Batman: Return to Arkham has been delayed via an official statement on Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment’s forums. The remastered collection of Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City was just recently announced with a July 26 release date.
“After reviewing the progress of the project, the team at WB Games has decided to delay the release of Batman: Return to Arkham to give the team at Virtuous Games additional time to deliver a polished Batman Arkham game experience,” said WB’s Steve Grayson in a forum post. “We do not yet have a release date yet and will be sure to communicate that once we are sure the game will be ready. We know this is disappointing news, but we feel the extra time will allow the team to create the best gaming experience for our fans.”
Game delays happen all the time. Just recently No Man’s Sky was delayed from June to August.
But this one is particularly eye-brow raising for several reasons. The fact that it was posted on the forums rather than an actual press release is jarring. Still no word from WB Games or the Batman Arkham social media sites either. To go from launching the game in a month to no new release date is also surprising. With no release date many gaming sites are reporting that Batman: Return to Arkham has technically been delayed indefinitely.
The biggest bit of news is one that isn’t widely reported. Graphics comparisons between the original games and the remaster have been used in promotional videos (above), and many fans have rejected the change in art style and lighting. The remastered versions appear to over-saturate and lose much of the moody shading of the originals.
The tiny forum post didn’t reveal any specific reason for the delay. The Batman Arkham series, while critically lauded and beloved, have had its share of technical bugs and glitches. It’s very possible the delay is simply to polish the game. It will be interesting to see if the poor response to the new look has influenced their decision.
