It has been confirmed just hours ago during a call between Time Warner management and investors that, yes, a third game in the Batman: Arkham series is in development, scheduled to ship before the end of the year.
Though it’s been a foregone conclusion that something related to this franchise has been in the works for a little while, the announcement that we’ll be playing it in the next 10 months comes as a little surprising, especially considering Rocksteady have said that their next game isn’t a Batman title, and other reports suggested that the next Batman game would be a Silver Age prequel the leads into the inevitable Justice League of America game.
A lot is up in the air at the moment, so we’re just going to have to settle for conjecture for now, but nevertheless, there’s no denying it’s exciting news no matter how the game reaches us.
Here are 10 things Batman: Arkham 3 needs in order to live up to its already stellar legacy…
10. Rocksteady Must Develop It
It should be a given that Rocksteady is going to develop the third Arkham game, but in the fickle entertainment industry, there are no guarantees.
As mentioned above, Rocksteady seem pretty confident that their next game isn’t going to be Batman, so we hope that either a) Rocksteady got their wires crossed and Arkham 3 has now taken priority or b) Time Warner screwed up and will wait until Rocksteady are ready before moving forward.
Still, executives are notoriously impatient and insensitive to the needs of artists, so if Rocksteady really are moving forward with something else, don’t expect Warner to wait around – we’ll likely get saddled with another developer working on the project, and as time has told again and again, that’s a terrible idea.
Rocksteady has built such a superb framework that it will be really exciting to see what they can innovate next; to take that away would be a major blow for the series. I for one know that my enthusiasm will wane considerably if any other company ends up attached to the project.
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8 Comments
Great points. One thing I definitely would like to see is for them to not only continue the Hush storyline, but also give us a boss fight with Firefly in the skies of Gotham.
Gotta say the only one i agree with on this list is the first. The rest im not too much of a fan of im afraid. I shall explain though:
Games that get released on next gen pretty much as soon as the new console comes out tend to bomb. The current gen is fine and i wouldnt play the new game for at least 2 years. Big middle finger to the fans i reckons. Let everyone play it.
the reason the Arkham games are so good is becuase they havent catered to multiplayer and as far as im aware they have done unbeleievably well without it.
Adding vehicles to games tends to become clunky and takes you away from the character. Again the great thing about the past two games has been how itimate and close you are with Batman. I feel vehicles would ruin this.
im 50/50 on the Justice league as i really dont see how having much more powerful (in terms of abilities) characters in the game, presumably as allies, would help you associate with Bats. I am very intrigued on how they would be used as they havent let us down yet.
i would only ask for a full gotham city if you were restricted to dark alleys and the rooftops. If spiderman has proven anything, having normal citizen NPC’s in a game that just get in the way will take away from the game. Arkham City was FULL of people you could destroy with your fists, taking that way could be a bad move.
Harley is a cool villain and extremely marketable. I agree, dont have her as the main villian but she should be there. If its a sequel to AC then have her much more deranged and evil, if its a prequel, its unlikley she’ll be involved.
Batman and Robin only work in a few of Batmans greatest tales. They have never worked on film and i dont see the game equivalant being any different. The odd little cameo by the boy wonder is fine but once again, having a tag along would be a pain as every other game in history has shwon us. Also, no MP ;)
Scarecrow is at his absolute best in the Arkham games of that there is no doubt. Main villin though? im not sure. Great mini games and set peices defo. He’s a little two dimensional for a main villian. Hence why in the comics he’s usually an informant and an occasional main protagonist.
if there is no Titan, you only have normal goons to beat up. If they replace it with something alot cooler then maybe. If it gets taken away, the action might be boring.
Batman needs to be raw , like a MAX comic.
This might sound odd but I’d love to see a boss fight with Superman. Sort of like a mix between Hush and Dark Knight Returns.
Enough of the trophies and disembodied voice-I want to see what Rocksteady does with the Riddler-THAT’S your main villain, friend!
All good (though I’d mark like a Sharpie for a Joker return – he’s never REALLY gone, is he?). I’d have to add “Lay off the DLC” or at least just add it to the game as a whole. Make it achievements you earn or Easter eggs you find, but quit making it “Oh, you have to buy it at Best Buy to get THIS” and whatnot. Charge us $10 more and just include it already.
Personally, I agree with the co op and gotham perks. Open up the city and lets us have free roam like a GTA game. but instead have us defeat a main villian to unlock where to go next. Give us vehicles and access to the batcave. MANY easter eggs would be a great addition because lets face it, when the game is over we dont want to stop playing.
If it is going to be a prequel than the likelyhood of no joker is pretty slim also if it is set in the silver age than we should not expect her in the game at all