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. CouchFox
    Nov 12, 2011
    6
    I had a lot of fun with this game. The reason I am giving it a 6 out of 10 is because I am getting really tired of game developers charging money for DLC content that should have been a part of the original game. I'm not paying for the Nightwing Bundle Pack - that should have been part of the game. Same thing with the upcoming Robin Bundle Pack. ALL of these should have been part ofI had a lot of fun with this game. The reason I am giving it a 6 out of 10 is because I am getting really tired of game developers charging money for DLC content that should have been a part of the original game. I'm not paying for the Nightwing Bundle Pack - that should have been part of the game. Same thing with the upcoming Robin Bundle Pack. ALL of these should have been part of the game we're paying $60 for. Arkham City was a decent game - but the developers are getting way too greedy. Waaaay too greedy. People need to start pushing back against these developers who hold back content and then release it as DLC less than two weeks after the game comes out. Ridiculous.… Expand
  2. josh55
    Oct 19, 2011
    6
    This game is pretty much exactly like the last game but with crappy new gadgets, it's harder to get around and they rip you off before you even open the box. They cut out an important part of the game (all of catwoman's story) and put an online pass to download in the game, this was never mentioned in any of the trailers or magazine articles. they did so people would buy it new but theyThis game is pretty much exactly like the last game but with crappy new gadgets, it's harder to get around and they rip you off before you even open the box. They cut out an important part of the game (all of catwoman's story) and put an online pass to download in the game, this was never mentioned in any of the trailers or magazine articles. they did so people would buy it new but they didn't that not everyone has access to x-box live, and to top that off the pre-order bonus where you can play as robin is also dlc even though that was never mentioned, the videogame industry should not be aloud to gyp it's customers like this.… Expand
  3. Iamthejuan
    May 8, 2013
    5
    I just downloaded this recently when it hit Xbox live market; I am already at 100% and working on the "harder" replay of the game you unlock. I can see already that this game has very little replay value other than occasionally trolling around beating up thugs and fantasizing that I am, in reality, capable of being like Batman. As a fan of the character, I expect better.

    This game isn't    I just downloaded this recently when it hit Xbox live market; I am already at 100% and working on the "harder" replay of the game you unlock. I can see already that this game has very little replay value other than occasionally trolling around beating up thugs and fantasizing that I am, in reality, capable of being like Batman. As a fan of the character, I expect better.

    This game isn't terrible, and I can tell a lot of work went into it. However, it seems like they couldn't decide whether they were making a game for adults or for children, and tried to split hairs. It's like like they went half "dark knight" and half cartoony Batman... The story-writing and clever humor throughout the game are pretty good, but the combat mechanics are often unresponsive or too impractical; the camera angles make precise control difficult no matter what setting you use; the enemies take unrealistic amounts of damage. The game uses high health enemies and sheer numbers to make it "hard", and it feels stupid to be fighting a large crowd of "common thugs" who can apparently take 20 or 30 Batman punches before going night-night. (I understand the game wants you to master combos, but seriously?) Sometimes the game forces a certain action or gadget use when other more obvious routes should have been available to batman (having to use a zipline or remote control batarang by being prevented from gliding, grappling, swimming, climbing, or any other action Batman is normally capable of).

    Everything is hidden, even stupid simple objectives like payphones are deliberately placed in hard to reach spots so as to run down any timers associated with a mission. The supporting characters play very minor roles- why does Catwoman make more of an appearance than Robin? Why is Nightwing nowhere in the campaign? Why are there 50 thousand ridler trophies; all I know is if I find them all the Riddler had best show up as a secret fight or I will be angry.

    The biggest killer is that there is little to do at endgame other than to fight and collect trophies. The challenge modes are ok, but I would rather play Special Ops in that case if anyone knows what I am saying. It is too late now to worry about any major expansions, but I hope the developers work on these things for the next Arkham game; it is too common to see developers getting comfortable with subpar output when they know the game has a dedicated fanbase that largely supports anything with the logo on it. This game is in no way a 10.    … Expand
  4. bruixots
    Jan 16, 2013
    7
    It's a good game but far not better than the first one. It's "superior" in lots of aspects but not in the game experience. After 3-4 hours playing it's all the time the same mechanism all the time the same ( reminds me Assessins creed 1 in this aspect). The story it's not really interesting as well.
  5. metabun
    Oct 23, 2011
    7
    It's a solid game, but don't expect anything groundbreaking compared to the first game. The game area is much bigger, and listening to the radio chatter is amusing and keeps the city feeling alive. Side missions are well done, but the Riddler section of the game is grossly overdone. I seriously wonder how much time they spent on literally dumping huge amounts of Riddler items all over theIt's a solid game, but don't expect anything groundbreaking compared to the first game. The game area is much bigger, and listening to the radio chatter is amusing and keeps the city feeling alive. Side missions are well done, but the Riddler section of the game is grossly overdone. I seriously wonder how much time they spent on literally dumping huge amounts of Riddler items all over the city, as opposed to spending it on more real game content. The voice acting needs no comment. The combat is still very fun and robust, but feels too similar to AA. Bosses remain disappointing.… Expand
  6. Henrycsi
    Nov 11, 2011
    5
    Remember when a sequel was supposed to innovate? I loved Arkham Asylum, and although the sandbox feel in City is nice, I don't feel, with the other games out there (Skyrim), that I need to play through this. A longer production time and more innovation would have been nice.
  7. SpunkyMonkey
    Apr 5, 2012
    6
    Arkham Asylum was a class game and a truely wonderful experience, however Arkham City, whilst good, just never hits those heights. The first bugbare is the rather hard to swallow plot and introduction - without adding spoilers lets just say you have to suspend your belief a fair bit to swallow it. Then there's the sandbox element of the game - it works to a certain degree, but you neverArkham Asylum was a class game and a truely wonderful experience, however Arkham City, whilst good, just never hits those heights. The first bugbare is the rather hard to swallow plot and introduction - without adding spoilers lets just say you have to suspend your belief a fair bit to swallow it. Then there's the sandbox element of the game - it works to a certain degree, but you never have to walk around the streets of AC and you can quite easily miss a lot of content by rushing through the game - which wouldn't be so bad if the game didn't make you want to progress far and fast so that you can obtain upgrades and complete the puzzles which are lying around. As an overall experience it just doesn't flow that well, and no sooner have you got into it than it;s ended. But it's still good, the combat flows well and moving around AC is a blast. However, another gripe is the DLC setup of the game - I'm looking at certain buildings and listening to various conversations they strongly hint at other villains which I should be encountering.....which I don't - again it pushes you on to get further and before you know it it's all over. Which wouldn't be so bad if the game hadn't thrown absolutely everything at you in terms of enemies and gadgets in the first 10 minutes. It really is a very oddly paced game and one that just doesn't work that well as a full package. Yes it's fun, yes it's worth playing, but no it's not a classic, no it's not as good as the original, and no it's not very memorable.… Expand
  8. MrShifty
    Oct 27, 2011
    7
    Arkham City is a fun game, undoubtedly, but they must have spread some serious love and $$ around to get all those 10/10 reviews. Read those reviews for what's good about it. Here's what's not:

    1) It's short, for one thing. Yes, there are a bunch of optional side-quests, but I've completed at least half of them plus the main story, and I can't possibly have put more than 10 hours in.    Arkham City is a fun game, undoubtedly, but they must have spread some serious love and $$ around to get all those 10/10 reviews. Read those reviews for what's good about it. Here's what's not:

    1) It's short, for one thing. Yes, there are a bunch of optional side-quests, but I've completed at least half of them plus the main story, and I can't possibly have put more than 10 hours in. (The advertised 25 hours just for the main story is totally laughable.) I would guess that it would take maybe another 5 hours at most to complete all of the side-quests. The rest of the supposed 40 hours of gameplay must be just hunting for Riddler trophies, which is sort of interesting, but isn't real content.

    2) It's small. The open world thing is cool and all, but the prison/city feels very small. You can easily get from one end to the other in 3 minutes. Part of that is that travelling by grappling-hook + glider wing is very fast, but part is that the area is just small. There are 5-6 large internal areas that you have to work your way through, but that's not any more than were in Arkham Asylum. The asylum actually felt bigger to me simply because it took longer to get around and seemed to have more secret nooks and crannies.

    3) The plot makes no sense. The ending, particularly, is full of head scratchers. There's a big 'reveal' with flashbacks and ominous music and everything, but I couldn't even figure out what the reveal meant. It really does make no sense. The first game had a very cohesive and interesting plot. This game seems to at first, but just doesn't pull it all together.

    4) It's misogynistic. As you swing around the city, you are constantly overhearing conversations of inmates. Every few minutes, you hear one that has rape fantasies about Catwoman and/or Harley Quinn. The word **** seems to be used with particular frequency. There's even a scene where Batman grabs Harley by the throat, grins maliciously, then throws her to the ground. I wouldn't have as much a problem with this except for two things: 1) this is a rated T game, from a comic book/cartoon franchise, guaranteed to appeal to 10 year olds. 2) There's no push-back by any of the good guys. Batman never condemns the misogyny. At the very least, you could have Catwoman say something like "I'm not a **** I'm a kitty" as she clocks some dude with her high-heels. Or Oracle could say something like "Those guys in there sound like real ladies-men." But that doesn't happen.

    I honestly think that Arkham Asylum was a far better game: more content, more interesting environments, better story.    … Expand
  9. David1991
    Jul 11, 2012
    5
    I bought this game when it first came out and i have to give warning to anyone wanting to buy it, its not a complete game. if you buy it second hand you don't get catwoman. if you don't pay extra for DLC ( Taken out content ) you get no robin and no costumes for batman, WHICH should be in the game as unlockables anyway. its ridiculous its just pure greed. im not a person that usuallyI bought this game when it first came out and i have to give warning to anyone wanting to buy it, its not a complete game. if you buy it second hand you don't get catwoman. if you don't pay extra for DLC ( Taken out content ) you get no robin and no costumes for batman, WHICH should be in the game as unlockables anyway. its ridiculous its just pure greed. im not a person that usually complains but when i buy a game i expect the full game. which is exactly why i returned my game months ago when it first came out and always said i would buy THE COMPLETE EDITION. no not game of the year edition THE COMPLETE EDITION which is what it is. on september 07. yep all this time for a complete copy of a game because i refuse to pay extra for content which should already be on disc, and unless you done the same your basically bending over and taken it up the ass while opening your wallet. great game - worst greed practices ever. this game probably deserves a 10 but ill give it a 5 since i only had half the content on disc.… Expand
  10. Ishman
    Dec 20, 2011
    7
    It's definitely an awesome game, and I had a lot of fun with it, but i felt it was too short and mildly easy. Sure, new game plus makes things harder but It was really a case of been there done that, I'm not one for replaying games personally, there's too many other awesome games out there to be going over old ground again. Don't even get me started on the DLC, I payed nearly a $100.00It's definitely an awesome game, and I had a lot of fun with it, but i felt it was too short and mildly easy. Sure, new game plus makes things harder but It was really a case of been there done that, I'm not one for replaying games personally, there's too many other awesome games out there to be going over old ground again. Don't even get me started on the DLC, I payed nearly a $100.00 Australian for my copy and then I have to pay more for content that really should have been included initially, how much money do you need you greedy c*nts? I couldn't believe when i finished it, i thought i was maybe halfway through and then it ended on what I thought was a fairly unmemorable boss fight. I found the side quests to be a little bland as well. All in all its a rad game, I just don't feel the value for money is there for a single player game. Bang for Buck? Skyrim all the way.… Expand
  11. LetzTalkMoveez
    Dec 10, 2011
    6
    "Arkham Asylum" is as close to to a masterpiece as video-games get for me, and this isn't. The atmospheres are nearly identical, and there's not much new to do. Occasionally very fun (the flying sequence), but disappointing.
  12. anarin
    Nov 8, 2011
    5
    I believe the only reason I kept playing this game is because it is Batman. If this was a title other then the famous name, the ratings would be much lower. It is your typical x button mash game, has terrible camera angles and the story line lasted me one night. There is absolutely no punching someone in the face unless you want to alert the other 15 guys in the room that you are there.I believe the only reason I kept playing this game is because it is Batman. If this was a title other then the famous name, the ratings would be much lower. It is your typical x button mash game, has terrible camera angles and the story line lasted me one night. There is absolutely no punching someone in the face unless you want to alert the other 15 guys in the room that you are there. Apparently Batman packs grenade punches that awaken the dead, lets not even get into how you have to kill "the stun gun guy", "the riot shield guy" and "the knife guy" all completely different ways. I found myself saying "my god this game is ridiculous" about 25 times. On a positive note, if you can get by all the defects this game has, it is fairly deep and will keep you playing with side missions. Just don't expect the main storyline to wow you. Definitely a rental game.… Expand
  13. Deusex
    Mar 3, 2014
    5
    While it has good ideas, it doesn't live up. Due to technical issues.

    Pros:
    Your batman enough said.
    Good graphics.
    Good fighting system.
    Puzzles are good also.

    Cons:
    Bad story, wasn't interesting.
    Small world.
    All characters look similar.
    Bad boss fights.
    Too easy.
    Stealth was mediocre. Wasn't fleshed out enough like a splinter cell game.
  14. EyEmAtchOo
    Oct 27, 2011
    6
    First of all, this is an excellent game of the highest quality. There is tons to explore and do, a great many surprises, and all of it good fun. Playing as batman gives you all the best elements of being James Bond, a ninja, Sherlock Holmes, and a vampire. There is much to be praised, and yet by now most if not all of that has been covered elsewhere, so I'll just note that I agree withFirst of all, this is an excellent game of the highest quality. There is tons to explore and do, a great many surprises, and all of it good fun. Playing as batman gives you all the best elements of being James Bond, a ninja, Sherlock Holmes, and a vampire. There is much to be praised, and yet by now most if not all of that has been covered elsewhere, so I'll just note that I agree with pretty much all of the positive reviews.

    I do have one rather huge objection to this game though. They somehow got it pushed through with a "teen" rating, and yet as a parent I feel strongly that it really should have been given a "Mature" rating. Particularly as when playing as the Catwoman, you find yourself constantly fending off gangs of thugs while they basically threaten to gang rape you. (They constantly taunt you along the lines of "I'm gonna make you purr for me kitten" and "let's see what's underneath that cat suit.") As she fights on through the story she begins to look bruised, filthy, cut up, and her cat suit has indeed become quite tattered. (Not in a clearly provocative way, but I still found it potentially disturbing for younger players given the context with the thugs.) I think every female character in the game gets called a **** more than once along the way, mostly by the various thugs who talk about putting them in their place. Overall I was surprised by how strong the tone of sexism was expressed. You also see cops get executed while begging for help. There is probably some other stuff too, as the game is nothing if not extremely violent, but Batman's "one rule" of not actually killing anybody (he just beats them all unconscious) keeps the bloodshed down. I'm not sure what sets the line between teen and mature, but it bothers me that many parents will buy this game for their 13 year old boys on the basis of the game's stellar ratings, without understanding what the ratings board is condoning for their children. And it bothers me that Rocksteady was not more responsible in the first place with either toning that mature content down a bit or not seeking a teen rating. And on that basis I have to give the game an 6.    … Expand
  15. RezzaDee
    Oct 27, 2011
    5
    That's why writing reviews on day one is pointless. People who give a 10 have barley played it so first impression is the review you will read. A bad review is either a troll (if instant review) or will get loads of "thumbs down" on his comment because he won't give a "green" coloured review. Truth is the game is OK not bad and by no means great! It's literally the same as AA (no I'm notThat's why writing reviews on day one is pointless. People who give a 10 have barley played it so first impression is the review you will read. A bad review is either a troll (if instant review) or will get loads of "thumbs down" on his comment because he won't give a "green" coloured review. Truth is the game is OK not bad and by no means great! It's literally the same as AA (no I'm not saying its an expansion pack "rip off") it's literally the same game but the Map is now bigger. Story was boring tbh as it didn't grab my attention like AA did. Yes there's lots of side missions but they also get boring and fast too. The story was an easy 7 hours without speed rushing. I do feel the release videos by the dev's were way over there head, I would be proud of making a bigger scale game too. But don't believe the hype. Good game but sadley not THAT much off an improvement. My opinion anyway.… Expand
  16. davenbettridge
    Dec 8, 2011
    7
    Arkham City is a fun and a worth while single player game but is not the masterpiece many claim. I enjoyed the open world of Arkham city and found gliding and fighting around at my own leisure fun for a time. The environmental graphics are good, batman also looks good with a great animating cape. The story has a few moments but did not surprise me at all and ends up being completelyArkham City is a fun and a worth while single player game but is not the masterpiece many claim. I enjoyed the open world of Arkham city and found gliding and fighting around at my own leisure fun for a time. The environmental graphics are good, batman also looks good with a great animating cape. The story has a few moments but did not surprise me at all and ends up being completely unbelievable even for a cartoon which is unacceptable for a claimed 'masterpiece'. The combat is good and feels unique (much improved from Arkham Asylum being more fluid and giving the player more options in combat). Most of the Batman franchise is over used in the game with too many villains that are just there for the sake of it without much use or need. unfortunately as its a franchise Batman will never really learn any real lessons about crime or criminals and there never will be an end to Batman's troubles, batman is never going to die which destroys any suspense of danger, he will never totally defeat his enemies either, Joker will always come back again and again and again which does water down the any story's significance. Recommened.… Expand
  17. Iconindy
    Nov 8, 2011
    7
    Great game due to the massive landscape and free-roaming capability. Extremely intriguing characters and a well-developed plot-line. As good as button-mashers come.
  18. NazTfox
    Nov 21, 2011
    7
    This game was great. Was a step up from Arkham Asylum. Wonderfully written story and plenty of the Batman universe to go around. I would recommend renting it unless your a Die Hard Batman fan.

    My first review was reset to 10 when I wanted to give this an 8.
  19. brutalsam
    Nov 28, 2011
    5
    Reason:
    Like Everyone says game is nothing but a free roam sandbox, well i understand this

    but why is Assassins Creed Revelations is rated 79 if games are all the same with previous series ?
  20. Jivot
    Jan 3, 2012
    7
    Ð
  21. HellzAssassin
    Nov 29, 2014
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to Batman: Arkham Asylum. While Batman: Arkham City adds in tons of new gameplay and content the first game didn't have, Arkham Asylum was a lot more enjoyable if you ask me.

    Arkham City's graphics were polished, story was excellent, and gameplay was phenomenal. However, I didn't like the vibe I got from the game compared to the first one. The entire game just felt like just one big DLC. The game offers a huge area to explore with a bunch of secrets and goodies scattered everywhere, but, it just left a bad taste in my mouth. Another problem with it, at least for me, was that the game is very forgettable. While I remember big ordeals such as Joker dying, I forgot all about Hugo Strange being in the game; let alone being the main villain.

    Another problem, is all of the DLC nonsense. Catwoman's story, which is a BIG part of the actual story, is DLC. There's also useless DLC such as the Nightwing and Robin DLCs. I'm pretty sure I even remember a DLC that's all about what Harley Quinn did after the Joker died. All of this should've been in the game in the first place.

    Overall, however, Arkham City is a fantastic Batman game that any Batman will fall in love with. Personally, I enjoyed the game, but my expectations were not met.    … Expand
  22. Salk
    Sep 8, 2023
    6
    I played this game several years after Batman: Arkham Horror. The latter was a good game with a few things I really didn't like. In this sequel, I have every little part I didn't like plus a heap more while at the same time what was good has gone.
  23. BoG
    Nov 11, 2011
    7
    Still fun, but it feels like the devs made a city, threw a bunch of villains in it and plopped Batman in the middle of it all. The environment and the characters who inhabit it lack cohesion. I don't feel nearly as emotionally or intellectually engaged because of it. Also there's an overwhelming amount of **** to do.
  24. slsoccer7
    Nov 10, 2011
    7
    Okay so this is what I think about this game. It is very good, HOWEVER, I do not personally believe that it deserves all these amazing reviews by the critics. While there are some features that are great in this game, it feels too much like the old one. It is still the same combat system other than maybe a couple changes. And all of the side missions feel so distant from the rest ofOkay so this is what I think about this game. It is very good, HOWEVER, I do not personally believe that it deserves all these amazing reviews by the critics. While there are some features that are great in this game, it feels too much like the old one. It is still the same combat system other than maybe a couple changes. And all of the side missions feel so distant from the rest of the game. I recommend it, but I would suggest just a rental for this.… Expand
  25. dh3rsh
    Nov 20, 2011
    7
    This is one of the best games I have ever played. I enjoy the combat, the story and use of gadgets and more advanced riddler challenges. The open world is also fun to explore. With all that being said, I have a big problem with this game, and it's not just me. Some peoples game data is being deleted on xbox 360 versions of the game. If it was just happening to me, then I wouldn't put itThis is one of the best games I have ever played. I enjoy the combat, the story and use of gadgets and more advanced riddler challenges. The open world is also fun to explore. With all that being said, I have a big problem with this game, and it's not just me. Some peoples game data is being deleted on xbox 360 versions of the game. If it was just happening to me, then I wouldn't put it in the review, but because it is happening to many people, i see it as a major flaw in the game. I put many hours into this game and now I have to start from the beginning and make a back up save data just in case this happens again. I hope they can fix this problem soon because I really do enjoy this game.… Expand
  26. CoolDadTx
    Dec 4, 2011
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is not better than AA except for a few places. I really hope they take a break from Batman and do something else otherwise I fear the next game will kill this otherwise good series.

    The pluses: area is bigger, the side missions are generally fun, the combat is slightly better, the story is more interesting for the most part.

    The negatives: the ending is horrible (reminds me of the X-Men series), the pit battle is so anti-batman that it is just plain stupid, the AR missions (you're on a tight timeline, you get some new gear and...you do training in the middle of a prison), the riddle puzzles force you to use techniques that you'll never, ever use elsewhere just to show off the mechanisms, catwoman parts, robin's appearance.

    I don't understand why publishers feel that movie, comic, TV show writers are bragging points when it comes to a game's narrative. The medias are different. AC has one of the stupider endings I've played in a long time.

    I also think they went way overboard on the combat stuff this time. I think they were trying to show off or something. The combat just didn't feel as fun in AC.

    Overall it is still a good game but not better than AA. I just hope they don't try to continue the series anytime soon because the next one will probably suck.    … Expand
  27. overtimeneowar
    May 21, 2016
    5
    is a video game about repetitive to die, valued, and the truth of flight controls suck, so much that I'm locked in a mission by the guilt of
    These controls,
  28. gingetsu
    Apr 20, 2016
    7
    from the super nintendo batman had not until the release of the arkham city sagas.

    the graphics are beautiful, the plot, the juagabiliadad and the number of hours that give this games is incredible
  29. lessacebola
    Sep 8, 2020
    7
    A história e jogabilidade são ok, o sistem de localização do jogo é um pouco confuso, acabei me perdendo algumas vezes, mas me encontrei rapidamente. Não tem nada de especial no jogo, se você gostar da DC e do batman vai gostar do jogo também.

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

All reviews »
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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