The Batman: Arkham Origins release date has been set by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for October 25, 2013, revealed the publisher through a press release yesterday. This new entry to the critically acclaimed series will be seen coming out for the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii U and PC, while its handheld spin-off, which has its title suffixed with ‘Blackgate,’ will be arriving for the PS Vita and the 3DS on the same date. Strangely though, no next-gen plans have come to the fore yet.
The main game is all set to act as a prequel to the series, and is being developed not by its original creator, Rocksteady Studios, but by WB Games Montreal. The main focus of its story will be the rise of several of Gotham City’s dangerous villains, and the development of their relationships with the young and ‘unrefined’ superhero.
This new offering is also Game Informer magazine’s cover feature for its May issue. Eurogamer had access to a copy of it, and has given out several crucial details regarding the game. A ‘functional city’ and ‘not a deserted wasteland’ is how the developer chooses to describe its version of Gotham City. And the main villain in this title has been revealed to be Black Mask, who launches a manhunt for the Dark Knight along with other bad guys.
As the image posted above confirms, Deathstorke will also be included in the title’s character roster along with Black Mask. WB Games Montreal will be employing the same modified Unreal Engine used by Rocksteady for the initial games, and will infuse the title with a world approximately twice larger than the one we saw in the previous iteration of the series.
Combat and stealth techniques similar to the earlier games will also be found within it, but a new feature to the scenario is the ‘remote claw’ which enables players to shoot two targets and pull them towards one another. Moreover, detective work and side missions will be retained by the developer as well.
Coming to Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate, it is a 2.5-D game meant for the PS Vita and the 3DS which has its story correspond to that of the main offering. It is being created by Armature Studio, the same developer which ported the MGS HD Collection to Vita recently. Both Blackgate as well as the main game are available for pre-order at the moment.