New Batman: Arkham Asylum 2 domains offer "earth-shattering" clues

A catastrophic earthquake, martial law, and other hints towards No Man's Land

Words: GamesRadarChrisAntista on July 13, 2010

Above: "Haha, I see you've recieved my press release!"

Looks like Arkham Asylum 2 has gone and hired none other than The Joker himself as their head of marketing. How else can you explain the boatload of cryptic URLs recently registered by Warner Brothers? Well… let’s try!

We’ve had plenty of fun deciphering the secrets trickled out from what little has been released pertaining to the sequel to Batman’s greatest game of all time, but WB Interactive made at least one thing clear: Arkham Has Moved (Dot Com!) However, those newly registered domains offer even more succulent glimpses as to the “Why?” And more importantly, lend a little more credence to the prevailing theory that Arkham Asylum 2 will follow the storyline of 1999’s No Man’s Land.

The teaser clearly showed roving gangs of Arkham escapees having their way in the streets of Gotham, presumably due to the havoc caused in the institution by Bats and Joker. Unless those are the events leading up to the game, the URL extensions of “Broken Ground” and “Ashes of Gotham” point to Batman: Cataclym, the lead up to No Man’s Land, which saw Gotham devastated by an earthquake that basically reduced the city into a third world country, or more importantly, the New Arkham Asylum (also hinted at with its own domain. “New Arkham.”)

“Close Arkham City,” “State of Villainy,” and “Siege of Gotham” would also seem reflect that storyline, with Batman and the police tasked with corralling and combating the Arkham refugees taking over the city, causing Mayor Quincy Sharp to declare martial law (ALSO hinted at with its own URL, “Stop Mayor Sharp.”)

Above: What do you see in Arkham Asylum 2's teaser trailer?

Whatever the case, it looks like we’re going to see history’s greatest detective in a violent, near post-apocalyptic setting. Perhaps this is just something to throw us off the scent of what Gotham truly has in store, but hey, those domains ain’t free! And WB sure purchased a helluva lot of names specifically relating to the No Man's Land story, so it’d be a fairly costly act of deception. The only URL we can’t tie back to No Man’s Land remains the most mysterious...

http://whois.domaintools.com/peopleforgotham.com

Hmmm…. People Forgot HAM! It makes all the sense in the world now!

Above: Never foget, people...

Jul 13, 2010

What we already know about Batman: Arkham Asylum 2
Villains, setting and story revealed by the new trailer

Predictions for gaming's biggest sequels
What will happen in GTA V, Halo: Reach, Arkham Asylum 2, Modern Warfare 3 and more? You're about to find out

Platforms:

Xbox 360, PC, PS3

Topics:

Comic-Con

30 comments

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DarkSmokePuncher - July 14, 2010 11:57 p.m.

I hope it takes some plot cues from The Killing Joke storyline.
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Wolverine08 - July 14, 2010 4:14 p.m.

I thought up that title 'new arkham' as a possibility not long ago. But arkham city sounds like the most likely. If however you watch the trailer, it shows that not ALL of Gotham is in fact in the boundary. So maybe the city, like in No man's land, is divided into parts. So the villains will take ownage of the other parts, if ownage is the right word
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Cyberninja - July 14, 2010 12:26 p.m.

maybe the last one is because the old city was lost and new one took over i dont know i was only 4 when no mans land was made.
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TruckThunders - July 14, 2010 12:14 p.m.

I really enjoyed the "No Man's Land" story arc. I'm looking forward to how the new Batman game turns out. Great article, Mr. Antista.
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Joshin69 - July 14, 2010 9:39 a.m.

I would rather it was based on knightfall myself but then that wouldnt really use the joker to hes best.
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vogler1604 - July 14, 2010 9:16 a.m.

Toy stoy 3 was PUKING AWESOME
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JayBeat - July 14, 2010 8:58 a.m.

@tyler7196 You heard that months ago? Even though it was registered on 2010-07-08? Please show me how to time travel.
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JayBeat - July 14, 2010 8:55 a.m.

I hope this doesn't lose the impact of the original, ie. BioShock 2. Either way, like BioShock 2, this is gonna be fantastic.
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Xobi - July 14, 2010 7:51 a.m.

HAHAHAHAHA YOU GUYS CRACK ME UP
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elpurplemonkey - July 14, 2010 6:11 a.m.

I enjoyed the first caption way too much.
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tyler7196 - July 14, 2010 3:18 a.m.

once again games radar ive heard this months ago its not really hard to spot that its going to be in no mans land
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EnragedTortoise1 - July 14, 2010 2:10 a.m.

People For Gotham.. a resistance group, perhaps? THE PLAWT THICKENS!
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JohnnyMaverik - July 14, 2010 1:28 a.m.

Trailer looks epic.
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RebornKusabi - July 14, 2010 12:21 a.m.

Double post, sorry OH and this is all in Batman: Arkham Asylum. Other than that, great article!
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RebornKusabi - July 14, 2010 12:19 a.m.

The funny thing is, this was all found out awhile ago even without having these new urls. Here's a video showing what I mean (ignore the terrible music, just mute your computer). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxgAn4DkG-k&feature=related It shows a secret room, that doesn't appear on maps or "Batman-vision", and it shows that the Warden was very busy during his private time... specifically, the room has a map of the city and landmarks of Gotham like a big hotel. Oh and if you want to do this for yourself, and you own the game, just pause after the video-maker blows up the wall and go do it yourself from that point on.
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Mechamorbo - July 14, 2010 12:02 a.m.

I bring my ham with me everywhere. I've ruined a lot of pants though.
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Metroidhunter32 - July 13, 2010 10:29 p.m.

I have no idea what people for gotham means. But I'm pretty sure that's how it was meant to be split up.
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SillyPigeon - July 13, 2010 10:27 p.m.

never forget
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batman5273 - July 13, 2010 10:27 p.m.

Really excited about this game! Can't wait to see more details from the studio.
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CH3BURASHKA - July 13, 2010 10:17 p.m.

Lol, that was also my initial reaction to the PeopleForgotHam URL. Never forget... Also, typo alert! "Cataclym" =/= "Cataclysm".
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