Chatting with Batman: Arkham City’s Sefton Hill & Dax Ginn – HuffPost 9.30.11

Mike Ragogna: Sefton Hill, game director of Batman: Arkham City and Dax Ginn, in charge of marketing, welcome. Guys, you not only made the original game Batman: Arkham Asylum clever, but there were so many unique aspects to it that I’m imagining you took that level of intricacy into Batman: Arkham City.

Sefton Hill: Yeah definitely, we’re really fortunate that we are huge Batman fans. So, it’s a huge dream of ours to get to work on a game that we love, with a character that we love, and hopefully, that comes through in the game. I would say that Batman is such a multi-faceted character, there are so many things that make him fascinating. We were able to get a whole host of those things in the first game, and I think a whole lot more into the second game. Being able to take Batman into Gotham City for the first time is really exciting for us.

MR: You being the same team that took us into Arkham Asylum.

SH: Yeah, indeed, that was our first Batman game. We were incredibly excited to get the opportunity to get to work on Batman, it was great. When you make the game, you never know how it’s going to be received and when it came out, people went crazy for it. We have the Guinness World Record for the highest rated superhero game of all time. It was fantastic having that kind of feedback, and put a little more pressure on us for Arkham City. We’re really excited now, we finished the game, and it’s out October 18th. Now, we’re just really excited for people to get their hands on it and play it.

MR: Am I allowed to talk about the end of Arkham Asylum to set up my next question?

SH: Yeah, that’s fine.

MR: Okay, SPOLIER ALERT. You have alternate endings after the credits of Arkham Asylum. The box of the Joker’s “titan” from his Titan Project ends up in the Gotham River, and you have Bane grabbing it, you have Scarecrow grabbing it. Does this set up Arkham City?

SH: We certainly follow on a little bit of that story in Arkham City, so you’re going to find out what happened to the titan if you play the game. We wanted to follow on from the events of Arkham Asylum, we wanted to follow some of those story threads through. There are quite a few teasers in Arkham Asylum. For those who have played that game, they’re going to really enjoy where those elements have played out in Arkham City. As well as that, if you’re new to Arkham City, we have lots of different mechanics that are introduced new to the story, and we introduce you to all of these new characters. So, if you got to the end ofArkham Asylum, you would have seen that the titan crate had managed to escape off the island. When you play this game you’re going to find out how that story played out.

MR: There were many villains and many adventures to have in Arkham Asylum. SinceArkham City will be more intense, it implies that this is going to be a complete crazy fest.

SH: (laughs) Yeah, it certainly does. When we finished making Arkham Asylum, we were certainly wondering where do we go next, and the next natural place would be to take Batman back to his spiritual home, right into the heart of Gotham. The concept behindArkham City is that you have this walled-off area of Gotham, and the district has been closed down and has been turned into a maximum security prison. So they’ve taken all the prisoners from Blackgate Penitentiary, as well as all of the people from Arkham Asylum, and just let them loose in this walled-off area. It’s kind of a completely lawless zone. In there, you have Two Face, Penguin, Joker, Catwoman, Riddler, you have all of these great well known characters. It’s like a melting pot of crime. The only person standing in any of these people’s way is Batman. It’s a great opportunity for us to introduce the great villains everyone knows for Batman to showdown against head-to-head.

MR: There were a couple of characters we never saw in Arkham Asylum, and yet they were added to the storyline in a wonderful way, for instance, the Riddler. Will we actually get to see him in this one?

SH: Yes, and that’s one of the big things we’ve worked on this time is getting to go face-to-face with the Riddler. He’s actually plotting his revenge after getting captured at the end ofArkham Asylum. He’s been planning his revenge for eighteen months. This is a guy who’s so meticulous and so intelligent that he’s come up with the best way to defeat Batman and prove that he’s smarter than Batman. So, in this game, you’re going to get to go head-to-head with the Riddler. For the first time, you get to meet him, and you get to find out his plans for Batman. He has some really elaborate plans to prove that he’s smarter than the bat, and that’s a really new feature in the game that we’ve worked on a lot.

MR: You listed a lot of the major villains, did you go to any of the secondary villains for a sub-plot?

SH: Yeah, we’ve really been a kid in the candy shop, with so many amazing super-villains to pick from. Without a doubt, Batman has the best villains gallery over any character in the world. Just being able to pick from all of those characters was so exciting for us when we were crafting the story. We have so many characters in the game that we’ve put in as secondary characters. We have Bane, Poison Ivy, and Calendar Man in there, so you have great villains and awesome stories to tell and this history with Batman, and even if you don’t know the histor, there are bios in the game that explain their history with Batman. It’s kind of a good entry point into the Batman universe. You’re going to see Batman showdown with countless villains. We have so many in there, that was something that was so exciting for us to get to play with.

MR: That’s what I was implying before with the madness of having the concept of an “Arkham City,” it has to be over the top. Will we see the Oracle in this, finally?

SH: You’re not going to get to meet Oracle, but she will be constantly by your side giving you information in your ear and keeping you up to date on what’s happening in Arkham City itself and also outside in Gotham City. She’s an essential piece and also, this time, Alfred is going to be with you as well. He’s going to be giving you information and being back at the batcave as well. So, you have that combo of you, Alfred, and Oracle working together, but basically they are providing the information. But Batman’s the guy in there in Arkham City getting his hands dirty.

MR: Are there any other bat family members that are going to be appear?

SH: One of the things we’ve announced as one of the pre-order bonuses is that you get to play as Robin in the game, on one of the challenge maps. Robin is someone who we had a lot of fun creating and crafting, giving him his own unique gadgets as well. You will get to play Robin as well.

MR: Will it be the Tim Drake/Wayne version?

SH: We talked about different versions of what it could be and how they fit into the mythology, and obviously, have the various options which we can pick from. We are going with Tim Drake, that was the one we felt best fit in the line of fiction we’re doing.

MR: Excellent. Tim resonated with the public very well, and now that he’s Red Robin in the comic books, it’s just nice to have a nod that he’s somewhere in the bat universe in the game. After all, Tim Drake was the smartest Robin out of all of them, he is the closest to the detective that Batman is.

SH: Yeah definitely, he is the one that some people speculate could even surpass Batman in detective skills. So, it was someone we had fun bringing into the universe, definitely.

MR: Dax, from a marketing perspective, it seems like a no-brainer, but what are you going to be doing in addition to the way you promoted the last project?

Dax Ginn: It’s a brilliant challenge, it’s a treat to be in this position. I feel very blessed to be able to go out on the road and show the game around to gamers and Batman fans. I can tell you man, the buzz that is out there at the moment is incredible. In lots of ways all you’ve got to do is put a controller in their hands and let them go for it, the game is so sweet and has such incredible quality. Over and above just getting every opportunity to allow players to play the game before it comes out in October, we’re trying to explore different aspects of Batman’s personality, really looking at the villains he’s going up against. So, not just focusing on Batman himself, but really also exploring Joker, Two Face, Riddler, Penguin, Mr. Freeze…these incredible villains. Those guys can bring a whole lot to a marketing campaign because they are so iconic. You put Batman next to a picture of Joker, and immediately, everyone has an idea that it’s about to kick off. We’re in a great position with some incredible characters. Between now and the game launch on the 18th of October, we are going to be going crazy with getting a lot of promotion and a lot of visibility out on the street and on TV to get fans really hot about Arkham City.

MR: And again, what is the release date for the game?

DG: Absolutely–October 18th in the US. It’s coming out on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 in 3D! It’s going to be coming out of your screen and into your cranium!

MR: How did you do it?

SH: With a lot of hard work. A lot of people ask here at Rocksteady, how did you deliverArkham Asylum and how do you follow that up with Arkham City, which we genuinely believe is better than Arkham Asylum in every respect. We set out some huge challenges creatively and technically for this game, and we’ve worked harder on this game than anything we’ve done previously. I can say there’s a secret, but that would be a lie. It’s honestly just a lot of hard work, and we take this opportunity very seriously, and we know the Batman fans deserve a game of really high quality and that’s what we’re delivering.

MR: The last time out, on the Playstation 3, you got to play as the Joker, which was unique to that system. Is there anything unique to PS3 this time around?

SH: Not this time around. We’re really treating everyone respective of what platform they have and what console they have. Everyone’s going to get the same Arkham City experience, and it’s going to blow their minds apart.

MR: Sefton, how soon after Arkham Asylum did you guys already start thinking aboutArkham City?

SH: We started thinking about it really early on, actually. As you mentioned, before the titan crate at the end, there are also quite a few hints in the first game as to where we were going with the second game. I guess the biggest one would be if you go to the warden’s office in the first game, there’s a secret panel on the wall, and if you spray three applications of explosive gel on it, you can smash down a secret panel. Behind there, you can find where Quincy Sharp has the plans for Arkham City on the walls, you can see the plans for the sequel game on his wall, so he was already planning it from that point.

MR: Playing the first game, the player most likely ended with a stash of weapons and gadgets. Will you be able to play the weapons and gadgets from the first game into the second game?

SH: You won’t actually take them across in the game, but what we do for people that played the first game is that we start you with a lot more gadgets this time. So, as soon as you start the game, you’re going to have the Batarang, the remote Batarang, the Batclaw, the explosive gel, and the Cryptographic Sequencer. You start with 5 gadgets right from the start, you can use any of the gadgets, and if you played the first game, you will be familiar with how those work and you will be able to use those immediately to get additional secrets and goodies. Also, each of those gadgets we’ve upgraded, so you can use the Batclaw in new ways to grab secrets, you can use the explosive gel and use that in the middle of your combat. There are loads of different things you can do with all of those gadgets. So, in the first game, we had eight gadgets total, and in this game, you start it with five gadgets. All of those gadgets have completely new features as well.

MR: And bat transports? Which ones are we going to see in this one?

SH: We thought about transports, we thought about potentially doing work with the Batmobile, but at the end of the day, the best vehicle Batman has is to glide and move around. So, that was the thing we spent all of our time working on and I think that’s something you will really love when you get to play the game. You get to dive down through Gotham’s alleyways and across the rough tops. It’s a really great feeling to dive down across the Gotham skyline and looki out for the villains and look out for trouble. Picking and choosing the missions you want to do, the open world structure of the game is different from the first game and gives you a lot more freedom in what you want to do. At the same time, there is a focused storyline in the game as well. That feeling of being Batman and being Gotham’s savior and protector is something you really feel when you’re gliding across Gotham’s skyline.

MR: You mentioned the storyline. Does the storyline have more segments or it about the same amount of set up that’s in Arkham Asylum?

SH: The story is actually bigger than the first one. If you were going to take down all of the villains of Arkham City, you’re looking at well over 25 hours of game play. So, that’s a massive chunk of game play you’re looking at. The story is significantly bigger than the first one, and it does have that story-based element, as well as the roaming if you want to go and pick off the side missions and see what else is around. So, there are lots of different things you can do and the game is bigger. For us, the biggest focus was to make a better game rather than a bigger game. But in terms of taking the game into Gotham City, it’s a great opportunity. It felt like we really needed to deliver on what Gotham City is all about.

MR: With the 3D element, will there be glasses included, and if so, how many pairs?

SH: Well, there are multiple different types of 3D we support in the game, so if you have a 3D TV, we support that fully. You’ll get to use your full 3D TV and at the same time, if you don’t have a 3D TV, we support the Anaglyph 3D, which means you can use the glasses as well, which works pretty well, I think. There actually aren’t any 3D glasses in there because most people have the glasses for their TV if they have a 3D TV, but basically, you can enjoy the game in 3D in multiple ways.

MR: What are your expectations for this game?

SH: I mean, we’re definitely really excited to get it out there. It’s always a strange feeling because when you work on a game, you’re kind of working in a bunker for two years and you don’t really get that much feedback from the outside world when you’re developing the game. When it comes closer to release and people get it in their hands for the first time, we don’t have that big of a perspective on it. But we are incredibly proud of the work the team has done. I think they’ve really done some amazing stuff, and I’m really excited for everyone to play it. For any game, the true test is when gamers get their hands on it and get to play it. We’re lucky, as Dax said before. He’s been on the road show, and he’s got loads of people playing the game, and we’ve had nothing but tremendous feedback, and what people have seen is only the tip of the iceberg. There’s so much more to see and do in the game, we’ve kept so many details of the story secret, so when people get to play the game, they’re going to get surprised by all of this stuff. How successful it is? I don’t know, we are just really excited to get it out there and to get people playing.

MR: You mentioned a team earlier, were you the quarterback for this?

SH & DG: (laughs)

MR: Oops, wrong kind of “football”!

SH: I guess I’m the quarterback, I don’t know. I guess Jamie (Walker) is the coach.

MR: (laughs) But you guys were in charge, called all the shots until the end, right?

SH: Yeah, it’s just so fortunate for me to work with such a talented team, so for me, I get to work with great script writers, great artists, great designers, great programmers, and great animators. That just makes my job so much easier, these guys make amazing stuff. It’s my personal responsibility to make sure all of that comes together in a good, cohesive, enjoyable game. Really, the team is the people who do the work and create this stuff and they do a phenomenal job.

MR: What advice would you have for people coming into the world of gaming from the perspective of programming or being behind the scenes of creating new games?

SH: I guess the thing is, it can be quite a hard industry to get into, but really, all you need is dedication, that’s the main thing. As long as you’re committed and can show what you can do, if you’re trying to break into the industry, prove your talent and prove your skills, create artwork, show people what you can do, and keep knocking on the doors of developers. The main thing we care about is talent, it’s not about how many years you’ve worked in the industry. What developers want is to work with really talented people. So, if you’ve got the talent and you keep working with it and you keep practicing, you will get a job in this industry. If you’re a designer, design levels; if you’re an animator, get animations on your show reel. Just make sure what you can show people what you can do, and if you have the talent, you can get very far in this industry. Like Bruce Wayne, you can think of the dedication he has to fighting crime and delivering justice on the streets of Gotham, and that’s the attitude every great developer has. That’s the advice from Rocksteady–go out there and be Batman!

MR: You guys are great I really appreciate your time. Thank you so much.

SH & DG: Thanks, Mike

Transcribed by Theo “Nightwing” Shier
Much Gratitude to Jacques “Batman” Lambert & Gareth “Robin” West