Games deriving from film and comics are a dime-a-dozen, and that's why it was so surprising when Batman: Arkham Asylum released with a mighty fist back in Fall 2009. It fit in all of the reasons Batman is one of the most popular superheroes and brought some thrilling combat and a quality story along for the ride. Looking back after so much success it would sound almost ridiculous to think that its developers had no idea what was coming, but that's exactly what they did.
Sefton Hill, Batman: Arkham Asylum's game director, was shocked when Rocksteady Studios' second game came out and instantly hit a wave of positive reception. He shared the following with PSM3 magazine:
When we were making Arkham Asylum, we had no idea how successful it would be.
He added:
You're so close to the project you've no idea how successful it's going to be, or it is going to be successful at all.
It's clear that a lot of love went into not only Batman: Arkham Asylum but Batman: Arkham City as well. They're both polished to the teeth and let you kick the tar out of hundreds of bad guys. Sometimes that's all a game needs to be success.
Now if only the same could be said about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Spider-Man, Superman, and the hundreds of other cool characters with infinite potential (*hint hint*).
