Batman: Arkham City

I Didn't have any friends in my life, but after playing this game all summer vacation i am now happy with my 470 green glowing trophy shaped friends, they were hard to come across, but i finally did it

"We have positive ID on Batman. He is kicking all kinds of ass down there"

What a game! This is what a sequel should be: bigger, better, and more responsive and accessible in almost every department, from graphics to combat, stealth, and exploration. It still holds up after all these years, and let me tell you, it's not just nostalgia. Games like these truly come once a generation.

And on top of that, there are DLC stories with multiple characters, maps, and challenges. It's very hard to review this game in some text, as you need to experience this game. For me this is truly one of the few 10/10 games out there. And if you're Batman fans, this is a must-play.

Arkham City > Arkham Knight
Even after all these years, Batman: Arkham City still feels like the moment superhero games figured out what they were supposed to be. It took the already solid foundation of Arkham Asylum and just expanded everything. Bigger world, better combat, more villains, and a story that actually feels like a full Batman graphic novel instead of just a game campaign.
I love that Arkham City's world is very small and compact, but very (content) dense, that to me is the best open world/level design. I hate vast, almost empty, no-level design open worlds that take forever to traverse and quests/missions/the story makes you go from one side of the giant map to the other. Instead of one location, you’re gliding across a quarantined chunk of Gotham controlled by different villains. Joker, Penguin, Two-Face, and others all have their own territory, and it gives the city a chaotic “anything can happen” vibe. Side missions pop up constantly, letting you deal with smaller villains and making the world feel packed with Batman lore.
The stealth sections are just as good. There are way more tools and takedowns, and enemies are smarter with things like jammers and mines. Dropping into a room full of armed thugs, silently picking them off from gargoyles one by one, never gets old.
The story is another big highlight. Instead of every villain teaming up, they’re all working against each other while Batman tries to survive in the middle of it. Joker’s storyline especially stands out, and the ending is still one of the most memorable moments in any superhero game.
And the bosses. After Arkham Asylum’s weak boss fights, Arkham City completely fixes that. The Mr. Freeze fight alone is legendary because you have to use different stealth tactics every time or he adapts. It’s one of the most creative boss fights in gaming.
Even today, the game still holds up incredibly well. The combat is addictive, the soundtrack is epic, and the atmosphere of Arkham City makes Gotham feel alive in a way very few games manage.

"Look around you. This horrible bunch of psychopaths are all begging to join up with me, but unfortunately for them, I only take the best. And today, best means whoever can kill you. Come on out lads. It's initiation time."
Batman: Arkham City is an action-adventure game developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
Story
I suggest playing through Arkham Asylum first, as events from that game are used as a setup to setting of this one.
Arkham City takes place 18 months after Arkham Asylum events. Taking credit for stopping Joker's siege, director Sharp becomes a Mayor of Gotham City. Declaring Asylum no longer suitable, he creates immense prison enclosure known as Arkham City inside Gotham's slums, taken care of by mysterious Hugo Strange while monitored by private military firm TYGER Security. Our protagonist, Bruce Wayne, opposes that idea and ends up in a titular prison himself. Here as Batman he wants to find out more about mysterious Protocol 10 and real intentions behind the prison.
Gameplay
If you played Arkham Asylum, you already know what to expect as City builds up upon gameplay from previous game, providing third person open world venture where you will investigate, explore, stealth and brawl through the prison as our favourite Caped Crusader, searching for truth (and few faces to soak your fists in).
First thing you will experience is the main dish of the game- combat. Punch, kick, smack thugs before they smack you to avoid a dreadful fate of watching villians laugh in your face as you lose and reload a checkpoint. Counter or dodge incoming attacks, chain up combinations to gain speed and power, utilize plenty of gadgets to surprise your opponents. Game provides improved version of the "Freeflow" combat system, meaning you can now perform more moves, such as option to counter multiple attacks at once or being able to chain combinations for long enough to unleash deadly special attacks. Enemies can be armed with different armor and weapons, forcing you to adjust your moves accordingly.
Sometimes you get a chance to resolve encounters silently. Similar scenario as with first game, utilize vantage points, environment, detective vision and your gadgets to eliminate enemies without them noticing you. Watch as fear strikes their minds and heartpulse keeps rising with each performed takedown on their buddies, but just like in combat, thugs are a bit more Bat-proof this time so they come with more firearms, jammers and extra tools that will make your life harder, as tides can quickly shift back and forth. Know when to strike and when to wait for opportunity, or just create your own!
Arkham City opens up the area, providing way more space to explore. Glide, grapple and sprint around looking for collectibles that expand the narrative and lore, side activities, or just seek out local thugs waiting for a fight! (Or to be knocked out silently by a sneaky Bat.) Fans favourite Riddler returns with his trophies and riddles, while other villians make an appearance in side quests spread all over the prison, unlockable as you progress through the story. Same applies to gadgets, so you might have to wait a bit to obtain a tool or two before you can enter certain buildings or collect specific trophies. No pressure, you can always return to every area you visited.
Combat and exploration grant you experience points, earn enough to level Batman up and unlock new skills, moves, or improve gadgets.
Playtime, other modes
It took me roughly 13 hours to complete everything in Arkham City. After beating the story you unlock New Game Plus where you can utilize everything you have unlocked with increased overall difficulty to balance it out. Additionally there is "Riddler's Revenge" mode, where you tackle on different challenge maps and campaigns for medals! Fair to say you can spend a bit more time in City than you might think at first glance, if interested. Especially as this version comes with extra DLC, Catwoman content, and extra characters in RR mode.
Impressions
Out of the gate I will go out with a very bold claim- Arkham City is probably the best sequel I ever had a pleasure to play. A textbook definition of how they should be made. It's not a revolution, but an evolution. If you played Asylum you feel right at home almost instantly as game keeps same great controls and fantastic core gameplay allowing you to quickly get into action, increasing and opening up the location where game takes place, addition of side quests and expanded lore make it feel like an entirely new experience. Already great combat is now reaching superb levels, it's smooth, it's intuitive, with very tight controls and top notch precision when it comes to inputs as if game knows which thug you want to hit before you even do. Some annoying moments from Asylum where Batman in the middle of combination would decide to punch ghosts are gone, combined with new moves and gadgets it practically makes you beg for as many enemies on screen as possible to go wild.
But game knows when to slow down, when to give you a stealth section to showcase pretty solid enemy AI, allowing you to fully lean into Batman's strategic side with various gadgets, careful planning and utilization of environment to his advantage. Quite frankly it's a shame that because game is no longer as linear as first title, plus complete change of area where game takes place so it's almost impossible to just give you a stealth section in the middle of the city, it doesn't actually have that many of those section. But when you get them, it's an absolute treat to play.
Asylum no doubt had it's own unique atmosphere, but City is no slouch in that department either. Prison filled with crime in the middle of gang wars, with secrets on top of secrets, the mash of destroyed slums with iconic locations, freedom you get to explore it and encounter many more and lesser known villians across short yet satisfying side quests, it hits right. Fortunately game never feels too long, it doesn't drag on, even if you decide to dive into the madness that is collecting those forsaken trophies.
Fantastic audiovisual side, strong art direction, top of the game performance from voice actors and animators, game even today looks fairly impressive. Forgot to even mention expanded extra side mode of the game in which you can spend plenty hours, if running around Arkham City gets boring for you.
If there something...mixed, I can say about this game, it would probably be about the story. In my book the main villian in this one was a bit..disappointing? Especially as he was pretty much a "main face" when it came to promoting the game. I expected a better conclusion of certain arcs and felt like it could have focus on just one story, instead of jumping around and trying to have two main storylines branching out and at least for me, that never really worked. So yeah, story is enjoyable but I would like it to go into a different direction.
Nonetheless, Arkham City is simply superb. Easy recommendation. Combat feels great, explorating feels enjoyable, still holds up visually and it's a treat for fans of DC/Batman.
Final words and conclusion
Said it before, gonna say it again, GOTY Edition comes with everything released so you get all the fun stuff- alternative costumes, post-main game DLC and extra characters- in one pack!
Batman: Arkham City improves pretty much everything from first game while still focusing on core strenghts- fantastic combat, great audiovisuals and intriguing exploration. Buy it, play it, enjoy it.
Feel free to check out my curator page for more reviews!

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☑ Perfect
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Okay
☐ Bad
☐ Very stylized
☐ They're what they should be for what the game is
☐ MS Paint could make something better
---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Fantastic
☑ Excellent
☐ Perfect
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Meh
☐ Bad, but playable
☐ Just go watch paint dry
---{ Audio }---
☑ Eargasm
☐ Amazing
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not to bad
☐ Alright
☐ Bad
☐ My ears are bleeding
---{ Audience }---
☑ Babies
☑ Young kids
☑ Young teens
☑ Older teens
☑ Adults
☑ Old people
☑ Anyone with a decent maturity level
☑ Anyone with a lack of maturity
☑ Anyone that is alive
☑ No one, not even your dog
---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Just average
☐ A little better than average
☐ Good
☑ Decent
☐ Better than good
☐ Fancy Pants Rich Boy
☐ NASA
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Can choose your difficulty setting
☐ No difficulty needed
☐ Just press 'W"
☐ Easy
☐ Medium
☑ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Hard
☐ Verry Difficult
---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if you like to collect things
☑ Only if you care about steam achievements
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Only if you care about rankings/placements/leaderboards/etc.
☑ Average grind level
☐ A little grindy
☐ Too much grind
☑ You‘ll need a second life, maybe some macros, & a will to live for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ Story? What story?
☐ No Story
☐ Twilight was a better love story than this
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☑ It‘ll replace your life
---{ Game Time }---
☐ 1-2 Hours
☐ 2-5 Hours
☐ 5-10 Hours
☐ 10-20 Hours
☑ 20-50 Hours
☐ 50+ Hours
☐ 100+ Hours
☐ To infinity and beyond
---{ Replayablity }---
☐ You won't even finish it the first time
☐ None, once was enough
☐ Not that kind of game
☐ You don't stop playing this kinda game, ever
☐ Maybe once or twice, to try something new
☐ You'll want to get every single possible ending & secret there is
☑ You'll pick it up every few years, but never finish a whole playthrough
☐ A lot, just to romance everyone, pick new options. try new classes, etc
---{ Price }---
☐ It’s free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If you have some money to blow
☐ Wait for it to go on sale for the 100th time
☐ Ask someone to gift it to you instead
☐ You could also just burn your money
---{ Bugs }---
☐ Circumstantial (PC specs, internet, save/install location, etc.)
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs
---{ Game Size }---
☐ Very low
☐ Low
☑ Average
☐ High
☐ Too much
---{ Worth It }---
☐ Hell no!
☐ If you have a lot of cash
☐ Worth it!
☐ Get it now!
☑ Life is not complete without this game!
---{ TEXT }---
This game was very very good: the story was beautiful and very captivating, the combat is bold and challenging at first, but becomes fluid as the game progresses, the side missions were unique and fun. The story is also amazing, and this game solidifies in my eyes as one of the best superhero games ever made. In short, even if the game is old, it is a very good one that still lives up to the highest expectations of all players. I highly recommend it!
---{ 9 / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
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☐ 8
☑ 9
☐ 10

They'll have to put me into Arkham Asylum after completing 100% achievements for this game.

A classic Xbox 360 era game, it's still a MUST PLAY in 2025.
if you change the values in the 'BmEngine.ini' file, you can play in whatever frame-rate you desire. Worth a re-play just to experience it in High FPS. (tested at 144fps)
Easiest to recommend out of all 4 Batman Arkham Games.
While i like Arkham Asylum's theme and style more, City feels better to play.
Arkham Origins is cool, and Knight is a different beast entirely, but they're both built upon the mechanics in Arkham City. If you got the time, start with Asylum. If not, Arkham City is a tier above, do not skip.
However, i do not recommend trying to 100% achievements, as there is some BS challenges especially with the Nightwing predator medals in the Riddler's Revenge DLC.
its not impossible, but its a big time and sanity sink.
Note: Nvidia PhysX 32-bit is no longer accelerated on 50-series GPUs, and will use CPU if turned on, leading to stuttering. That said, its feel like PhysX is more of a gimmick and maybe even immersion breaking at times, since some particles can look out of place.