Game profile
Batman: Arkham City
A walled off district of Gotham has been turned into an open air prison for criminals, where Batman faces numerous archenemies at once. Larger areas, deeper combat and a gripping story make this a highlight of the series.
Affiliate link. If you buy through it, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What kind of game this is
At its core this is Action / Adventure, set in the present day. Visually it is going for realism, and the overall tone stays dark throughout. The world is open, so wandering off and ignoring the main path is part of the deal. Sessions of an hour or two sit at the sweet spot here.
The difficulty is moderate and fair, demanding attention without punishing you for it. The narrative carries the whole thing, and the mechanics serve it. It is a single player experience from start to finish. It is available broadly, on 4 platforms. It sits in the budget bracket.
What stands out
- open city zone
- strong villains
- refined combat system
This fits you if
- you want to live through a story, not just play a system
- you are after a proper adrenaline rush
- exploring for its own sake is the point for you
- you like getting lost and ignoring the main objective for hours
- the writing matters more to you than the mechanics
- you play alone and want a complete experience without other people
Look elsewhere if
- you skip cutscenes and want to get to the gameplay
- you want something light and easy going
- you want to play it side by side with someone
- you prefer a stylised look over realism
How long is Batman: Arkham City?
About 16 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 3 weeks, or 8 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 91 out of 100, which puts it above 91 percent of the 1276 games here and at rank 88 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, Action averages 83 points across the database, so this one sits 8 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 2722 collected ratings.
Released in 2011, which makes it 15 years old. A genuine classic, and worth checking how the version you buy holds up today.
The facts
- Release year
- 2011
- Genres
- Action, Adventure, Stealth
- Playtime
- approx. 16 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Moderate, fair
- Story weight
- Carries the whole game
- Play with
- Solo
- Setting
- Present day
- Visual style
- Realistic
- Price bracket
- Budget
- Platforms
- PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
- Critic rating
- 91 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batman: Arkham City | 2011 | approx. 16 hrs. | 91 | Budget |
| Batman: Arkham Knight | 2015 | approx. 22 hrs. | 92 | Budget |
| Halloween: The Game | 2026 | approx. 20 hrs. | 56 | Full price |
| Batman: Arkham Asylum | 2009 | approx. 12 hrs. | 89 | Budget |
If you liked this, try these
- 92/100 Batman: Arkham Knight Shared: Action, Adventure, Present day, rated higher
- 56/100 Halloween: The Game Shared: Action, Adventure, Present day
- 89/100 Batman: Arkham Asylum Shared: Action, Adventure, Present day
- 83/100 007 First Light Shared: Action, Adventure, Present day
- 88/100 Control Resonant Shared: Action, Adventure, Present day, longer
- 88/100 Marvel's Wolverine Shared: Action, Adventure, Present day, longer