PDA

Archiv verlassen und diese Seite im Standarddesign anzeigen : Batman: Arkham Asylum 2


Timbo
13.12.09, 14:08:22
Jaaaaaa! Nachdem B:AA ein riesiger Erfolg geworden ist wurde gestern ein zweiter Teil der Batman Reihe angekündigt! :-D

Es gibt schon ein paar Infos und einen Trailer. Das Spiel wird wieder von Rocksteady entwickelt was sehr gut ist, da sie beim ersten Teil wirklich ein großartiges Spiel abgeliefert haben.

Auch scheint schon der erste neue Gegner von Batman bestätigt und zwar: Two-Face!!!

Außderdem wird das Spiel wohlmöglich nicht mehr auf Arkham Island spielen sondern in Gotham City, oder weingstens in Teilen von Gotham.

Mal sehen was das wird! :that:


Batman: Arkham Asylum Sequel Announced
The Joker drops this year's biggest announcement.


US, December 12, 2009 - Teased during the opening of Spike's Video Game Award Show, Batman: Arkham Asylum is getting a sequel. The Joker dropped off a giant present for fans in attendance.

No other details, such as a title, were given. But as expected, the location of the sequel may not be at Arkham Asylum as "Arkham has moved" website has been posted, though currently still 404'd.

Based off the trailer shown, it appears the game will take place in Gotham City, or at least certain parts of it. The camera pans through the ruined city streets before making its way through an amusement park, which we can assume is Joker's new hideout.

Developed by Rocksteady, the original garnered universal praise from fans and media. A sequel, while teased early, should come as no surprise.

"We are thrilled to build a global game franchise from Batman: Arkham Asylum, which is receiving an incredible response from gamers and Batman fans around the world," said Martin Tremblay, President, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. "Rocksteady has taken Batman to a new level in the video game space and we are committed to delivering a sequel the fans will love."

"Getting the opportunity to create Batman: Arkham Asylum and seeing its success has been a dream come true for the team," said Sefton Hill, Game Director, Rocksteady Studios. "We are honored to create the next chapter in this compelling story and promise to deliver another game worthy of the DARK KNIGHT."

Update: The website now works and it appears popular villain Two-Face has been confirmed for the sequel. The website displays a billboard featuring a character dawning an Uncle Sam outfit that's corrupt-looking on one side. The face has been torn off, but we'll bet on it being Harvey Dent playing dress up.

http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/105/1054751p1.html

Hier der Link zur neuen Website...
http://www.arkhamhasmoved.com/

Und hier zum Trailer...
http://www.gametrailers.com/video/batman-arkham-spike-tv/59829

El Mariachi
13.12.09, 18:49:59
Eine Frage , ich dachte man braucht gut 1-2 Jahre um eine Spiel zu Produzieren/Programmieren .

blue
13.12.09, 23:52:45
Eine Frage , ich dachte man braucht gut 1-2 Jahre um eine Spiel zu Produzieren/Programmieren .

Kommt einfach darauf an, was den Entwicklern bereits zur Verfügung steht.

Mal angenommen eine Firma beginnt mit der Produktion einer Spieleserie. Dann muss es zunächst mal zu einer Engine kommen, die sich dann um die technischen Dinge wie der Visualisierung, Sound, Input-Devices etc. kümmert. Sehr häufig (wie auch in B:AA), wird auf eine bereits implementierte Engine zurückgegriffen - Alternativ baut die Entwicklerschmiede ihre eigene Engine, was natürlich mehr Zeit kostet, dafür fallen aber keine teuren Lizenzen für proprietäre Engines an.
Steht eine geeignete Engine zur Verfügung, kommt es zur Implementierung eines Spiels. Plot schreiben, Animationen generieren (Häufig mit Motion-Capturing), Modelle erstellen, Sounds generieren, Szenarien erstellen, Spielfluss programmieren ...

An sich besteht bei den Entwicklern von B:AA bereits sehr viel! Sie haben fertige Modelle, fertige Animationen, Spielfluss ist implementiert ...
An sich brauchen die Jungs "nur" noch neue Szenarien erstellen, 'ne neue Story aus dem Boden stampfen und evt. an den Modellen, Animationen und am Spielfluss feilen - Schon hat man mit wenig Buget ein Sequel geschaffen, welches wegen der guten Verkaufszahlen des Vorgängers auch direkt gut verkauft wird ;)

Ein Beispiel bietet Assassins Creed.
Wer die bisher veröffentlichten Spiele gespielt hat, der wird merken, dass sich (im Vergleich AC1 vs AC2) spielerisch kaum etwas geändert hat. Man hat "lediglich" ein völlig neues Szenario geschaffen, zusätzliche Modelle erstellt (Ohnehin alle auf Basis von alten Modellen!), den Spielfluss den Wünschen der Community angepasst (Man hat bei AC2 stark auf die Meinung des Publikums gehört, was man auch auf positiver Weise merkt) etc.
Ich gehe mal davon aus, dass die Jungs für AC2 nicht länger als ein viertel der Entwicklungszeit von AC1 gebraucht haben.

Naja, und so wäre es theoretisch möglich, auch schon im kommenden Jahr einen Nachfolger zu Batman: Arkham Asylum fertig zu stellen.

Timbo
14.12.09, 18:37:03
Ich denke auch das wir schon 2010 mit dem Spiel rechne können. Wenns schnell geht vll. zum Sommer ansonsten spätestens zum Weihnachtsgeschäft 2010...

Timbo
15.12.09, 14:44:46
Batman: Arkham Asylum 2
Titel könnte in anderen Bereichen von Gotham spielen

Wenn man der neusten Aussage von Paul Denning, dem Senior Gameplay Programmer von "Batman: Arkham Asylum" aus dem Hause Rocksteady, Glauben schenkt, spielt der zweite Teil zum Spiel wahrscheinlich nicht in Arkham, sondern in einem anderen Bereich von Gotham. Schließlich hat das Gefängnis von Arkham bereits "seinen Lauf genommen". Dies ging aus einem Interview in dem Magazin PC Zone hervor.

"Ich denke, Sie haben wahrscheinlich Recht, dass es geradezu seinen Lauf genommen hat", antwortete er darauf, ob der Entwickler gerne in andere Bereiche von Gotham vordringen möchte. "Wir hatten eine Auswahl von Gebäuden getroffen, die - so denken wir - gut in das [erste] Spiel gepasst haben. Sie können durchaus ohne Umstände darauf hinweisen, dass dort viele Dinge sind, die Sie normalerweise nicht in einer Irrenanstalt auf einer Insel finden würden."

Weiterhin hält er Gotham für eine sehr gut realisierte fiktive Stadt und denkt, dass dort einige Orte geboten werden, die ideal für das Gameplay und für die Erkundung geeignet sind. Daarüber hinaus ist er allerdings gegen ein richtiges Open-World Spiel, wie man es von GTA kennt, und Spieler sollten darauf auch erst einmal nicht hoffen.

"Ich denke, Sandbox-Games, die das gut machen, sind so schwierig zu realisieren", erzählte Denning dem Magazin PC Zone. "GTA ist offensichtlich ein fantastisches Beispiel von einem Sandbox-Game, das es richtig macht, aber es gibt so viele, die es falsch machen, und ich denke, man muss so vorsichtig sein, wenn man diesen Weg einschlägt."

http://www.giga.de/usernews/00022482-batman-arkham-asylum-2-titel-koennte-in-anderen-bereichen-von-gotham/

Timbo
05.08.10, 16:13:12
Batman: Arkham City Coming 2011

Warner Bros. today confirmed the title and release window for the next Batman videogame developed by Rocksteady Studios. It's called Batman: Arkham City and it's coming next fall to PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

Batman: Arkham City builds upon the intense, atmospheric foundation of Batman: Arkham Asylum, sending players soaring into Arkham City, the new maximum security "home" for all of Gotham City's thugs, gangsters and insane criminal masterminds.


Not much else was revealed. WB says the game will feature a brand-new story, include a new cast of classic characters and villains, and new enhanced gameplay features.

Arkham City was one of several names registered for the game picked up on last month. Two of the confirmed villains so far are Mr. Freeze, played by voice actor Maurice LaMarche and Talia al Ghul - daughter of Ra's al Ghul - played by actress Stana Katic.

Actor Mark Hamill confirmed it us in an interview last May he'll be reprising his role as the voice of Joker for the game for the last time ever.

"This will be my last, there's no question about that," he said. "But it's the last hurrah."

http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/111/1110583p1.html

Offizielle Ankündigung

Der Nachfolger von Batman: Arkham Asylum (84% im 4P-Test) wurde heute offiziell angekündigt und hört auf den Namen Batman: Arkham City. Der neue Schauplatz wurde in das Herz von Gotham City verlagert, wo die schlimmsten Kriminellen der Stadt in einer weiteren Hochsicherheits-Festung ihr Unwesen treiben.

Dabei versteht es sich von selbst, dass man als Dunkler Ritter erneut auf die versammelte Prominenz des Batman-Universums treffen wird. Für den Spielablauf versprechen die Entwickler von Rocksteady einige Verbesserungen, ohne aber Details zu nennen.

Batman: Arkham City soll im Herbst 2011 für PC, 360 und PS3 erscheinen.

http://www.4players.de/4players.php/spielinfonews/Allgemein/20503/2025603/Batman_Arkham_City|Offizielle_Ankuendigung.html

www.arkhamhasmoved.com

Timbo
01.09.10, 15:21:23
Die Seite Gameinformer hat über die letzten paar Wochen ein Arkham City Hub eingerichtet wo ihr erste Informationen zum neuen Spiel bekommt. Die Seite findet ihr im unteren Link.

http://gameinformer.com/p/arkham2.aspx

Batman: Arkham City
Multiplayer enthüllt

Wie das englische PSM3-Magazin nun enthüllte, wird das Spiel Batman: Arkham City anders als der Vorgänger Arkham Asylum einen Multiplayer-Modus besitzen

"Multiplayer ist eine Tatsache, aber es gibt noch keine genaueren Informationen darüber", so ein Auszug aus dem Magazin.

Darüber hinaus gibt es Gerüchte, dass Catwoman als spielbarer Koop-Partner sowie Robin und Nightwing im Spiel enthalten sind. Vielleicht wird bereits auf der PAX näheres bekannt gegeben. Doch spätestens auf der Tokyo Game Show wissen wir mehr.

Batman: Arkham City soll im Herbst 2011 für die Playstation 3, die Xbox 360 und den PC erscheinen.

http://www.giga.de/usernews/00028020-batman-arkham-city-multiplayer-enthuellt/

Timbo
01.09.10, 15:55:25
Neues Kostüm von Harley Quinn enthüllt...
http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=217

Timbo
01.09.10, 18:19:29
Heute ist echt viel los bei Batman: Arkham City!
Es sind erste Screenshots bei flickr.com aufgetaucht...

Timbo
02.09.10, 17:03:33
Wieder ein paar neue News zu Arkham City...

OXM Provide brand new info on Arkham City

Covered with yesterdays leaked screenshots; OXM has provided us with more than pretty pictures. Here is a quick run down on the news the issue has confirmed. Small spoilers on the start of the game are included, you have been warned. Expect a full write up soon.

- Arkham City is four or five times larger than Arkham Asylum.
- The game starts by being briefed by Alfred, he explains the Two-Face vs Catwoman situation and you start heading to the area where the two are located.
- Batman is now much more agile, he is now able to plunge into a dive mid glide to accelerate flight.
- Two-Face has a gang roaming Arkham City, you will find them wearing face masks replicating their boss'.
- Criminals who aren't connected with any super villains roam the street.
- Story suggests that Professor Strange has been kidnapping Gotham citizens who are opposed to Arkham City.
- One and half years after the original game.
- Use new detective mode to discover a thugs super villain boss. This will be used to find The Riddlers men.
- The Riddler is in Arkham City, they hint you are almost certain to come face to face with him.
- Jack Ryder has been put into Arkham City due to him becoming to close to the truth on the city while working on an expose. Rocksteady were hesitant to reveal what Ryder had uncovered.
- Your first meeting with Two-Face is early on in the game. You are greeted with him displaying Catwoman tied up side down to a baying crowd of criminals. His two conflicting personalities being voiced out loud.
- Two-Face decides Catwoman's fate with the iconic coin toss. She gets lucky this time.
- The first confrontation with Two-Face results in Batman getting shot in the chest only for Catwoman to slip out of her chains and hit Two-Face into the acid she was about to be chucked into. A flirtatious conversation is then held between Catwoman and Batman only to be interrupted by a smiley face sniper dot rolling up Catwoman's suit. The shot is fired and misses her by a whisker.
- Your first detective mode experience is finding the bullet hole on the floor and figuring out its trajectory.
- Trajectory reveals the location of the shot. A bell tower housed by the Joker.
- Joker has a potentially fatal desease.
- Calendar Man is confirmed.
- The date and time effect your interaction with Calendar Man, set your console of PC's time a month ahead from last and you will receive a completely different conversation.
- Batman's launcher has received an upgrade, you can now stop at anytime instead of being forced to the end every time.
- You are pitted against a lot more thugs at once compared to the original game.
- Increased amount of combat animations.
- Phone booths ring only for thugs to stand by it, afraid to answer. Rumours going round suggest anyone that answers these calls end up dead.
- The mysterious caller ends up being Victor Zsasz, this starts one of many side quests in the game.
- To start the side quest you must follow a number of ringing phone boxes only to greeted with him at the final one.
- Co-Op seems to be hinted. Catwoman has very similar combat techniques to Batman when in game.
- Rocksteady suggest Crime Alley will make an appearance.
- Rocksteady insist that the only confirmed villains so far are the ones you have seen.

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=271

Ezio
03.09.10, 12:18:12
Yeahh gierig bin. Das muss ich auf jeden Fall haben. Der erste Teil war schon absolut fett.

Timbo
04.09.10, 16:46:18
Batman: Arkham City
Restliche Zeit für Feinschliff

Der Nachfolger von Batman: Arkam Asylum namens Batman: Arkam City soll 2011 für Playstation 3, Xbox 360 und den PC erscheinen, wobei die Entwicklung des Spiels eigentlich schon fertig ist und man nochmals verkündet hat, dass das Spiel nur noch den Feinschliff verpasst bekommt:

"Es ist im Grunde in spielbarer Form fertig. Es sieht aus, wie das erste Spiel als es schon poliert war ? wir haben im Grunde nun ein Jahr um es wirklich gut zu machen", so die Entwickler.

Man darf nur hoffen, dass dies auch bis nächstes Jahr zum Release klappt, da man laut weiteren Aussagen in Arkham City ein 5x mal so großes "Gebiet" hat, als bei Arkam Asylum.

http://www.giga.de/usernews/00028132-batman-arkham-city-restliche-zeit-fuer-feinschliff/

Find ich gut! Auch wenn es noch viel zu lange dauert bis ich es endlich spielen kann, gebe ich Rocksteady gerne die Zeit um das Spiel perfekt werden zu lassen. Der erste Teil wurde damals auch mehrmals nach hinten verschoben, aber es hat sich meiner Meinung nach auch gelohnt.

Aber Herbst 2011??? :( Geht nicht auch Sommer? :fin:

Timbo
07.09.10, 16:43:53
Play.com and AmazonUK suggest a March 2011 release

With Amazon.co.uk being the first to move Batman: Arkham City's release date forward to March it's looking like another online retailer (Play.com) is doing the same. It was only a few days ago that it was confirmed that that Rocksteady had completed fundamental development on all stages of the game and that they would be spending the rest of the time "polishing and adding new features". Could this news hint at Rocksteady being further into development than first thought?

When the game was first announced to the public it came with an "early" Q4 release date, this would suggest possibly October. Yet Amazon and Play have seemed to push this very far forward to a late Q1 release.

AmazonUK: 26th March 2011
Play.com: 25th March 2011

At this time this is pure speculation and with many online retailers still claiming a TBC release date it could go anywhere.

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=311

Wäre geil wenns wirklich schon im März kommen würde :-D

Timbo
13.09.10, 20:40:54
Batman: Arkham City - Der Riddler ist zurück - Wir haben die Details für euch

Der Riddler wird euch auch in Batman: Arkham City begleiten und hält wieder einige knifflige Aufgaben für euch parat. Vielleicht trefft ihr in diesmal sogar höchspersönlich. Wir verraten euch, wie das brandneue Riddler-System funktioniert.

In Batman: Arkham City müssen Sie Verbündete des Riddler für Informationen ausquetschen. In Batman: Arkham City müssen Sie Verbündete des Riddler für Informationen ausquetschen.
Rätsel-Freunde dürfen frohlocken, denn der Riddler wird euch auch in Batman: Arkham City wieder prächtig unterhalten und eure Gehirnzellen fordern. Doch das System dahinter haben die Entwickler von Rocksteady komplett auf den Kopf gestellt. Die Riddler-Maps? Gibt's nicht mehr. Dafür müsst ihr in Arkham City euren Detektiv-Modus einsetzen, um Verbündete des Riddlers zu finden. Dann haut ihr seine Kumpane zu Klump und verhört den Bösewicht. So erfahrt ihr beispielsweise, dass der erste Geschnappte im Spiel mit dem Riddler kooperiert. Aber nur, damit er nicht für eines von Riddlers Experimenten benutzt wird. Der Riddler befindet sich also irgendwo in Arkham City. Ob ihr ihm begegnen werdet? Noch steht das in den Sternen. Doch damit noch längst nicht genug...

Jede Riddler-Trophäe wird darüber hinaus mit einem Rätsel verbunden sein. Ein Beispiel. Ihr entdeckt eines von Riddlers Fragezeichen auf dem Dach. Sobald ihr euch jedoch nähert, entsteht darum ein Zaun und ihr könnt es nicht packen. Sobald ihr euch wieder entfernt, verschwindet auch das Hindernis. Wie gelangt ihr nun daran? Natürlich handelt es sich dabei um ein eher einfacheres Rätsel, denn ihr müsst lediglich die Bat-Claw einsetzen. Darüber hinaus gibt es Zusatz-Quests des Riddlers. Von Zeit zu Zeit hört ihr in der Nähe das Telefon einer Telefonzelle klingeln. Sobald ihr abhebt, erhaltet ihr vom Riddler eine Nebenquest, die die Hintergrundgeschichte des Spiels unterstützt. Klingt doch gut, oder?

http://www.videogameszone.de/Batman-Arkham-City-PS3-233835/News/Batman-Arkham-City-Der-Riddler-ist-zurueck-Wir-haben-die-Details-fuer-euch-773951/

Timbo
16.09.10, 18:11:07
Hier mal eine kleine Übersicht, was bis jetzt schon so bekannt ist...

Batman: Arkham City: What We Know So Far [V2]

Combat

Batman:
--Batman will now be able to counter two thugs at once.
--Batman will be able to use ALL of his gadgets in combat. The example shown was Batman vaulting over a thug, spraying explosive gel on him and then detonating it.
--Batman will be able to taunt his enemies, often resulting in some or all of the thugs fleeing.
--Batman will have a new swinging kick, usable from an elevated perch, where he attaches a line to his perch before swinging down into the foe.
--Batman will now be able to catch thrown objects and hurl them back at the foe
--Batman’s combat animations have more than doubled from the last game
--Batman has a new move called the “beat down”, a rapid combination of painful-looking punches and kicks that can take down any foe.

Thugs:
--There will be more thugs in each combat as compared to the previous game
--Thugs will be more aggressive, and may attack simultaneously
--Thugs have more realistic AI, and may flee
--Thugs will have a much wider variety of weapons
--There will be new armored thugs that can take more damage and block normal attacks

Stealth

Batman:
--Batman will have many new silent takedowns, confirmed so far are a double silent takedown and a leg choke from above.
--Batman will be able to smash through weak walls with his bare hands for a new takedown
--Batman will be able to screen himself with smoke pellets if enemies spot him

Gadgets

Batman:
--Batman will have all of his gadgets from the previous game from the very start of the new game.
--Batman will have new gadgets, confirmed so far are a broadcast analyzer, smoke pellets and an Ultra Sonic Emitter (USE) used to summon swarms of bats.

Gliding

--Batman will be able to transform a glide into a dive bomb for a much more rapid descent. Dive bombing into a group of thugs will push them back.
--Batman will be able to grapple enemies mid-glide
--Batman will be able to remain in a near-perpetual state of flight by gliding, grappling up to a high point, hurling himself off, and repeating.

Enviroment

Arkham City:
--Arkham City will be at least four times the size of Arkham Asylum.
--Batman will be able to climb on more objects, including wires
--Lights are highlighted in a detective mode screenshot shown, suggesting they will be interactable in some manner.

General

--There will be multiplayer, although it is not confirmed if it is co-op or not.
--There will be many side quests apart from the main story. One of them involves Batman following a string of payphones being called by Victor Zsaz before finally confronting him.

Enemies

--Thugs will have a much wider variety of appearance than in the first game
--Most thugs will be grouped into gangs, each headed by a staple Batman villain. Confirmed so far are Joker and Two-Face, with many more hinted
--You can keep track of the gangs in your criminal database
--Thugs not attached to a gang roam the streets
--Riddler thugs have replaced Riddler maps in the new game, and will require interrogation before they will talk

Detective Mode

--More complicated crime scenes than in the first game.
--Later in the game some crime scenes will require puzzles to be solved
--Rocksteady claims to be changing Detective Mode to an “augmented reality” mode, although this is not seen yet in the new screens.

Villians

--Confirmed so far are Joker (Trailer), Harley Quinn (GameInformer), Two-Face (GameInformer), Talia Al’ Ghul (VA Confirmation), Mr. Freeze (VA Confirmation), and Calender Man (OXM) , with Black Mask and Penguin hinted at in the trailer.

Story

--The story for Arkham City takes place roughly eighteen months after the events of Arkham Asylum. Quincy Sharp, former warden of Arkham Asylum, has taken credit for stopping the Joker, and used that notoriety to become mayor of Gotham City. As neither Arkham nor Blackgate Prison are in any condition to hold inmates, Sharp buys out a large section of Gotham's slums and arms the perimeter with mercenaries from a group called Tyger in order to create "Arkham City". The prisoners are brought into Arkham City and given free rein, told only to not attempt escape. To oversee the city, Sharp uses psychiatrist Hugo Strange who appears to have his own secret plans for the city. Batman maintains a vigil over the city, worried that the situation may get out of hand. Part of the setup for "Arkham City" was contained in plans in a hidden room in Sharp's office in Arkham Asylum.
The events of the game are set in motion when Two-Face, seeking to gain status among the inmates and other villains outside the city, devises a plan to publicly execute Catwoman. Batman decides for both the safety of Gotham and of his past romance with Catwoman that he must stop the execution by entering Arkham City himself.

--Alfred replaces Oracle, who has gone missing

--Jack Ryder has been put into Arkham City due to him becoming to close to the truth on the city while working on an expose. Rocksteady were hesitant to reveal what Ryder had uncovered.

--Your first meeting with Two-Face is early on in the game. You are greeted with him displaying Catwoman tied up side down to a baying crowd of criminals.
Two-Face decides Catwoman's fate with the iconic coin toss. She gets lucky this time.

--The first confrontation with Two-Face results in Batman getting shot in the chest only for Catwoman to slip out of her chains and hit Two-Face into the acid she was about to be chucked into. A flirtatious conversation is then held between Catwoman and Batman only to be interrupted by a sniper dot on Catwoman’s chest. Batman shoves her out of the way and the shot misses.

--Joker has a potentially fatal disease, that seems to have very little do with the overdose of Titan.

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=396

Timbo
28.09.10, 16:03:48
Batman: Arkham City is open-world and linear

Rocksteady's Sefton Hill has revealed that the studio's follow-up to the critically acclaimed Arkham Asylum will be an open-world game. And a linear game. It's complicated.

In an interview with PSM3, the studio founder was asked how he would define Arkham City's genre.

"We don't want to define Arkham City as an open world or linear experience," he said. "While the backbone is still the strong main narrative, there'll also be many character-driven sub-plots to reward gamers who explore the streets.

"These optional side aspects will flesh out the story and show how many of Gotham's greatest villains have adapted to life inside a new facility.

"So overall, there are elements of both a linear story and more open world adventure. I believe this combination will give the game a completely unique feel while remaining unmistakably authentic to Batman."

According to Rocksteady, Arkham City is "four or five times" bigger than Arkham Asylum.

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=528&sid=dba981fe6135825d8c55e901afe27d0c

Timbo
03.10.10, 02:16:13
Interview mit Sefton Hill von Rocksteady!!!

Batman: Arkham City Interview - Sefton Hill

Batman might have stopped Joker and restored order in Arkham Asylum, but his work is, typically, far from over. The Asylum has now taken over part of Gotham City itself, with the worst criminals in the world running riot.

The perfect excuse, then, to slip into codpiece once again for more brawling, gadgets, detecting and scaring thugs until they wet themselves. Welcome to the mean streets of Arkham City.

Hopes for this sequel are huge. How does that affect the development team?

It's true that, externally, there's now more anticipation, but I wouldn't say we feel more pressure because we put ourselves under a lot of strain for the first game.

I find it better not to think too much about the weight of expectation for the second game because I'm obsessed enough already, and if you stop and think about the responsibility it can be more than a bit scary.

It's been the first thing I think of when I wake up and the last thing I think about when I go to bed for the last three years, so I don't need any more motivation than I already have.

Do you see Arkham City as an evolution or a revolution of the first game?

There's definitely an evolution of story, but a revolution in terms of setting. It's important to us that players feel a sense of continuity between Arkham Asylum and Arkham City.

The story follows the events of the first game and even explains some of the mysteries of the Asylum. The location, however, is about four or five times larger than Arkham Island, so we had to develop new technologies to realise such a big and detailed environment - something that would have been impossible without the experience of the original.

Other games have aped aspects of Arkham Asylum, particularly the FreeFlow combat system. What are you doing to stay one step ahead of the competition?

FreeFlow was one of the key features that really made players feel the power and dynamism of Batman's unique fighting style. As with every other mechanic in the game, we haven't just transferred the design from Arkham Asylum, we've reviewed all parts of it and developed them for the new world and cast of villains. The combat's been expanded and now has new features, including twice as many moves for the player to perform, the ability to counter multiple enemies at once and the option to combo-in many of Batman's gadgets.

Have fan comments influenced the character roster?

We're always taking note of feedback, and it's pretty clear that there are many serious Batman fans out there with very strong ideas about which characters should be making an appearance. Of course, it's impossible to please everybody, so our approach is to focus on making a great story and gameplay. We then choose the villains who'll help tell the tale and provide compelling and innovative moments for the player.

Did you ever consider making the game more open world?

We don't want to define Arkham City as an open world or linear experience. While the backbone is still the strong main narrative, there'll also be many character-driven sub-plots to reward gamers who explore the streets.

These optional side aspects will flesh out the story and show how many of Gotham's greatest villains have adapted to life inside a new facility. So, overall, there are elements of both a linear story and more open world adventure. I believe this combination will give the game a completely unique feel while remaining unmistakably authentic to Batman.

How have you refined the Detective mode for the sequel?

As with nearly every area of the game, we're enhancing it. One example is the criminal database coupled with the new interrogation mechanic. The Riddler continues to taunt the Dark Knight with mind-bending puzzles and exploration challenges, but the location of his biggest secrets are known only to him and people he's told.

Rather than unlocking their locations using maps, Batman will be able to scan a gang of thugs to find a potential informant. This is the guy you need to question, but first you'll have to take down all the other gang members while sparing the one you want. That can be tough when Batman's in a seamless FreeFlow combo chain.

The Scarecrow sequences were our favourite part of Arkham Asylum. Are you planning similar surprises for Arkham City?

This is a really tough question to answer, so I hope you don't mind if I duck it by saying that we totally understand how popular the Scarecrow sequences were and that we also really enjoyed creating them. We're working overtime to make the best game we can, so all I can say at this stage is, stay tuned.

Can we expect to see the challenge rooms, FreeFlow combat sections and Riddler puzzles?

I'm afraid I'm not allowed to talk about that at the moment. Sorry!

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=580&sid=fb0e3c32050d837afa4926cfe0e13215

Timbo
11.10.10, 22:43:16
Es gibt frischen Nachschub an Screenshots :-D

Timbo
08.11.10, 16:02:37
Batman Arkham City: Viele Details enthüllt - Neue Moves machen Batman noch agiler

Angeblich orientiert sich Batman: Arkham City an Assassin's Creed und Mirror's Edge. Demnach sollen viele neue Bewegungen den dunklen Rächer agiler machen als je zuvor.

Mit neuen Moves soll der dunkle Rächer in Batman: Arkham City noch agiler werden. Mit neuen Moves soll der dunkle Rächer in Batman: Arkham City noch agiler werden.
GameVicio, ein französisches Magazin, hat eine Liste mit den Features veröffentlicht, die in Batman: Arkham City enthalten sein sollen. Die große englischsprachige Fanseite arkhamcity.co.uk hat die Liste übersetzt. Der Liste entsprechend soll es in Batman Arkham City spezielle neue Moves geben, mit denen gleichzeitig bis zu drei Gegner vom Bildschirm gekickt werden können. Ebenfalls cool: Batman könne in Arkham City über Gegner hinwegspringen und sie von hinten entwaffnen. Ein neuer Move namens Fallen katapultiert die Gegner in die Höhe, so dass Bats ihn in der Luft noch einmal attackieren kann. Rocksteady soll sich außerdem an Assassin's Creed orientieren. So könne Batman laut Informationen von GameVicio nun an Gebäuden hochklettern oder auf gespannten Seilen balancieren. Auch Mirror's Edge lässt grüßen.

In Batman: Arkham City dürft ihr unter Objekten hindurch sliden, euch an Masten festhalten oder Rampen hinunter sausen, um Gegner aus dem Weg zu räumen. Außerdem soll es ein Dodging-System geben, so dass ihr unter Projektilen hinweg tauchen könnt. Dasselbe gilt für Angriffe von Gegnern. Alles soll flüssiger ablaufen. So dürft ihr die Gadgets nun in allen möglichen Situationen benutzen, beispielsweise wenn ihr rennt oder durch die Luft fliegt. Die Informationen stammen von arkhamcity.co.uk und sind von Rocksteady bislang nicht bestätigt.

http://www.videogameszone.de/Batman-Arkham-City-PS3-233835/News/Batman-Arkham-City-Viele-Details-enthuellt-Neue-Moves-machen-Batman-noch-agiler-798193/

Batman à la Assasins Creed? Hört sich erstmal gut an. mal sehen ob es letztendlich auch stimmt was die News da so alles ankündigen. Allerdings finde ich, dass es langsam mal Zeit für erste bewegte Bilder aus dem neuen Batman Spiel wird. Der Trailer ist von 2009, da wird es doch möglich sein mal ein neues Video zu machen um die Fans bei Laune zu halten...

Timbo
17.11.10, 22:41:07
Am 11 Dezember kommt endlich ein neuer tariler zu Arkahm City!!! YEAH!!!! :that:

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=863&sid=87faf20546b292b2411eee7757fb8ad0

Ezio
27.11.10, 12:36:56
Hier ein paar frische Neuigkeiten:

http://www.gamezone.de/news_detail.asp?nid=92369


Batman: Arkham City

Ohne fahrbare Untersätze


Wer darauf gehofft hatte das Batmobil in Batman: Arkham City fahren zu können wird nun vielleicht etwas enttäuscht sein, da die Entwickler aus dem Hause Rocksteady bekannt gegeben haben, dass es keine fahrbaren Vehikel im Spiel geben wird.

“Es gibt keinerlei fahrbaren Vehikel im Spiel“ erklärt Sefton Hill, der Boss von Rocksteady. “Wir fokussieren uns anstelle dessen voll und ganz auf Batman. Wir sehen ihn als das ultimative Fahrzeug“, so Sefton in einem Statement hierzu. Weitere Informationen rund um den Dunklen Ritter werden wir wohl im Zuge der Video Game Awards in Erfahrung bringen können, welche am 11. Dezember 2010 ausgestrahlt werden.

Bis Batman: Arkham City jedoch erscheinen wird, dürfte noch ein wenig Zeit ins Land ziehen. Aktuellen Planungen zufolge soll das Spiel im Herbst des kommenden Jahres 2011 erscheinen und dann für die Xbox 360, die Playstation 3 und den PC in den Läden stehen. Einen konkreten Veröffentlichungstermin hat man allerdings noch nicht bekannt gegeben.

Timbo
27.11.10, 21:45:36
Hier ein paar frische Neuigkeiten:
http://www.gamezone.de/news_detail.asp?nid=92369
Batman: Arkham City
Ohne fahrbare Untersätze
Wer darauf gehofft hatte das Batmobil in Batman: Arkham City
fahren zu können wird nun vielleicht etwas enttäuscht sein, da die
Entwickler aus dem Hause Rocksteady bekannt gegeben haben, dass es keine
fahrbaren Vehikel im Spiel geben wird.
“Es gibt keinerlei fahrbaren Vehikel im Spiel“ erklärt Sefton Hill, der Boss von Rocksteady. “Wir fokussieren uns anstelle dessen voll und ganz auf Batman. Wir sehen ihn als das ultimative Fahrzeug“,
so Sefton in einem Statement hierzu. Weitere Informationen rund um den
Dunklen Ritter werden wir wohl im Zuge der Video Game Awards in
Erfahrung bringen können, welche am 11. Dezember 2010 ausgestrahlt
werden.
Bis Batman: Arkham City jedoch erscheinen wird,
dürfte noch ein wenig Zeit ins Land ziehen. Aktuellen Planungen zufolge
soll das Spiel im Herbst des kommenden Jahres 2011 erscheinen und dann
für die Xbox 360, die Playstation 3 und den PC in den Läden stehen.
Einen konkreten Veröffentlichungstermin hat man allerdings noch nicht
bekannt gegeben.

Timbo
08.12.10, 23:27:57
Teaser

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-fwxJMFkNo&feature=player_embedded

Timbo
12.12.10, 02:21:56
Trailer ist da!!!! Mit Hugo Strange, der Batman's dunkelstes Geheimnis kennt...

Das wird einfach das beste Spiel aller Zeiten!!! :that:

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/vga-10-batman-arkham/708342

Timbo
13.12.10, 15:12:36
Zwei neue Screenshots...:-D

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1072&sid=9bac6ff8b77fc26296c39bd3f429b822

Timbo
14.02.11, 17:52:02
Ein neues Interview von IGN mit Sefton Hill!!!! Große Neuigkeit: Es wird ein reines Single Player Spiel!!!

Batman: Arkham City Gotham on Lockdown
News on multiplayer, Catwoman's role and much more.
Batman: Arkham City is developer Rocksteady Studios' follow-up to the mega-hit Batman: Arkham Asylum and puts players back in the Caped Crusader's boots for some third-person gameplay. It's also still months away, and that sucks because we have burning questions right now. What's up with Catwoman? Do these rumors of multiplayer mean Robin is in the game? What does Hugo Strange mean for the Dark Knight?
Well, we've let these questions eat away at us for long enough, and now it's time to put Rocksteady Studios Game Director Sefton Hill through the wringer to get some answers of our own.

IGN: First and foremost, how hard did you guys have to work to keep the warden's secret room a secret in Batman: Arkham Asylum? Were there company NDAs signed in blood? Were you checking the web every day to see if anyone had found it?

Sefton Hill: To be completely honest, I wasn't sure anyone would ever find it. It required 3 sets of explosive gel to be detonated in the same place (something you didn't have to do anywhere else in the game) and there was absolutely no hint that it was there. But it was kind of exciting knowing there was a big hint to the next game so close if only you knew where to look.
IGN: Were you a bit shocked by how well Arkham Asylum was received? You must've known it was good, but with people's distrust of comic games, were you worried?

Sefton Hill: Yes! I was incredibly proud of the game we made. We'd had lots of positive feedback during production, but I didn't really take it in until we released and the reviews started to hit. The awards and feedback from the public blew us away and it was immensely rewarding for the team who had poured so much of their heart and soul into the game.
IGN: Did work on Batman: Arkham City start as soon as Arkham Asylum was out the door? Before then?

Sefton Hill: We started to think in earnest about the story for Batman: Arkham City around the start of 2009. We'd been kicking around a number of possible ideas before then, but at that point we started to crystallize them and make sure they were woven into the fabric of the first game. Then, as soon as people finished off on Batman: Arkham Asylum they moved straight onto Arkham City, with our concept team working on the game as early as February 2009 before being slowly joined by the rest of the team over the following months.

IGN: How much did Arkham Asylum feedback shape Arkham City? Were there things you said you had to change based on fan reactions?

Sefton Hill: Honestly, the biggest message we received from people was, "keep doing what you're doing," which was great. I suppose in some respects the fact that there wasn't a single piece of unified feedback where everyone said "please add this one thing" was a testament to the first game, but it did make designing the sequel more challenging. However, I truly believe that if you want to make something that other people will be passionate about, then first and foremost you need to be passionate about it yourself. So we decided to focus on delivering one main promise: I want to be The Batman in Gotham.

IGN: Even though we really know next to nothing about Arkham City (thanks for that, by the way), some people openly complain about there being too many villains announced. What can you say to them right now? Is the story that much bigger this time around or do we have the wrong idea?

Sefton Hill: It was never about making a bigger game for us – just a better one. If we thought the best game featured just one villain then that's we'd do. Rest assured, we aren't putting villains into the game just to make up the numbers, we are choosing characters who we think have an interesting story to tell and who can challenge Batman in an original and exciting way. So it's true, there are more villains. A lot more villains. There will be more exciting announcements soon. (And many who we will never announce!)

IGN: Tell us about Hugo Strange's role in Arkham City.

Sefton Hill: We know Hugo Strange is going to be a completely new character to some players, but he was the perfect choice for the role of Warden of Arkham City. Hopefully the trailer at the end of last year has given you a few hints to his character and motivation. Strange makes the rules that all prisoners have to abide by. He enforces these rules with a zero tolerance policy through his Tyger security force, a force equally as fierce as the gangs the incarcerated criminal bosses have amassed. The walls and airspace are constantly patrolled by heavily armed Tyger guards who share Strange's contempt for criminals.
The other dimension to Hugo Strange is that he knows Batman's true identity, which massively raises the stakes for Bruce Wayne. By entering Arkham City, Batman is vulnerable and exposed in a way that he has never been before.
But don't worry if you've never even heard of Hugo Strange. Arkham City tells the story of the first time Batman has crossed swords with Strange, so you will know a lot more about him by the end of the evening.

IGN: What about Catwoman's role?


Sefton Hill: Catwoman is one of the most recent criminals to be incarcerated in Arkham City. She's independent, strong minded and not aligned with any of the existing super-criminals who are already inside. Batman's presence in Arkham City presents a very interesting dilemma for them both, not only because they have so much history, but also because they are both in an incredibly hostile environment with nowhere to hide in the middle of a brutal turf-war. Like I said before, we selected characters that would challenge Batman in an interesting way and Catwoman, always following her own agenda, is someone who really spices things up for him.

IGN: Is it easier working on Arkham City with the experience of Arkham Asylum under your belts or is it tougher because of the expectations on the game?


Sefton Hill: Batman: Arkham Asylum has given us a huge amount of confidence to try and take on technical and gameplay challenges we wouldn't have dreamt of attempting beforehand. There was never a thought of resting on our laurels because as soon as we'd chosen the ambitious setting of Arkham City, we knew we had a lot of work to do. I can honestly say that every department has worked harder and challenged themselves even more on Batman: Arkham City than we did on the first game.
We are also aware of the levels of expectation, but you have to try not to let it affect you too much because if you stop and think about it, it really is bloody terrifying. Then you can become too afraid to make the exciting decisions that made the first game a success.
However, we never lose sight of the position we are in. I can honestly say I feel honored and privileged every day for getting to work on a Batman game.

IGN: Now, give us a Valentine's Day gift and tell us SOMETHING about multiplayer. You know that the couple that plays together stays together – and that works for friends or significant others. What's going on with multiple players in Arkham City? Co-op? competitive? We must know!


Sefton Hill: There have been a number of rumors circulating about a multiplayer mode in Batman: Arkham City so let me start by saying, once and for all, that Batman: Arkham City is a "single-player only" experience.
Our thought process behind this was fairly simple: when we investigated adding multiplayer we asked, "If we use all of the energy that is required to create multiplayer and instead focus this on the single player, would that deliver a better overall game?"
With the game now coming to the final stages, I can honestly say it would not have been possible to deliver Arkham City the way we wanted to if we'd have added multiplayer.
So it might not be the fashionable choice, it might not get us an extra tick on the box, but we are convinced, and we hope that gamers will agree when they get to play the finished game, that we have made the right decision.
We hope that you love Arkham City. We're working as hard as we possibly can to deliver the game you want.
http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/114/1149491p1.html

Timbo
11.03.11, 19:39:04
Batman: Arkham City erscheint am 21. Oktober für PS3, Xbox 360 und PC in Deutschland - Update

Das Action-Adventure Batman: Arkham City erscheint am 21. Oktober für PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 und PC, wie eurogamer.net von Warner Bros. erfahren hat. Auf welche Region sich der Release-Termin bezieht, ist gegenwärtig noch nicht bekannt. - Update: Der Release-Termin bezieht sich auf Deutschland.
Batman: Arkham City erscheint am 21. Oktober für PS3, Xbox 360 und PC. Update, 11. März, 16:45 Uhr: Der in dieser Meldung angegebenen Release-Termin zum mit Spannung erwarteten Batman: Arkham City für PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 und PC bezieht sich auch auf Deutschland. Dies bestätigte Warner Bros. Interactive soeben per offizieller Pressemitteilung. Damit sind es noch knapp 7 Monate bis zum Release des neuen Batman-Abenteuers. Genug Zeit also für einen wiederholten Durchgang durch Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Originalmeldung: Batman: Arkham City kommt am 21. Oktober für PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 und PC auf den Markt, wie eurogamer.net berichtet. Der Meldung lässt sich allerdings nicht entnehmen, auf welche Region sich der Release-Termin bezieht. Wir gehen davon aus, dass es sich dabei um den nordamerikanischen Termin handelt. Weitere Details hat Publisher Warner Bros. nicht bekannt gegeben. Möglich, dass Batman: Arkham City in Europa zum gleichen Termin Handel kommt. Sobald uns diesbezüglich neue Informationen vorliegen, erfahrt ihr es selbstverständlich hier auf Videogameszone.de. Erst neulich berichteten wir, dass amerikanische Händler, darunter Amazon und Gamestop, bereits von einem Release-Termin wussten. Die Spielehändler datierten Batman: Arkham City auf den 3. Oktober.
Batman: Arkham City (erscheint für PS3, Xbox 360 und PC) spielt innerhalb der verstärkten Festungsmauern dieses weitläufigen Bezirks im Herzen von Gotham City. Das Action-Adventure bietet außerdem eine neue Geschichte mit einer Besetzung aus klassischen Figuren und Bösewichten des Batman-Universums. Außerdem verspricht Entwickler Rocksteady "eine große Bandbreite an neuen und verbesserten Gameplay-Eigenschaften" versprochen. Die Originalmeldung zum Batman: Arkham City Release-Termin stammt von eurogamer.net.

http://www.videogameszone.de/Batman-Arkham-City-PS3-233835/News/Batman-Arkham-City-erscheint-am-21-Oktober-fuer-PS3-Xbox-360-und-PC-in-Deutschland-Update-815569/

Timbo
15.03.11, 22:02:42
Nach langem warten scheint es endlich soweit zu sein. Laut IGN wird es heute einen ersten Gameplay Trailer zum neuen Batman Spiel geben!!!!
Noch ist es nicht ganz sicher ob sich diese Meldung bewahrheitet, aber wenn werde ich es hier sofort posten!!!! :that:


IGN reveal first Arkham City gameplay today

Could IGN be revealing the first gameplay video later today?

I found this in my twitter inbox from @GameOverGreggy, retweeted by IGN.

The gameplay will be available at the following times:

New York: 10am
Los Angeles: 7am
London: 2pm
Warsaw: 3pm
Dubai: 6pm
Sydney: 3am
Munich: 3pm
Tokyo: 11pm

Stay tuned to ArkhamCity.co.uk for updates!

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1862
Ach genau, ich vergaß:
AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :that:

http://www.ign.com/videos/2011/03/15/batman-arkham-city-this-aint-no-place-for-a-hero-trailer?objectid=55050&show=HD
Ach genau, ich vergaß:
Jede Menge Infos heute!!!! Jetzt auch noch ein Interview mit Rocksteady!!!!! :-D :that:

http://uk.ign.com/videos/2011/03/15/batman-arkham-city-video-interview?objectid=55051

Timbo
11.04.11, 16:23:14
Rocksteady on Detective Mode, boss battles and more

Following up a game like Batman: Arkham Asylum is no easy task. Recreating the same great gameplay and maintaining the strong sense of 'being' Batman whilst bringing something entirely new to the series must have Rocksteady sweating a little bit.

And having to do all that in an open world city that's five times bigger than Arkham itself is enough to make any developer cry.

Fear and apprehension, however, were not emotions that Rocksteady's marketing game manager Dax Ginn exhibited as he blasted through an Arkham City gameplay demo before answering our questions.

In fact, he seemed nothing but confident in every aspect of the game; about it's ability to stand tall as a single-player title in a multiplayer laden world, about the changes made to that problematic Detective Mode, about breathing life into lacklustre boss levels and, of course, about the studio's ability to bring Batman out of the asylum and into Arkham City...

A lot of successful story driven game have taken on multiplayer when some would argue they didn't need to. Are you confident that there's enough depth in the single-player to keep Arkham City off the pre-owned shelves?

Absolutely. The challenge for us was to build out not just the game world but make sure there was enough story in there so it didn't feel like there was a big world full of nothing to do. That was our biggest fear; making a game world that's five times bigger than Arkham Island. It's a huge technical and creative challenge for us but as soon as we made that decision we were absolutely committed to making sure that everywhere you turn in Arkham City there's story coming at you. That's why we've developed those surveillance systems so that you're always hooked into what's happening in Arkham City.

Then, on top of that, building missions and genuine gameplay that feed into that game world so that you never get to a point where you're flippantly doing side-missions that have got nothing to do with the main story. Calendar Man, I guess, is the only example we've seen here of something that's a non-essential side-mission, but as you're doing that you still feel like Batman, you're not just collecting things for the sake of collecting things. It's still really Batman-centric stuff.

In terms of replayability or filling out a single-player story with additional features, there're more announcements that we're going to make to solve that problem. Well, I don't feel it's a problem.

We've got a decent, chunky game and, in addition, we didn't want to do a multiplayer because it would have meant splitting the team in half and I think that would have resulted in two average games instead of one awesome game.

So we're unlikely to see multiplayer in future iterations? Is it a policy to avoid multiplayer or just something you're trying to perfect eventually.

We considered it pretty briefly and then realise that it would have hit and hurt our production and also it didn't really make a lot of sense for a game that is so single character-centric.

But I can totally see that multiplayer is a super popular thing and online playability seems to be growing and something that people desire. So I can't say that what's going to happen down the track but for Arkham City we're focused on the single-player experience.

How hard is it to contain players in the areas that you want them in or are you happy for people to go off and mess about with side-quests?

Well the open world aspect, everywhere that's open to the sky is available to the player from the off. So they can go anywhere they want and that was the emotional feeling that we wanted to convey; you're Batman, you can do what you want. That's the empowering thing that Arkham Asylum didn't really deliver because it was such a linear, tight, intense story.

The way in which we are pacing out the narrative reveals is through the internal areas so coming to the court house, before the whole Catwoman/Two-Face thing, it wouldn't have been available, there would have been some other priority that would have been the focus at that point. So it's the internal locations that are used to book-mark that experience.

But there's loads of content out there in the streets and you can engage with in any order you want right from the beginning.

How much more difficult would you say it is with something so plot driven to move to the open world but keep that suspense going?

It's really hard. The decision to take the game out into the streets and out into an open-world structure - the first thing that's going to do is deal a massive body blow to your ability to tell a tight story. So that's why we developed these ambient story-telling systems, which meant we weren't just relying on cinematic cut-scenes to tell the story, we're bombarding the player with story all the time because you're constantly hearing discussions of thugs or they're bricking it before you take them down.

So we developed systems over and above what we had in Arkham Asylum in order to allow us to continue to tell story even though we've got no idea which direction the player's going in or where they're heading at any point in time.

We can hit them at every angle rather than waiting for them to hit a linear point.

How important do you think the music is to keep people in the moment?

Our audio team - and they're creative as well as really technical - everyone works hard but these guys never stop. Every night they're the last guys to leave. The amount of effort that goes into the audio for this game, and I think for Arkham Asylum as well, is just immense. I think it really pays off but it's not something that's top of you list of development priorities but I think if it wasn't so strong you'd really feel like something was missing.

When we think about all the things that make up the Batman experience, I think the great thing with what we're doing at Rocksteady is not just, "Let's make sure we have him beating up people and flying around." It's like, "OK, let's deal with the detective forensic side of him and let's deal with the psychological side of him, let's deal with the things that are unexpected but are really intriguing, that are loaded with gameplay potential."

It's probably difficult to put a number on it but how long do you think the campaign is altogether?

You're right, it's very difficult to put a number on it. I can tell you that our QA guys, who are ninjas and obviously know everything in a game can just do the core story missions in about eight hours with nothing else, just in a straight line, and they know exactly where to go and what to do - the most efficient way of doing everything.

Someone who has no idea what to do and wants to complete everything, it's going to be significantly more than that.

People wanted to see Detective Mode and boss battles from Arkham Asylum fleshed out. Are those things you guys have identified as needing improvement and how have you done that?

I could have finished that question for you. Yeah absolutely, they were the two things we were hearing loud and clear as well. The Detective Mode question was a really interesting one for us to work out where it went wrong, but I think once we identified what it was it was an easy fix.

Our assessment of that was, we always saw it as a tool and it's a tool that indispensable to Batman because we wanted to explore the detective side of his role so we couldn't just get rid of it in order to solve that problem.

So we knew we wanted to keep it. He's got a lot of tools in his utility belt, you use the Batclaw to achieve an objective, you use the Batarang to achieve an objective and we always saw Detective Mode as a tool just like that.

So, you need to know how to overload that fuse-box, you use Detective Mode to give you that information and we always thought that gamers would see it like that, "I need to turn it on, I get this information and then I turn it off." But the problem was we had implemented in such a way that it gave you more information all the time than you had by default and it was open to exploitation.

People weren't complaining saying it was a stupid thing that shouldn't be in the game, they were saying it was more like an exploit than a tool and so we've returned the balance between the information you get in Detective Mode and default mode.

Boss battles; they came pretty late in Arkham Asylum, we weren't really planning on doing big boss battles and then we got to a point where we were like "We need climaxes throughout this game." We needed to give them more development time and we didn't have it so we've front-loaded the boss battles this time around so that we've got dedicated people working on them right the way through the dev cycle.

It's hard to tell until we go into intensive focus testing if they're working but they certainly look pretty epic.

Harley Quinn was actually created in Batman: The Animated Series, not the comic-books, but she's since been adopted by the comics. Would you ever be tempted to create your own major character? Maybe it could take off.

I really wanted to. That's something I was talking about really early on in this but it never happened for whatever reason. I think because we're just so spoiled for choice with the awesome characters that already exist. To go off and create something new...

What was your idea?

My idea was just "Let's make a new character!"

Working so close to DC Comics means a lot of things - more than anything else it means you've got an amazing access into the archive and knowledge of these characters.

So, what have we announced so far; Joker, Harley, Catwoman, Two-Face, Zsaz, Riddler, Hugo Strange, Calendar Man... I don't know how much more you'd want.

Do you think you'd have that kind of freedom though? Considering your success with Arkham Asylum do you find yourself in a position where people just say "Go for it"?

It certainly wouldn't be off the table, we're not planning on doing it for this game but... I don't know does anyone create new characters anymore?

In Arkham Asylum the overground was split into three or four load sections, are we going to be doing the same in the city or is it all open?

It's all open, all the time. Our technical director was like, "What? You want an open-world that's open all the time that's five times bigger than anything we've done before? Are you crazy?"

And there's no loading?

Not in the exteriors, you saw the loading from going inside the courthouse from the outside but no it streams seamlessly throughout and that has been a massive, massive challenge.

You know, the Unreal Engine is an amazing engine and it's got strengths like any other engine and we're not using it for what it was designed for, but it's doing a brilliant job.

How free-form are the sidemissions? Can I do all the core mission and then spend hours doing side-quests or will I reach a point in the game where some of them are locked out?

That stuff's still being nailed down. The content is all there but the way in which it's revealed and the duration for which it's available, that's the polishing phase at the moment.

Certainly the game is quite dynamic in the way that the first had the Poison Ivy stuff that physically changed the game. We've got these simmering turf wars between Joker, Two-Face and Hugo Strange's factions - there's a power struggle between those three factions going on. So if you go into an area at one point, you might go into it a few hours later and previously it was a Joker area now it's a Two Face area and so the fiction within that district is different as a result.

I'd be surprised if it would mean that there's a side mission where you thought, "I'll come back to that later" you can never do it, I don't think that makes a lot of sense but like I said that's the stuff that they're still finalising.

Apart from Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy, have you got any other famous faces? A lot of people have been saying Hugo Strange sounds like Christopher Lee. Is it?

It's not Christopher Lee. There's some really cool factoid about that actor playing another character that Christopher Lee plays but I can't remember it. There are [other famous faces] but we haven't made any announcements yet because it's character linked, so when we reveal a character we'll then talk about the names behind them.

We were expecting to see more challenge rooms for Arkham Asylum but they never really materialised, is there a reason for that?

I don't think anyone expected it to be as massive as it was, so we played through our DLC plan and we moved on. So we didn't plan a load and then think, "Let's not do this." We did what we set out to do.

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2110&sid=20320d63a9a8b490ceb8e2fa8df1441f

Timbo
04.05.11, 22:30:00
Bat Signals Function Explained

The Bat Signal will alert players to mission locations.

Many of our users speculated the above suggestion, today this speculation becomes fact.

The Bat Signal's default position is the primary narrative path to provide you with guidance about where Batman is most needed at any given point.
However you can also manually re-locate it to help you navigate your way around Arkham City by moving its position on the game map.

So not only can it alert you to the main storyline thread, players can also place their own custom marker on the map to be highlighted by the Bat Signal.

Navigation throughout the sprawling city (confirmed to be 5 times larger than Arkham Asylum) could have been a gamer's nightmare, instead of opting for a possible clunky mini-map, Rocksteady have chosen a cosmetic marker that makes sense within the game, easily directs lost players, and maintains the minimalist HUD design that gives Arkham City it's great visual and cinematic flair.

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2323&sid=3c35ab0c673ef4726e53f8e0efc85d48

Timbo
02.06.11, 16:37:03
E3 2011: Batman: Arkham City -- Play as Catwoman
Grab your whip and your fetishist gear, there's a new queen of Gotham.

Batman: Arkham City is a big world. So big, Batman could hardly patrol it himself. That's why developer Rocksteady decided to give you a second option when traversing the rooftops -- Catwoman is playable throughout Arkham City.

This isn't some cheap character model swap; Catwoman has her own moves, her own method of travel, her own story, and her own motivations. Unlike Batman, she's not in Arkham City to restore order. She could care less about who is pulling the strings or what their endgame plan is for Gotham. It turns out Hugo Strange took the prized possessions of every big criminal in the city and stashed them somewhere in the city. Catwoman plans to use the chaos in Arkham City to swipe some serious loot.

This isn't just a side story, though. Catwoman's tale is intertwined with Batman's narrative. About 10% of Arkham City's story has you playing as Catwoman and it's a very different experience than controlling the Dark Knight.

Catwoman doesn't have a bunch of gadgets. Instead, she relies on her whip and a couple of handy tools worthy of a burglar (or ninja), such as caltrops (little spikes that slow enemies). The whip can be used not only to strangle baddies, but also to swing across the city. This doesn't get her a ton of extension or height, so expect to stick to the lower portion of the city -- including the sewers.

Find out the Riddler's role in Arkham City.
She's quick, too. Much faster and more nimble than Batman, she can get through narrow spaces and even crawl along ceilings. She's not a brute either, so expect her missions to have a stealth focus; requiring you to sneak through areas, pick the pockets of security guards, and swipe goods before anyone realizes you were ever there.

But what to steal? Fortunately, Catwoman has her own special vision power: Thief Vision. At first, you might mistake this for Batman's overly helpful Detective Mode, but Catwoman gets no obvious clues as to what to do next. Her vision helps her in one way: Seeing what's worth stealing. That can often be tied to a game objective, since Gotham's famed cat-burglar is, after all, going to be involved in thievery whenever she dons the cat ears.

I know E3 offers only the quickest glimpse at games, but it looks like Rocksteady got it right. Not only did it feel like I was playing Catwoman and not some Batman clone, it also fit how I'd imagine Catwoman would exist in Gotham City. If Batman: Arkham Asylum was the Batman game everyone always wanted, maybe Arkham City is the Catwoman game we never knew we could have.

She's like Batman, only better.
Again, it's only about 10% of the total game, but it's not half-assed. Everything is scaled down to what can be managed in that slice of game time. So, instead of a dozen or more gadgets, Catwoman has three -- but all of them can be upgraded, just like Batman's wonderful toys. There are more than 400 Riddler Trophies in Batman: Arkham City and a small portion can only be nabbed by Catwoman. Basically, all the elements of the experience playing as Batman (Riddler stuff, combat, upgrades, open city, story) are also given to Catwoman. She's not some cheap add-on.

I'm sure playing as Catwoman while Batman goes off to twiddle his thumbs won't sit well with everyone. It suits me just fine. I wouldn't have any problem playing the Dark Knight from start to finish, but since the Catwoman sections are being handled with as much care as the rest of the game, the experience from start to finish should be consistent, regardless of the character you're playing.

http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/117/1172188p1.html

Hier noch der Link zum Trailer!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_bYGcCzbkg&feature=player_embedded

Insgesamt werden in der nächste Woche wahrscheinlich viele neue Infos, Pics und Videos ans Tageslicht kommen, da die E3 ja nächste Woche sattfindet. Ich werde natürlich versuchen so viel wie möglich hier zu posten!

Timbo
06.06.11, 20:16:53
Wer will kan hier gleich eine erste Demo zu B:AC sehen!!! Ca. 20.30 Uhr!!!

http://www.gametrailers.com/netstorage/e3/e3-live.html

Timbo
07.06.11, 12:25:13
Heute Abend ab 23:00 Uhr gibt es bei IGN eine Live Demo zu Arkham City!!!

Timbo
08.06.11, 20:35:12
dqi3QXYohSc

Tolle Demo von IGN über 22 Minuten!!! Mit freiem Gleiten über der Stadt, Two Face, Catwoman und zum ersten mal mit dem Riddler!

Unbedingt anschauen!!!

Timbo
06.07.11, 13:41:11
Hier nochmal 2 neue Videos. Das Erste mit direct Gameplay ohne Kommentar und das zweite ganz neu von heute aus Frankreich auf der Präsentation von Rocksteady!

hBXDHznD83g

DhtTfXMqFzo

Timbo
11.07.11, 16:33:24
Der Riddler hat seinen eigenen Trailer bekommen!!! :-D

SZJjsw2_4KQ

Timbo
16.08.11, 14:09:53
Und der nächste Trailer!!!

yXqj0rpyD2c

Timbo
02.10.11, 17:46:31
So langsam trudeln die ersten Reviews zu Batman Arkham City ein.

Und direkt mal ne 10/10!!! Das wird einfafch soooooo ein geiles Game werden!!! :that:

Batman: Arkham City AUS OPM Review 10/10

Official Playstation Magazine Australia have given their verdict on Batman: Arkham City. The game has been given a 10/10 and has been refered as being "one of the best games ever made". Extracts from the review can be found below.

"Batman: Arkham City is not only the best superhero game ever made, it's one of the best games ever made full-stop. It takes the already superlative original and gloriously expands on it. It's a deeper game, more complex, more inventive, more mature. It brings the caped crusader's world to life better than any comic, movie or television show before it."

"Presentation: Endlessly creative, perfectly moody, and technically flawless. This is Epic's Unreal engine pushed to its absolute limit."

"Sound: Alternatively foreboding and frantic, the game's orchestral soundtrack matches the on-sccreen action perfectly. Voice acting is brilliant."

"Controls: Complex and initially overwhelming but also logical and responsive. It'll take a while to get used to them, but once you do it feels perfectly natural flinging Batman around."

"Replay Value: Immense. A massive main quest, dozens of side missions, Riddler challenges, secondary game modes, and DLC will keep most people occupied for months."

"VERDICT: We can't imagine how a superhero game could be better than this. Absolutely sublime."

10/10

http://arkhamcity.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=5675&sid=1c6c717648eb05c009f6d374a80c6975

Timbo
19.10.11, 18:42:24
AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!! Ich habe es!!!!!:hop: Das beste Spiel aller Zeiten ist endlich in meinem Besitz und ich werde es bis zum umfallen zocken!!! :that:

Ezio
19.10.11, 19:23:27
Wie jetzt? Release ist doch erst Freitag!? Oder wurde der vorgezogen?

speedl
19.10.11, 21:32:19
Im Media Markt in meiner Nähe wurds glaub heute um 14Uhr ausgestellt...morgen ist es meins! :-D

Ezio
20.10.11, 12:00:09
Habs heute getauscht bei Gamestop im Tauschrausch gegen Fifa 12.

19,99 Euro

Fifa 12 war nicht ganz das was ich erwartet habe, daher tuts mir nicht ma leid. :-)