14 DAY TRIAL // Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group has announced that it has taken over developer Rocksteady Studios, the creators of the Arkham Asylum Batman-themed videogame. It was very well received when it was released in 2009, managing to capture the essence of the comic book character while delivering a mix of combat and adventure that made it one of the highest reviewed titles of the year. Warner Bros. now has a majority stake in the developer and the move is part of a strategy to bring high-profile game development in house.
Jamie Walker, who is the studio director at Rocksteady Studios, stated that “We are proud to strengthen our association with WBIE, a world class publisher that we have enjoyed working with since we began developing Batman: Arkham Asylum.”
Martin Tremblay, the president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, said that “With the successful release of Batman: Arkham Asylum, a franchise that is a key focus for Warner Bros., Rocksteady has proven that they have the expertise to create hit games with mass appeal. We are currently working with Rocksteady on the sequel to Batman: Arkham Asylum and look forward to bringing the continuation of the franchise to fans worldwide.”
At the moment, Rocksteady is working on Batman: Arkham Asylum 2, a game shown only in a short trailer at the VGA ceremony. It seems that again players will need to round up the various inmates of the institution but somewhere in the middle of Gotham City.
Warner Bros. began its acquisition strategy with TT Games, which is best known for creating the LEGO-based titles involving well known characters like Batman, Indiana Jones or the cast of Star Wars. The entertainment company also picked up Snowblind Studios, now tasked with developing a new videogame based on The Lord of the Rings. The most recent acquisition is Midway Games that brought with it the Mortal Kombat franchise and two studios.