Batman: Arkham City - Hands-on with Harley Quinn's Revenge DLC

Released more than six months ago, Batman: Arkham City still burns bright in our memories. GR's unofficial runner-up for Game of the Year in 2011, the adventure redefined our expectations for the hero and for games in general. It did virtually everything flawlessly, packed with incredible adventure all the way to the unforgettable climax. In a matter of days developer Rocksteady will release the first story-centric DLC for B:AC, a new epilogue featuring a plot hatched by fan-favorite Harley Quinn. Follow along as we take you through the first half hour...

SPOILER WARNING!!!! Obviously this DLC takes place after the end of Arkham City, so we'll be talking about that game's shocking climax. If you've yet to finish it, you may want to hold off on this preview. You've been warned...

The ending of Arkham City was so big, it seems only natural that you'd need an entire downloadable episode to try and sort it out. After the death of the Joker, Harley is in mourning for her dear departed Mr. J. Though we know that Joker died by his own violent means, it's easy to see that she'd blame Batman for it and seek revenge. Quinn and her crew are planning something in the old steel mill and after investigating it, Batman has been missing for two days.

With Batman missing for two days, Robin has arrived in Arkham City looking for answers. During the intro we learn that the makeshift prison has been evacuated save for the steel mill Harley is occupying, which is exactly where Tim Drake will go looking for Bruce. No longer restrained simple challenge maps, Robin's special abilities can finally be put to good use as he explores the area. For example...

As we're exploring with Tim and creeping through the derelict building, we see our first obstacle when having to cross some open water. Instead of Bruce's approach to grapple lines, Robin pulls out his own grapple gun, shoots it at a henchmen, then pulls himself across, kicking the guy at the same time. We soon saw another of Tim's unique items put to use...

The devs also found a few practical uses for Robin's bullet shield. It's not invincible, but it did give us enough cover to make our way past a few of those annoying turret guns, as well as protecting us from a couple open steam pipes. These moments differentiated Robin from Bats in more ways than superficial ones. Though pretty similar in gameplay, little things like those moves are what makes playing as Robin a real treat in this DLC.

Once our first Robin segment is done we flashback to when Batman first arrived on the scene two days prior to meet with Harley Quinn. As we're looking around uring his initial entry, things are more macabre than ever. Tributes honoring Quinn's beloved Joker are all over the place, including a particularly creepy black velvet painting covered in Harley's kisses. We also spotted an even weirder sight that might address a lingering question from AC: we see Harley has built a crib, though in place of the baby is the Ventriloquist's puppet Scarface painted up as the Joker.

After exploring the steel mill in flashback ever so briefly as Batman, our demo of the DLC ended far too soon for our liking. We wonder just what Harley's plot is and how many dangling threads will be addressed. We're left with so many questions, such as...

Has Harley grief pushed her from likable, lovesick companion to cop-killing arch villain? Did she really capture Batman, and what's her plan if Robin can't save him first? Is she actually pregnant and is Joker the father? How's Batman dealing with his own grief after the death of Talia al Ghul? Is the Joker truly dead and if he is, where did the police take his body? And most important, will this DLC end with any new clues for the next game in the series?

We hope we'll have at least a few of those answers when the DLC is downloadable to PS3/360 May 29 for $9.99/800 MS points. It can also be found on the Arkham City Game of the Year edition out the same day.