Ben-DutkaWe were sort of hoping they would tackle Superman next time around, but it appears Rocksteady Studios is sticking with the Caped Crusader.
According to a new Variety report , Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has tapped Rocksteady to produce an intriguing prequel to Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City .
This prequel would be "highly stylized" and return us to the Silver Age of DC's comics (the 1950s), when Batman first met the Joker. This will also allow the team to introduce other members of the Justice League of America, and we're reminded that Batman teamed with Superman in those days…so maybe Superman will be involved somehow. The only downside is that Mark Hamill won't be back to play the Joker in this new effort, which won't hit until 2014 at the earliest.
The two Batman titles have been immensely successful, selling over 10 million copies combined. Maybe that's why WBIE doesn't want Rocksteady to stray. Well, that's cool; this new game really sounds quite different.
Here's hoping…
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Um… hmm. Interesting.
The thing is, it's been a long time since DC wanted Batman to be as he was in the Silver Age. That Batman had sort of run his course by the 80s, when everybody's conception of the character was mostly colored by the campy Adam West series. Then Frank Miller got a hold of the character with "The Dark Knight Returns," and the dark and gritty Batman has been a huge success ever since.
"Dark and gritty" has become something of a cliche these days, but back at the time it was quite a revolution. Especially to take a character like Batman, known for his fanciful gadgets and epic battles with colorful clowns, umbrella-wielding thieves, and goofy Lewis Carrol inspired villains… and reveal underneath a seething mass of unhealed psychoses precariously channeled towards fighting crime.
DC hasn't looked back since. Not every Batman variant is as deeply screwed-up as Frank Miller's (especially in Miller's later works, where he really went overboard), but nobody's gotten anywhere near the Silver Age Caped Crusader for a long, long time.
I wonder if they're serious about this direction?
Never cared for Superman, but if anyone can make a good superhero game its Rocksteady. I wonder if this highly stylized game is going to go cell shaded.
Batman is so much cooler, but Superman is so neglected by comparison these days. He hasn't had a good movie in like 30 years, the games are always terrible. I wonder if Rocksteady will have a Superman cameo in this one — as Ben notes, there's that Justice League connection — to explore the possiblity of giving him his own game. Such an interesting possiblity.
@telly Lets not forget the bashing Superman often gets from others. Yes he may not be as relatable as Batman because of his abilities, but unlike Batman, Superman tries to be the hero that supposed to inspire the best of us. Plus Silver Age/Precrisis Superman's powers were so over the top compared to Modern Superman. If they made game with Superman from Silver Age days, I want to see one thing. Even if as DLC minigame, a planet juggling mission. Earn trophies as you try to rearrange solar systems :).
Sorry about the temporary bout of Madness. This heatwave where I live has stripped me of my common senses…
The problem here is that batman wasnt try to be the hero or wants to be the hero. He just want justice no matter what the outcome is. If that means that he is made to be the bad guy, be it. Batman is such a unique personality compared to all the other super heros. Superman is too righteous that he get to the point where is judgement skewed by his beliefs. Batman on the other hand will save the day, but if the villian die then they deserve it.
This puzzles me actually. They left so many questions unanswered in Arkham City that I was hoping would be answered either with DLC or in the next installment. Azrael, the Scarecrow, Dr. Thomas Elliot (the Identity Thief), etc all need some closure. I don't mind a new game going in another direction but finish what you started and teased at first please!
A Superman Cameo (plus the inevitable DLC Superman Missions) would be SO awesome. An intriguing setting, glad they're going in a bit of a different direction while still using the excellent Arkham style of play, which they have really gotten the hang of.
Very sad about Hamill not reprising another Joker role. So, so sad.
oh no god no!!!!!
one area i dont want a batman game to go is back to the justice league!
we need a prequel so we can have the right villain in the game, but not that far of a prequel.
whatever it is they really need to take cues from batman begins!
by far the best batman game ever made!!!!!!!
arkham series has been so amazing, BUT its just not a batman game!
this is batman, not bruce lee!
batman is suppose to set traps, use his gadgets and hide in the shadows.
not leap into a group of goons and go bruce lee on their a$$!
the combat is fun as hell, but they really need to restore the stealth, gadget and puzzle solving batman is famous for!
for crying out loud this is the BEST detective that ever lived, surely he can solve more complex puzzles than what asylum and city have provided!