Batman: Assault on Arkham pays a visit to Gotham City as imagined by Rocksteady Studios in a new animated feature founded on the building blocks of WB Games’ Arkham series. In addition to borrowing the setting, Assault on Arkham also features voice contributions from several voice actors involved with the video games (via IMDB), including Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman in Arkham Asylum/City, Injustice: Gods Among Us, and Batman: The Animated Series; Troy Baker, the voice of the Joker in Arkham Origins and Injustice; C.C.H. Pounder, who voiced Amanda Waller in Arkham Origins and Arkham Origins – Blackgate; and Martin Jarvis, who voiced Alfred Pennyworth in Arkham City/Origins.
The animated features division of DC Comics has big plans for establishing a continuity across multiple releases – much like we’ve seen from Marvel Studios’ phased, big-budget blockbuster releases – though Assault on Arkham falls outside of that. As DC producer James Tucker tells Comic Book Resources, the current plan – which may change – is to deliver three animated features per year: two in the same continuity as the recently released Justice League: War and one outside that continuity. Assault on Arkham is the third one, the outsider.
This doesn’t mean that we won’t see more Arkham spinoffs outside of games, but it seems like the plan with the off-continuity releases is to tell stories in fan-favorite settings. Tucker specifically points to Red Son, a Superman miniseries in which the Kryptonian crash lands in the Soviet Ukraine instead of rural Kansas, and Gotham By Gaslight, which sees the Dark Knight pursuing Jack the Ripper.
Take an early peek at Assault on Arkham in the trailer below. The direct-to-video feature should be out on Blu-ray and for download later this year.
