Batman: Arkham Origins will feature asymmetrical competitive multiplayer that has players playing as thugs, villains, and heroes.
This morning the curtain was pulled back on the first competitive multiplayer mode for Batman: Arkham Origins and it will involve playing as both heroes and villains.
While WB Montreal is handling development for the game’s single-player campaign, the competitive multiplayer is actually being developed by Splash Damage which some fans may recognize as the studio that teamed up with Bethesda for the promising yet ill-fated shooter Brink. Splash Damage has promised that the competitive multiplayer mode, dubbed “Invisible Predator Online”, will have its own unique feel while also retaining the core idea that it is still very much a Batman game.
Invisible Predator Online will involve three different teams: a trio of the Joker’s elite thugs, a trio of Bane’s elite thugs, and two extra players who get to take up the mantle of Batman and Robin (judging by the screenshots and trailer, it looks to be Dick Grayson before he became Nightwing as opposed to Tim Drake from Arkham City). The two teams of thugs battle it out in typical third-person shooter fashion with the added twist of having to keep an eye out for Batman and Robin skulking around in the shadows above.
Another unique twist kicks in about halfway through a match when both Bane and Joker show up and the first player to reach their given boss’s spawn point will get to play as their team’s boss and wreak havoc as either close-range juggernaut Bane or long-range trickster Joker. The goal for the thug teams is to deplete the respawn resources of the other team while the Batman and Robin players must sneak around and take down the thug players in creative ways to fill up their “intimidation” meter. In addition to firearms and grenade the thugs will also have a limited-use sort of detective vision much like Batman and Robin which will help even the odds between the thugs and heroes.
Thugs will also be cosmetically customizable with different hair, facial, and clothing options. Currently Joker and Bane will be the only playable villains but it’s safe to assume that other villains are in the works, especially since newcomer villain Deathstroke has already been confirmed as a playable challenge map character. Batgirl was ruled out as a potential alternate pairing with the Dark Knight since Splash Damage wanted to retain the classic “dynamic duo” feeling of having Batman and Robin together but, again, fans shouldn’t rule out Batgirl possibly showing up through post-launch DLC.
Invisible Predator Online will be fully playable when Batman: Arkham Origins launches later this year on October 25 for PS3, Xbox 360, PC, and Wii U though, sadly, Invisible Predator Online will not be available on the Wii U version for undisclosed reasons.
