are basically forced to find new ways to take him down as once you beat him one way, you can’t beat him that way again for the rest of the fight. It’s a very challenging and intense fight, especially in hard mode, that you will be on the edge of your seat. Even if these aren’t quite the very best boss fights in the series (as that honor surprisingly still goes to Arkham Origins, which I’m not covering for this marathon), they are actually pretty damn good this time around and certainly beats Asylum’s bosses by a landslide.

Of course, the main new feature of Arkham City is the open world of Arkham City itself. For those that found Arkham Asylum to be too small with not much room for exploration, you will be much more than satisfied here. While it may not reach the heights of Gotham City itself and even the idea of giving criminals their own playground is quite bizarre when you think about it, no doubt is Arkham City an absolutely fascinating place to explore.

No matter what objective you are doing and how far you’ve progressed through the story, you will be having the time of your life exploring every inch that this city can provide. Whether you are trying to get through the next part of the story or doing a side mission, you will always feel the urge to scratch any kind of surface that still needs a itch throughout this open world. Because of that, you will be flying on and gliding with Batman’s cape more than you ever did in Arkham Asylum. It really helps you getting the sense of beating Batman on any given night and going around to beat up whatever criminal he can to keep his city safe.

Rocksteady had a layout and vision of what the open world of Arkham City itself and it clearly shows. It has a virtual footprint five times that of Arkham Asylum, and the city design was modified to accommodate Batman’s ability to swoop and glide. When playing this game, you get the sense that this is a world that Rocksteady had been waiting to make their whole lives with a Batman game. If that is the case, then this is certainly a vision that was extremely well realized.

When it comes to the post-game content, there are very few games out there I would say that did NOT give the player their full money’s worth no matter how much they paid or what version they got for it. While the main campaign can take roughly 25 hours to beat, the main side missions will likely take around 15 hours, making the gameplay consists of about 40 hours to fully complete. It’s not just collecting Riddler trophies this time around (although there is a LOT of it), but plenty of other side missions with well-known Batman antagonists and even lesser-known that you can complete any time you want.

That’s not to say The Riddler doesn’t have a side story of his own this time around because he certainly does. He has captured a handful of hostages in certain locations scattered throughout Arkham City. In order to save a hostage, you have to collect enough Riddler trophies/solve Riddler puzzles in order for the Riddler to give him their location of his death traps.

There is a total of 440 (!) Riddler challenges for you to solve, 400 of them are for Batman while 40 of them for Catwoman (who will be discussed in a little bit). Most of these challenges consist of collecting trophies hidden throughout the city and using gadgets to disable traps and barriers to collect them. There are also environmental challenges which requires the player to solve riddles by locating a specific item or location and having to locate certain green question marks painted throughout the city. If you are finding trouble finding any clues of Riddler trophies through the map, you can find a certain criminal with “detective vision” that lights up green and interrogate him to force him to reveal location for these trophies.

Just like with Asylum, these aren’t required to beat the main campaign but you can’t help but pick one of these suckers up whenever you find them. Even after being the main campaign, you will likely want to find every single of them just to have the opportunity to take down The Riddler head on and make that sucker pay for everything he has put you through. It will certainly take time and plenty of YouTube videos to look up but once you found them all, you will be gloriously satisfied.

The biggest new feature when it comes to the post-game content involves a “New Game Plus” mode. This is a mode you can unlock after beating the game for the first time which will give you access to all the upgrades and gadgets that you had already required up to that point but also is basically the game on “Hard” mode. The main difference here is that the enemies will be more powerful and harder to take down along with not having a notification to when the enemy is about to strike you. I would advise not doing these mode until you have unlocked every single upgrade for everything but for those looking for a challenge and going for the Platinum, then this will definitely do you some good.

The game features a series of challenge maps that are separate from the story mode. Similar to Asylum, these focus on completing certain goals, such as eliminating waves of enemies in combat, taking on enemies in stealth, or traveling to a specific location as fast as possible. The methods, varieties, and ways used to achieve these goals earn you the highest score possible that can be ranked online with other players.

Now, to finish off the gameplay section with the new addition of Catwoman. While initially DLC, she has become available to play for free on any other version since it’s release and man is she a lot of fun to play as. While her gameplay style is quite similar to Batman’s, she does control a bit differently and possibly even better. She tends to move at a much quicker pace and has elements similar to Spider-Man with the way she uses the wipe to swing to different areas and crawl up the walls. Her combat emphasizes agility and allows for the use of her own unique weapons such as gauntlets, bolas, and her iconic whip. And as mentioned before, there are a portion of Riddler challenges made strictly for Catwoman which only she can complete.

While this might give across the impression of it being a last-minute feature, it’s no doubt a welcome feature. Catwoman has always been one of the most famous characters in the Batman world and Rocksteady did a great job showing why. In some ways, this is possibly my favorite Catwoman in any Batman media. I love her attitude, sass, sex appeal, and the way she plays. I could have used an extra mission or two with her but any Catwoman is better than no Catwoman in my book, unless you count that movie with Halle Berry.

I don’t know how to describe Batman: Arkham City’s gameplay other than it’s simply stellar. It takes nearly everything that worked so well from Arkham Asylum and not only expands upon it with new, unique additions but also improved certain other elements that folks might’ve had issue with. Just about every minor nitpick that one might’ve had with Asylum is fixed here. While I doubt I will ever find a certain gameplay of a game to be completely flawless as there will always be a particular gripe I have or a glitch I run into, there’s very few games I’ve come across where it basically feels perfect. When the only main issues you have with a gameplay is that there are certain things you want more of, I think that speaks volume to how great a game plays when all you want is more.

Graphics:

Batman: Arkham City has always been a great-looking game to look at and it continues to look great nearly 12 years later. They are a big improvement over Arkham Asylum (which already looked quite good) with much improved animation, character designs, texture, and looking more realistic but doesn’t go too overboard with it. The character models in the Return of Arkham addition took some getting used too but they do look more fluent and natural this time around whereas last time they felt a bit stiff in certain areas.

The game of course looks at it’s best when exploring Arkham City itself, giving yourself the impression that you are free realming the exact kind of playground full of crooks you would imagine in real life if it was actually a real thing. There’s plenty of nice details scattered throughout with tons of Easter eggs, references, and callbacks to well known Batman lore. Not only will this be useful to complete other objectives involving Riddler challenges but they also make for a great touch visually that I couldn’t imagine being implemented better.

While I can’t say with confidence that Arkham City has the very best graphics I’ve seen in any video game, it’s definitely has some of the very best effort and details put to them that I’ve seen in any video game. Not a single complaint to be had here.

Sound:

Nick Arundel and Ron Fish return once again to do the score for Arkham City and somehow they are able to top themselves. Not only is the music presented throughout are filled with tracks that would fit greatly in one of the animated shows or movies, but it just feels perfectly in line with the Batman character. It has the right amount of intensity, sorrow, and tragedy that has help define the character of Batman for many generations.

This is a soundtrack I tend to go back to from time to time as it contains some of my favorite tracks in any video game. There are plenty of great ones that stand out such as the main theme and ending theme but one track that should absolutely not go unnoticed is the one referred to as “I Think You Should Do As He Says”. That is the absolute definite Batman track as far as I’m concerned. From the very first time you hear that, it just gives you goosebumps and makes you know you are in for quite a ride. I also quite dig the theme when you acquire a new gadget.

If Batman: Arkham Asylum had one of the best soundtracks I heard in a superhero or licensed game, than Batman: Arkham City has one of the best soundtracks I’ve heard in any game period. It is just absolutely stellar all around!

Most of the voice cast from Arkham Asylum makes a return here along with a couple of new and welcome additions. Of course, Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill are back as Batman and Joker respectively and are just as good here as they were in the previous game. There’s two specific scenes with them together that might just be some of the very best voice acted scenes in not just in a Batman game but possibly any video game. If you’ve played the game, you might know exactly which scenes I’m talking about. However, you really get the sense of history that both Conroy and Hamill have had together playing these iconic roles and it pays off big time here. At the time this game came out, Mark Hamill claimed that it would be his final time in the role. While that ended up not being the case as he would later return in Arkham Knight and The Killing Joke film adaption (unfortunately!), it’s a hell of a performance and would have been the perfect note to go out on if this was his last go at the clown prince of crime.

The one notable voice change is with Harley Quinn. As Arleen Sorkin retired from the role after Arkham Asylum and DC Universe Online, longtime veteran voice actress Tara Strong was brought in to replace her, who has since been the main voice of the character in future Batman content. The results are…..quite mixed. Strong is an amazing voice talent but here, you can really tell she had not quite settled into the role yet. Her voice in the game is like an odd mix of trying badly to replicate Sorkin’s voice and just sounding like Timmy Turner but with a Boston accent. She has her moments (I love the way she says pudding!) and would much improve in the role later on down the road but Tara Strong’s performance just feels like she had to come up with the voice at the very last minute, almost as if Arleen Sorkin was expected to come back and then Rocksteady had to find a new voice actress quick.

With the cast being expanded with many new additions of characters, there are plenty of notable voice actors that play a part here. We have the likes of Corey Burton as Hugo Strange, Troy Baker as Two-Face, Nolan North as Penguin, Maurice LaMarche as Mr. Freeze, Jim Piddock as Alfred/Calendar Man, Stana Katic as Talia Al Ghul, and Dee Bradley Baker as Ras Al Ghul. All of these are wonderful voice talent that fit their roles like a glove. However, the main standout in terms of the new characters introduced here is no other than Grey DeLislie as Catwoman.

I don’t think Catwoman has sounded any better in any Batman medium than the way she sounds here. DeLisile perfectly captures the sassy, seductive nature of the character while also nailing the wisecracks and banter between everyone else she plays off of. Selina Kyle is a character in this game you just can’t keep you eyes off and steals every scene she is in and a big part of that has to do with her vocal performance. DeLisile has always been one of the best voice actresses in the industry with her playing the likes of Daphine from Scooby Doo, Vicky from The Fairly Oddparents, and Azula from Avatar: The Last Airbender, and her portrayal of Catwoman just makes for another wonderful edition to her amazing resume.

Even with my lukewarm at best first impression of Tara Strong’s Harley Quinn, the voice acting is still outstanding all around! The characters just sound perfect and exactly the way you expect them to sound without really questioning it. If there’s one thing that Rocksteady knows how to greatly with these games, it’s the terrific casting and voice direction!

Downloadable Content:

Arkham City has received quite a bit of DLC over the years since it came out. Whether it was pre-order bonuses or content that came along the way, everyone should have had a taste of them by now. Just like with Asylum, there were a handful of new maps for challenge modes, most notably ones with the Batcave and even in Bruce Wayne’s mansion. However, there is a bit more content this time around.

As I’ve mention before, there was the Catwoman DLC that now plays through the main campaign on just about every available version of the game now. However, there are other DLC packs and costumes with other characters such as Robin and Nightwing. These characters are available to play during these challenge modes and you are free to change their appearances however you like. These costumes include Batman and Catwoman, who can be changed at anytime through the campaign or during these challenge modes. These costumes are clearly inspired from previous Batman media such as The Animated Series, The Long Halloween, and The Dark Knight Returns and these re-skins are available for anyone that had always imagine themselves wanting to play a Batman game with these kind of outfits on.

When it comes to story content, there is one notable addition with the DLC pack that was originally released seven months after the game’s release in Harley Quinn’s Revenge. This takes place about two weeks after the events of Arkham City. Despite the entire mega prison being evacuated, Harley Quinn has returned, still not over the death of her boyfriend, and captured a handful of Commissioner Gordon’s men. Batman initially enters Arkham City to apprehend the cops and Harley Quinn but goes missing while trying to track them down. It’s then that Robin has to step in to discover the disappearance of Batman and rescue the cops before it’s too late.

The main hook of this DLC pack is that it gives you a chance to play as Robin. While controlling quite similarly to Batman, he does have some elements of it’s own, such as the bullet shield which he can use to get past gunfire without taking damage for a limited period of time. For a character that for years has been the butt of every Batman fanboy’s joke, it is nice to see this character being treated more serious and feel like a worthy ally to this version of Batman.

While Harley Quinn’s Revenge doesn’t necessarily move the Arkham series forward in any way, it does at least make up for the lack of screen time that Harley herself didn’t have in the main game. With how quick her initial reaction was to Joker’s death by the end, it was interesting to see her taking that dark turn most assume she would take after her pudding is gone. I don’t know if I paid for the DLC that I would have felt like I got my money’s worth but for those who got it for free, I don’t really seem them complaining much about these DLC packs.

Conclusion:

I don’t think Rocksteady could have followed up Arkham Asylum any better than they did here. Batman: Arkham City is about as good of a video game sequel as one could get. Not just as a superhero or licensed game but basically any game in general. It takes everything you loved about Asylum, tweaks some of the things that didn’t work about it, adds in some new elements, and is able to offer a much grander and wider open world where you truly feel like the Batman. Are there some grips I have with the game? Of course! However, no video game has ever been 100% flawless and didn’t have at least one thing I had a grip against.

As the years have went on, people have been debating endlessly on whether or not this or Arkham Asylum is actually the better game. When it comes to the answer of that question, I think it strongly depends on what kind of preference you have and what you look for most in a Batman game. If you prefer a smaller scaled, tighter paced, and more detective focus Batman game, then you will prefer Arkham Asylum. If you prefer a larger scaled, more action heavy, and open world focused Batman game, then you will prefer Arkham City. Personally, I give a slight edge to City since that gave me a strong resemblance of what I imagine the Batman would do on any given night where he flies around a large city and beats up criminals with his bare hands. You can prefer what you prefer but I think most would agree that when it come to superhero or licensed games, these two games do help set the high standard of them.

Batman: Arkham City is the perfect sequel to Arkham Asylum and quite honestly one of the most perfect video games I’ve ever played. NOT a flawless game, mind you, but when it comes to the ambition this game has in terms of it’s story and gameplay, it’s basically perfectly executed. This is still one of the most celebrated video games of the last decade or so and it deserves every bit of it. Even if this is where the franchise basically peak, at least it peaked laughing and with a smile on it’s face.