Over a decade ago, Rocksteady Studios revolutionized the face of superhero video games with its release of

Batman: Arkham Asylum

. One right after another, Rocksteady has produced two more amazing Batman games:

Batman: Arkham City

and

Arkham Knight

. To this day,

Batman: Arkham City

is still a fan favorite and arguably the best in the trilogy.

Arkham City

picks up right after

Asylum

. All the criminals in Blackgate Penitentiary and Arkham Asylum have been transferred to a sectioned-off part of Gotham City controlled by the notorious psychiatrist, Professor Hugo Strange. Something big is happening in Arkham City that Hugo Strange calls a monument of Batman’s failure. Throughout the game, Batman encounters familiar faces from the Rogues Gallery including Two-Face, Joker, Riddler, Hush and many more, all with their respective mini-boss battles. Rocksteady even introduces a gameplay sequence with Catwoman, giving her a story that converges with Batman’s.

Gameplay-wise,

Batman: Arkham City

takes all the amazing elements that made Asylum iconic and refines them. The combat is fairly simple; you have buttons to attack, stun, counter and dodge. Although these moves appear quite straightforward,

Batman: Arkham City

is not a button-mashing game, meaning you cannot rely on pressing one button to beat the game. Like

Asylum

,

Arkham City

requires the player to create combos using these simple buttons to defeat enemies. Batman has a new series of combos with these moves, all of which you can pair with his iconic gadgets, but with new combos also come with new enemies to fight. Rocksteady has introduced brutes, taser guards, knife-wielding guards and shield guards. The introduction of new enemies forces players to adapt to their environment and adjust their move-set in order to defeat them. Overall, Rocksteady creates excellent freeflow combat that makes you really feel like Batman.

Of course, Batman is not just punches and kicks; he is also a stealthy fighter. There are plenty of stealth sequences, or what the game calls “predator mode,” where Batman has to sneak through an area and take down guards without being detected. Enemies constantly adapt, keeping the player on edge. For instance, if you take down guards while hiding in the vents too many times, guards will start to realize your strategy and begin checking under the vents for you. Still considered the greatest boss battle in Batman history is the Mr. Freeze boss battle. Unlike any version before, Mr. Freeze adapts to every strategy you use to take him out. If you sneak from the grates below, he will freeze it so you won’t be able to do it the second time around.

Batman is not only a stealthy fighter, but he is literally “The World’s Greatest Detective”! There are plenty of sequences where players have to solve puzzles in order to progress. Sometimes, Batman has to solve puzzles on the spot to defeat a boss. Making its return from

Asylum,

Batman has his trusty detective mode which helps him highlight enemies and objects of interest from afar. These puzzles can range from fairly simple to annoyingly difficult. Either way, you still get a good taste of detective work.

Outside the story itself, the players are free to explore Arkham City. Many buildings themselves are not enterable like those in other open-world games. However, you are free to glide, climb on buildings, and even explore the sewers where Killer Croc sleeps. Around Arkham City, you’ll find random Riddler trophies lying around and unique easter eggs that will excite just about any Batman fan.

Additionally, virtually every version of B

atman: Arkham City

comes with unique fight and predator challenges with more added as downloadable content. In these fight challenges, players are tossed onto a map (i.e., Wayne Manor, Joker’s Carnival or the Iceberg Lounge, just to name a few) and are forced to fight enemies in waves or until the player dies. These combat maps serve as great practice if you are looking to improve your freeflow skills or if you are looking to beat a high score. Predator maps also help you practice your stealth skills and allow you to try out stealth tactics across various maps and enemies. Although in the main campaign, you can play as both Batman and Catwoman, these challenge maps allow you to try out characters like Robin and Nightwing.

Overall,

Batman: Arkham City

is still often considered the best game of the Arkham trilogy and to some, the best superhero game to have been released in mainstream media. As a Batman fan who recently watched

The Batman

in theaters, this game was definitely worth revisiting, whether it was for fun or nostalgia. You can pick up the game through Rocksteady’s remaster of it in

Batman: Return to Arkham

on console and the original game on Steam for the PC for $19.99.