'Batman: Arkham City' News

Ok so todays post is a bit outside my realm of writing, but hey its Batman, so who gives a flying flip right folks? Anyway, there has been a lot of buzz and news floating around about all the goodies that are going to come with the new games release in October, so here they are gang!

1. We have of course seen the new look the Riddler will be getting in the game, along with his expanded role from just spouting riddles over Batman's cowl mike in Arkham Asylum.

Actually putting Riddler into the game and using innocent people as bait for his traps is not the only change this time around. Rocksteady has also taken care to make the act of finding Riddler clues both more difficult and more rewarding. It looks as if players are going to have to use all of the tools at their disposal to find Riddler’s clues and then save those in danger, Batman himself included.

While the Riddler is not exactly part of the main story in Batman: Arkham City, his role seems much larger than that of what gamers would traditionally label as merely a “side mission.”

2. The second bit of old, but still new news is the makeover everyone's favorite "waddling maestro of foul play", the Penguin is getting in the game.

While the classic portrayal of Penguin from the old televised Batman television series certainly fits the campy world in which he appeared, for many younger Bat-fans, Danny De Vito’s physically disfigured character from Tim Burton’s Batman Returns takes the top spot.

With just one image released of the monocled crime-lord it’s clear that Rocksteady‘s incarnation will be much more grounded in reality, with his gang of thugs far more dangerous, and far less gimmicky than the skeptics may have been expecting.

3. The last piece of news is that now, Rocksteady has released a full color image of Robin, and it certainly does not disappoint.

A black and white piece of advertising artwork can only do so much though, and now the developer has given a few more details on the reasoning behind the pre-order-bonus Robin’s rougher appearance, and what distinguishes their version from what fans may be used to.

Comic book fans are notoriously set in their ways, so there’s a good chance that the new incarnation of
Robin will raise a few eyebrows among the hardcore. But let’s be honest, in Rocksteady‘s horrific and ghoulish version of Arkham City, the standard orphan-acrobat archetype just wouldn’t ring as true as the rest of the fiction.

While Robin was initially created as a character for young comic book readers to identify with, the developer’s Senior Concept Artist Kan Muftic has now explained that they had very different intentions this time around:

“We wanted to create a Robin that players would identify as a contemporary character and move away from the traditional “Boy Wonder” image that most people know. Our vision of Robin is the one of a troubled young individual that is calm and introverted at times but very dangerous and aggressive if provoked. The shaved head is inspired by cage fighters, because we thought that Robin might be doing that in his spare time to keep him on his toes. Still, we kept all the classic trademarks of Robin’s appearance, such as the red and yellow colors of his outfit, the cape and the mask. We really hope that people will discover our Robin as one of their new favorite characters in the Batman universe. He is back and he means business.”

It’s one thing to make serious changes to the appearance and context of a superhero, but if the developers have any plans to expand Robin’s role in future games, it will be interesting to see how they weave this new fiction into the current storyline. Arkham City may be restricting the Boy Wonder’s role to challenge maps alone, the explanation for the design choices imply that the developers may have larger plans in mind.

We know that Catwoman will be a playable character, so it’s not much of a stretch to think of Robin playing the same role in a potential sequel. That will likely depend on how well fans react to the new sidekick, but we can’t help but think that at this point. Rocksteady has earned the benefit of the doubt.

What are your thoughts on the idea behind this new version of Robin? Are your initial concerns lessened with a fully-colored and hooded costume? Leave us your thoughts in the comments.