Top Tips – Batman: Arkham City

Become the Dark Knight in Batman: Arkham City with some handy video advice on its Story mode and invaluable Challenge mode tips.

Want to become an untouchable avenger of the night in Batman: Arkham City? You don't need to be like Bruce Wayne and travel around the world learning every form of combat that's ever existed. Simply check out these terrific video tips for the game's Story mode from Dax Ginn, Rocksteady Studios' marketing game manager, and some super Challenge mode pointers from the developer's community manager Sarah Wellock.

From the Asylum to the City

The combat in Batman: Arkham City is the same used in Batman: Arkham Asylum. The key is to always make some form of contact with someone, whether you're evading, stunning or striking. This gets you into the rhythm of the game and you'll get a better score through the combos you'll create.

The Cat versus the Bat

Batman is useful to start with if you want to get a high score. You only play as Catwoman for around 10 per cent of Batman: Arkham City's main story mode, so you'll be more familiar with Batman's moves and style when you first play.

Batman is a powerful juggernaut, so you'll take down thugs efficiently, however, he's also a bit slower than Catwoman. So counter-attack often to defeat some of the quicker enemies.

Playing the Challenge mode maps with Catwoman requires a bit more time to learn how her moves work effectively in that environment. And, while she has twice the speed of Batman, she does half the damage. So take advantage of her unique skills, such as her whip and caltrops. Keep jumping around to get a bit more breathing space and make use of the whip stun attack if you find yourself backed into a corner.

The art of fighting, without fighting

As the difficulty begins to increase, evading and counter attacking are essential, so make sure you master these techniques during the easier levels of the challenge. Batman: Arkham City is designed to make you look cool no matter who you play as, so if you're new to the series you'll still feel like a superhero while you're learning the ropes.

Think like the Bat

Don't be afraid to use gadgets in your attacks as Batman. In Arkham Asylum, if you used your gadgets in combat you would lose your combo. In Arkham City you can use gadgets to keep your combos going, so things like the Batclaw and batarangs are useful to help rack up a great score.

Batman's explosive gel is also very useful once you're comfortable with it. The gadget can either be sprayed on the ground or an enemy, and then detonated whenever you like, so make best use of it when you want to build a combo or if you're on the wrong end of a beating and need some space.

Not all criminals are superstitious and cowardly

When you get to the higher difficulty levels and there are lots of tricky baddies to take on, it's sometimes best to start off by concentrating on countering to reduce their numbers. There will be a lot of guys coming at you at once, so it's easy to lose track of an incoming attack which can put you on the back foot.

Whittle down their numbers with sneaky counter-attacks and takedowns, and when things become more manageable you can begin a brutal assault without fear of being blindsided.

A knuckle sandwich for table nine

Don't forget to make use of your Beatdown attack, which unleashes a flurry of punches and kicks on your hapless opponent and increases your combo count. There are some dangerous armoured enemies who need to be taken care of quickly and a Beatdown is the most efficient method to do this.

Panic is the enemy

Don't panic. Batman: Arkham City's combat is all about rhythm and flow, and while there are a lot of thugs attacking you at once there's always a way to counter them while fending off other approaching baddies.

Panicking will often result in missing out vital moves such as the double and triple takedowns, which also means you miss out on a massive combo bonus. So just like Batman, you have to stay calm no matter what.

Ready to show the criminals of Gotham the error of their ways? Buy Batman: Arkham City on PlayStation 3 now.