Batman: Arkham City

 Xbox 360
User Score
8.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1926 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,704 out of 1926
  2. Mixed: 125 out of 1926
  3. Negative: 97 out of 1926
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  1. RampantAndroid
    Oct 21, 2011
    3
    I don't quite understand all the 10/10 reviews. Asylum as a good combination of free roam and directed gameplay. Objectives were clear, as was the story. City is a sandbox game, with a story that is confusing from the get go, and I have no investment in. I've played 3 hours of the game, and I'm selling it off tomorrow. I don't see any point to playing this. It's just he Asylum gameplayI don't quite understand all the 10/10 reviews. Asylum as a good combination of free roam and directed gameplay. Objectives were clear, as was the story. City is a sandbox game, with a story that is confusing from the get go, and I have no investment in. I've played 3 hours of the game, and I'm selling it off tomorrow. I don't see any point to playing this. It's just he Asylum gameplay with a sandbox thrown on to it. Woo friggen hoo. You might as well go play Just Cause 2.… Expand
  2. AJY84
    Oct 28, 2021
    1
    It's like the development team at Rocksteady said, "Okay, now everything that made Asylum fun, let's scrap that and go w/ garbage this time around!"

    It starts off w/ a plot that had me rewatch the intro 3x because I thought maybe I hit a button and skipped something by accident. The Riddler challenges are changed to time-based and Simon Says memory games. And the flow of the gameplay    It's like the development team at Rocksteady said, "Okay, now everything that made Asylum fun, let's scrap that and go w/ garbage this time around!"

    It starts off w/ a plot that had me rewatch the intro 3x because I thought maybe I hit a button and skipped something by accident. The Riddler challenges are changed to time-based and Simon Says memory games. And the flow of the gameplay has been replaced w/ an open-world feel, complete w/ side missions. Some of them which are no more than gliding thru rings, something that made Superman 64 one of the most hated games of all time, but is seen as such innovation here, lol.    … Expand
  3. Tackett351
    Oct 30, 2013
    2
    Listen I'm a big gamer and I love a challenge, there's not a game I own that I don't crank it up to the highest difficulty, it was enjoyable until Y button and other associated buttons in conjunction made it annoying to play, I literally stopped playing it when the shield guys are introduced, I'm sure it may be fun for people on lower difficulties due to being able to get hit and stillListen I'm a big gamer and I love a challenge, there's not a game I own that I don't crank it up to the highest difficulty, it was enjoyable until Y button and other associated buttons in conjunction made it annoying to play, I literally stopped playing it when the shield guys are introduced, I'm sure it may be fun for people on lower difficulties due to being able to get hit and still stand a chance, I'm a huge batman fan and the developers attempt to make this game difficult is just plain (fart noise)+thumbsdown.… Expand
  4. TheMWall
    Nov 18, 2011
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I cannot, understand how this game has been rated so high. It is clearly a step backward from Asylum for variety of reasons. The storyline is poorly developed, at the game's onset you hear about Protocol 10, then promptly spend the next several hours doing nothing about it. When it all goes down, the end comes quickly and without much excitement. They cram as many villains as they can into the game, which I felt took away from the story. It felt forced, jumping from freeze to penguin to joker to Ras to twoface to mundy to Harly to ivy to clayface to the most annoying riddler to listen to in the history of the riddler. The City is maddening to go through. Did you play Spidermsn 2 with all of the swinging through New York? This was the exact same, except with a grappling hook. It was tedious, repetitive, choppy, and constantly interrupted by snipers, 'political prisoner assaults', phone calls from the Joker (which were sometimes entertaining), and so on. In my opinion, Batman was 'off' throughout the game. His actions, threats, demeanor, and total lack of emotion when two prominent characters die is maddening. He's stiff and inhuman. It's almost like they tried too hard to make Batman more tough and awesome...well, he's Batman and doesn't need the help. Playing as Catwoman is overrated. It's mostly repitition of tasks to find a Riddler trophy, which adds time to the game, but it's meaningless time. Inmates talking about 'getting with Catwoman' gets old, and it's constant. Combat takes a step backward too. There are countless gadgets that serve little purpose, and numerous new enemy types that frustrate and un-fun combat. The game has an excellent soundtrack and I was very impressed by the graphical design of the City. For me though, the terrible story, choppy travel and combat, and different demeanor Batman make this a game to pass on. There are out-of-story challenges and an interesting 'new game plus' option, but I was so frustrated by the game on my first play through I think I'll pass and send this straight to eBay. If you are a fan of the TV show 'Lost', the Joker does have a great reference kind of bashing the show that got me to laugh out loud...unfortunately, that's really the best thing I can say about the game.… Expand
  5. bogmire
    Nov 14, 2016
    0
    this gaem is so bad wow oh my gosh terrible i cant believe how bad it is its so broken and not fun at all. i would rather eat a brick tha play this game for one second.
  6. snowykangaroo
    Nov 24, 2011
    3
    At first this game was AMAZING through about the first 3rd of it was fun. And then it dropped. A lot. It became repetitive and annoying. After completing this game I was furious after playing Asylum and loving it this was the biggest disappointment of my gaming history there was nothing what made you feel like batman. I played most side mission and augmented reality's and they made theAt first this game was AMAZING through about the first 3rd of it was fun. And then it dropped. A lot. It became repetitive and annoying. After completing this game I was furious after playing Asylum and loving it this was the biggest disappointment of my gaming history there was nothing what made you feel like batman. I played most side mission and augmented reality's and they made the game worse they were stale and tedious. The only reason im not giving this a 0 is because of the combat what was the only thing done well. if they spent more time perfecting the story and length this would be a flawless 10.… Expand
  7. BillScurry
    Sep 9, 2012
    3
    There is so much to love about this game -- the damn shame is those things are rendered moot by the game's enormous flaws, namely the brutal combat system (unintuitive, user-unfriendly, Guitar Hero-type button-mashing nonsense) and the absolute lack of logic within tasks, which leaves you going to Google every six seconds to see where the hell you're supposed to look for something. This isThere is so much to love about this game -- the damn shame is those things are rendered moot by the game's enormous flaws, namely the brutal combat system (unintuitive, user-unfriendly, Guitar Hero-type button-mashing nonsense) and the absolute lack of logic within tasks, which leaves you going to Google every six seconds to see where the hell you're supposed to look for something. This is a game celebrated for the centerpiece combat engine, yet I was constantly getting my ass kicked on "easy." Once the story was over, this went into cold storage, never to be played again. Mark Hammill's voiceover work as the Joker, however, is almost worth the price of admission.… Expand
  8. Wendigo2064
    Oct 25, 2011
    4
    So, I loved "Batman: Arkham Asylum." I went into "Batman: Arkham Asylum" expecting a piece of overrated franchise nonsense, and I still loved it. It had a refreshing, if unoriginal, mix of Zelda, God of War, and the stealth of early Metal Gear Solid without any of the talking heads. But "Batman: Arkham Asylum" adds nothing new and plenty wrong. Quantity does not trump quality, and the citySo, I loved "Batman: Arkham Asylum." I went into "Batman: Arkham Asylum" expecting a piece of overrated franchise nonsense, and I still loved it. It had a refreshing, if unoriginal, mix of Zelda, God of War, and the stealth of early Metal Gear Solid without any of the talking heads. But "Batman: Arkham Asylum" adds nothing new and plenty wrong. Quantity does not trump quality, and the city of Hugo Strange seems to agree with me. There's too much nonsense and none of the intrigue. Instead of my expected "game of the year," I've got an overstuffed sandbox full of pointless side missions and two dimensional villains. Seriously, is there some rule in the batman universe that every sequel has to include twice as many villains and less character development for each? Unfulfilled story aside, the gameplay is solid, if you like this sort of thing. One button attack, another to counter, a few gadgets to flesh out the hordes of villains you'll be fighting on your way to the next actual challenge, and plenty of animations to make you at least feel like you're doing more than mashing buttons. The riddler challenges are less riddles and more fetch quests. The world is bigger, though not in actual "dungeons" (or "things not on the overworld map.") Let's face it - this is the assassin's creed of batman. I liked the second assassins creed, but "AC Brotherhood" made me feel how bloated the world really was. Is there more content in "Arkham City" than its predecessor? Not really. But there's more level grinding, empty sandbox environments, and character cut-outs. So it's bigger. It's certainly not better. If you wanted a bloated, dull version of Arkham Asylum, here you go. Good riddance.… Expand
  9. datoriprogram
    Oct 25, 2011
    0
    While Asylum was one of the best games I have played, Arkham City doesn't live up to it unfortunately. The sandbox element doesn't feel very good. The grapling hook doesn't work half the time, the fights are quite silly and not very challenging. The best part about the game is the voice acting and story. And that are the two aspects I care the least about in games. I want fun gameplay, andWhile Asylum was one of the best games I have played, Arkham City doesn't live up to it unfortunately. The sandbox element doesn't feel very good. The grapling hook doesn't work half the time, the fights are quite silly and not very challenging. The best part about the game is the voice acting and story. And that are the two aspects I care the least about in games. I want fun gameplay, and this one just doesn't cut it unfortunately.… Expand
  10. nayerr
    Oct 19, 2011
    4
    There are many reasons why I consider Arkham City to be a bad game. Reason number #1. It's too silly. I'm sure Rocksteady's version of Batman was trying to come across dark and gritty, but everything from the buildings to the henchmen and their conversations that you overhear as you make your way across the rooftops come across childish and just plain stupid. I have no problem suspendingThere are many reasons why I consider Arkham City to be a bad game. Reason number #1. It's too silly. I'm sure Rocksteady's version of Batman was trying to come across dark and gritty, but everything from the buildings to the henchmen and their conversations that you overhear as you make your way across the rooftops come across childish and just plain stupid. I have no problem suspending my disbelief, but come on, I'm an adult. Reason #2 The 2 and a half button combat stinks. It's a watered down version for the casual gamer attempt at Assassin's Creed style combat and it fails miserably. I don't find the combat fun at all, it feels like a chore. Reason #3 The story is a mess. I'm 5-6 hours in and I have no idea what's going on, nor do I care. Reason # 4. Catwoman? Do I seriously have to play as Catwoman? and if I do then please make her put her stupid goggles on instead of resting them on her forehead. Reason # 5 Horrible voice acting and one liners. I get it, it's Batman, there's some camp involved, but there's a limit to how much crap voice acting I can take. Reason #5 The worst enemy AI ever. Here I am swinging allover the place and the enemies don't see me? All they have to do is look up. I thought that they would improve on that, but they kept it just as stupid as it was in Arkham Asylum. I traded in Dark Sould for this crap and it was the worst decision I've made all year. This game is all flash and no substance. The fact that it's critically acclaimed further proves my point that good reviews can be bought and that reviewers all follow the trends of a good review. No company wants to be the only one scoring this game a 7.5-8 when every one else is scoring it 9 and above...I have no choice but to see this game through since I bought it, but out of all the games I've played this year, Batman Arkham City has made me roll my eyes and daydream while playing the most.… Expand
  11. Serious_Gamer
    Nov 23, 2011
    4
    This game is a joke, I can complete it within 10 minutes and the story line isn't even that good. If you want to play a game for BEGINNGERS and KIDS play this game, but for SERIOUS GAMERS this isn't even worth the time. Don't waste the time on it unless you're either a kid or a beginner to gaming.
  12. hellsaint111
    Dec 22, 2011
    0
    Honestly this game is far too overrated, if your a fan of batman then ok it's the game for you. But as I am not that, I am a gamer and as a gamer I think Batman Arkham City is not a good game, the story is far too simple and predictable. The combat is un-pollished button mashing and there is far to little content to be worth buying, along with them trying to charge you extra for skins.Honestly this game is far too overrated, if your a fan of batman then ok it's the game for you. But as I am not that, I am a gamer and as a gamer I think Batman Arkham City is not a good game, the story is far too simple and predictable. The combat is un-pollished button mashing and there is far to little content to be worth buying, along with them trying to charge you extra for skins. From Arkham asylum not much gameplay content has been added, and the free roam is doesn't really suit this genre. The characters in this game are all over the place, and what rocksteady should have done is expanded more on each of the villains rather than making batman jump from place to place with no real drive, this would have also helped with the fact that you can finnish the game in only a few hours. This game is repetitive, clunky and overrated. The lack of content, and horrible story are by far the greatest let downs.… Expand
  13. Tylerhan2000
    Oct 25, 2011
    0
    While Asylum was one of the best games I have played, Arkham City doesn't live up to it unfortunately. The sandbox element doesn't feel very good. The grapling hook doesn't work half the time, the fights are quite silly and not very challenging. The best part about the game is the voice acting and story. And that are the two aspects I care the least about in games. I want fun gameplay, andWhile Asylum was one of the best games I have played, Arkham City doesn't live up to it unfortunately. The sandbox element doesn't feel very good. The grapling hook doesn't work half the time, the fights are quite silly and not very challenging. The best part about the game is the voice acting and story. And that are the two aspects I care the least about in games. I want fun gameplay, and this one just doesn't cut it unfortunately… Expand
  14. AlchemistDon
    Apr 9, 2012
    2
    Pathetic played this game for over 16 hours and this morning when i went to play the game my game save has been wiped this is a well known problem, total raged right now avoid this game for save reasons alone developers can go and suck one
  15. PatrykG
    Aug 18, 2014
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Well everybody loved Arkham Asylum back when it came out it, it was considered the best superhero game of all time, then it was announced that a sequel, Batman: Arkham City was gonna come out. I was just as excited as everyone else. And when I heard everyone say it was better than Asylum, it didn't suprise me because unlike in movies, in video games sequels 99% of the time are better than the first. So I ignored it all and bought this game and - I was really underwhelmed by it, I was actually kind of shocked. Im sorry but Arkham City is overrated. Whether you agree or not here it goes......first of all this game is obviously and open world game, so you can go over the city and do side missions, collect riddler trophies and go on the main story but when you complete everything which doesn't take long, you are left nothing to do except for fighting the same thugs over and over again. Then you have the story which for the most part is good but then there is that needless filler like when you have to go to Mr Freeze to get the cure but all of a sudden you have to take down penguin but then before you can you have to disable 3 jamming devices all over the city just to open a door, then when you finally go to stop penguin, you have to rescue some guards and then get a gadget from Freeze that stops his weapons so then Batman goes to stop Penguin but has to fight Solomon Grundy which is again another problem, all the villains in the game aren't focused, Hugo Strange the supposedly main villain is not much in the game, Two Face is in the game for a short time and so is Joker and Penguin and Clayface etc. Which begs the question who is the main villain in this game, Strange ? No he was just a puppet for the most underwhelming plan, it turns out Ra's Al Ghul was the main villain and is quickly killed off, then Joker shows up again and tries to kill Batman's girlfriend but it turns out he was actually Clayface and I can't believe despite all the obvious clues nobody saw it coming except for me. The whole Protocol Ten is the plan to kill the criminals in the City it was just as silly as in Batman Begins but whatever, then there are parts in this game where you dont even know where to go. The boss battles haven't improved much except for the Mr Freeze boss battle. Also all that mystery that was in Arkham Asylum is lacking in Arkham City sure there is some but there isn't much. The side missions are disappointing because half of them are just set ups for Arkham Knight. Oh and Catwoman being a DLC is a middle finger to all those who don't have Xbox Live. So by now you probably think I hate the game but I actually think its decent. The combat is great, the ending is really good and so is the voice acting, and the gameplay is great. So I think Arkham City is the worst of the Arkham games, even worse than Origins. 4/10… Expand
  16. Broyax
    Apr 17, 2017
    2
    Le premier Batmou ne m'avait pas emballé outre-mesure et cette suite qui tente de copier avec maladresse la formule gagnante des meilleurs Assassin's Creed (AC2, ACB, ACR) m'a beaucoup déçu. Ce gros Batmou adepte de la gonflette stéroïdée occupe la moitié de l'écran sauf quand on le fait courir, ce qui occasionne un changement de caméra incessant dès qu'on ralentit alors qu'il suffisaitLe premier Batmou ne m'avait pas emballé outre-mesure et cette suite qui tente de copier avec maladresse la formule gagnante des meilleurs Assassin's Creed (AC2, ACB, ACR) m'a beaucoup déçu. Ce gros Batmou adepte de la gonflette stéroïdée occupe la moitié de l'écran sauf quand on le fait courir, ce qui occasionne un changement de caméra incessant dès qu'on ralentit alors qu'il suffisait d'avoir par défaut une vue plus éloignée comme dans un AC quoi qu'il arrive.

    Beaucoup de combats, lesquels quand on regarde d'un peu plus près ne sont que successions bien orchestrées de mini-QTE déguisés (appuie sur Y quand tu vois le petit symbole, appuie sur X, appuie sur Y quand tu vois le petit symbole...) avec quelques ralentis lolilol. Quant à l'infiltration, elle a été réduite à la portion congrue. Pour combler le vide, le développeur a rempli son néant d'un tas d'énigmes pathétiques et de contre-la-montre entre deux cabines téléphoniques.

    La maniabilité générale est également très en retrait d'un AC ou même d'un Infamous, la ville ne se prêtant pas à une exploration fluide de toit en toit, tout est bien trop hâché avec ce grappin trop rapide, le manque de points d'accroche et le gros Batmou tout mou et lent (qui a peur de l'eau de surcroît).

    L'univers de la bande dessinée est cela dit bien respecté si l'on considère l'intrigue basse du front et les caricatures ridicules que sont l'ensemble des personnages impliqués dans cette farce à l'insu de leur ignorance pour adolescents américains forcément très limités. Tim Burton avait su en sortir autre chose en son temps mais malheureusement, Batman Arkham City c'est la BD à la lettre et rien d'autre.

    D'un point de vue technique, le jeu excelle par contre : il est beau et fluide en toutes circonstances, les temps de chargements sont réduits et la VF est parfaite. Mais malgré tout cela, Batmou le mou du genou restera un tocard, lui et sa ville de branques.    … Expand
  17. Jacare_mamaco
    Dec 5, 2022
    3
    sla n gosto mt dos jogos do batman, gosto das hq's mas os jogos tem mecanica muito...esquistas

Awards & Rankings

3
#3 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2011
6
#6 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2011
6
#6 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 87 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 87 out of 87
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 87
  3. Negative: 0 out of 87
  1. Planet Xbox 360
    Dec 22, 2011
    95
    Improved gameplay, new mechanics, and an even stronger story denote whether you care about Batman or not, it's still a game worthy of your time. With some easter eggs possibly hinting at plots for a third game, let's hope Rocksteady isn't quite done with the Dark Knight.
    Read full review
  2. games(TM)
    Dec 1, 2011
    90
    Arkham City handles its side-stories gloriously. [Christmas 2011, p.102]
  3. Gamer Limit
    Nov 29, 2011
    95
    All in all, outside of a few minor issues, I couldn't ask for a better Batman experience. If Arkham City was a graphic novel, it would be considered a classic.
    Read full review
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