Batman: Arkham City Review

Batman: Arkham City lives up to and exceeds the expectations set by its predecessor, Arkham Asylum. Batman is immediately thrown into the action and chaos of Arkham City. The controls are familiar to those acquainted with the series with Rocksteady only improving upon the controls by adding gadgets and new moves in combat. Gadgets and combat moves can now be chained together to create some awesome combos while enemies surrounding you act strategically, surrounding you with new weapons and sometimes attacking you simultaneously.
The game balances the aggressive combat with stealth mode. Stealth mode provides the tactical approach to battle what the sometimes button-mashing aspect of the free-fighting doesn't.

Gliding is the main way to get around Arkham City. Players can traverse the entire area of Arkham City without ever touching the ground. It can be exhilarating and makes being Batman extremely addictive.

Paul Dini, Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy reprise their roles to create one of the best superhero stories in gaming history. The narrative includes a lot of major villains which complement each other as the story progresses. Each villain gets their share of the limelight as you take them down one by one.


The side missions are varied and provide a short but abrupt break from the story. I found myself starting all of the side missions after I had finished the game. With the tension that the main plot creates, you feel you have no time to stop for a break and tackle one on. But after you do finish the main story, the side missions provide extra content sometimes featuring other villains to keep things interesting.

Rocksteady spared no expense in making Arkham City beautiful in its own decrepit, gritty way. They have put a large amount of detail to make the place feel like it has been lived in and taken damage from its crazy inhabitants. Arkham Asylum used small spaces to create atmosphere whereas Arkham City develops this in its dark alley way so although you may be gliding over them, there is always the presence that something nasty is hiding in a dark corner.

Each area is specifically designed to suit the inhabiting villain providing a varied landscape while classic landmarks have been added from the Gotham universe to ground the story. This is particularly enthralling if you are already a fan of Batman. Riddler trophies provide the chance to interact with this brilliant environment. Rocksteady have made it so that you will never be bored collecting them by making these challenges so varied.

Arkham City is one of the best superhero games of all time. It provides enough to satisfy all players, from those new to veterans of the series. It possesses an immersive story and gameplay mechanics and even if it doesn't particularly enthrall you, who can pass the chance to be Batman.