Batman: Arkham City is the second game in the Arkham trilogy of Batman games developed by Rocksteady studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. It was written by veteran Batman writer Paul Dini, the game is set within the franchise's legendary mythos and includes many of its classic villains, including Catwoman,Harley Quinn and the Joker.
The game's development began in February 2009 as the development of Arkham Asylum wrapped up.The development team of Rocksteady expanded from 75 to over 100 people. Batman's moves were upgraded to reflect the game's design of the asylum ghetto within Gotham City, as well as allow him to have access to the weapons from the previous game in order to prepare him for the battles to come in the game.The increased moves also resulted in doubling the animations in the game to accomodate them.The game world is also five times larger than the predecessor,making also easier to navigate as well with improved navigational features.To counter the larger world of Arkham City, more side games and challenges to keep the game challenging to the player.
The marketing campaign of the game was a massive effort on the part of Rocksteady, with a series of collaborations, comics, and other advertising that cost at least $10 million.The game was released on October 18th, 2011 to critical acclaim, including Game Informer'sAndrew Reiner, who said it could be the "most enjoyable timesink" of 2011(Reiner).
Arkham Citywas an immediate sales success,with 2 million units sold its first week-making it one of the fastest selling games ever. It also was the awards darling of the 2011 gaming year, winning numerous awards and accolades in the industry.