- "Imprisoned behind these walls, gang leaders are fighting a bloody war in the middle of our once great city. Every inmate from Arkham Asylum and Blackgate Prison has been relocated to this facility. How can this be safe for the people of Gotham?"
- ―Bruce Wayne[src]
The video game Batman: Arkham City took place entirely in the new incarnation of Arkham Asylum, Arkham City (known as North Gotham before the events of the game). A maximum security prison set in a walled-off district of Gotham City, Arkham City was located in Uptown Gotham with Amusement Mile, the Industrial District, Park Row, and the Bowery. After the Joker's takeover of the asylum which was thwarted by Batman, Warden Quincy Sharp took full credit for the Joker's defeat and was quickly elected as Mayor of Gotham.
Manipulated by Professor Hugo Strange into creating Arkham City, Sharp walled off and isolated a large Gotham district and converted it into the new form of Arkham Asylum. Sharp left Strange in charge as chief administrator with security that was handled by the militarized TYGER. Bruce Wayne openly protested against the city's creation, was swiftly apprehended by TYGER, and became an inmate. However, Bruce escaped the vengeful inmates and (with a Batpod that was full of his equipment that was dropped on top of Ace Chemicals by the Batwing) became Batman to investigate Strange's mysterious Protocol 10.
History
For Arkham City's appearance in Batman: Arkham Origns, see Gotham City (Batman: Arkham Origins)
The concept of Arkham City was established long before the Joker's takeover of the asylum, was conceived by Strange and his secret master, Ra's al Ghul, and expanded on by Warden Sharp. During the Joker's takeover, Batman may find a hidden room in Sharp's Office, which revealed a large blueprint map of Arkham City.
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Arkham Asylum was heavily damaged during the Joker's takeover, and many of its deranged inmates remained on the loose after his defeat, including Bane, Calendar Man, Scarecrow, Killer Croc, Mr. Freeze, and Two-Face. The asylum also suffered in losses among Arkham Staff. At least 113 personnel died during the Joker's takeover, 103 of which were security guards. Identified casualties included guard Thomas Armbruster and chief member of security Frank Boles. Aaron Cash, Louie Green, Eddie Burlow, William North, and Zach Franklin made up much of the surviving members of security. At least 10 medical staff also fell during the chaos, including Dr. Penelope Young and orderly Robert Stirling.
Quincy Sharp was able to launch a successful bid for the role of Mayor of Gotham following the disaster and made a proposal to the city government to rebuild Arkham not on the island but instead in the city itself. The proposal passed and Professor Hugo Strange was selected to administrate the new Arkham. Due to the damage to the island, it was decided that the city would sell the rights to Arkham Island to the highest bidder. The Private security company, TYGER, quickly purchased the island, and, soon after, was named as the primary contractors for security in Arkham City.
Quincy Sharp
After Sharp took credit for the liberation of the asylum, he was quickly elected as Mayor of Gotham and executed the construction of Arkham City. Numerous people were involved in the new Arkham's creation, but by the time that it was finished, most, if not all of those who were involved were double-crossed by Strange and imprisoned within the city walls to cover up his tracks, including innocent people who became known as "Political Prisoners". Sharp, who was paranoid to end crime in Gotham, labelled everyone and anyone who even had the slightest criminal record to be inmates of Arkham City and had them imprisoned without trial or the rite to objections.
Strange furthered that by imprisoning anyone who tried to investigate or speak out against Arkham City. Commissioner James Gordon, suspicious of the intentions of Arkham City's development, as well as Sharp's sidestepping his questions by ignoring him directly or using red tape, sent in a ten-man squad of undercover cops from the 13th precinct to investigate what really went on in Arkham City. Unfortunately, in an interview, Strange tipped the Penguin off to the undercover cops. The undercover cops weren't able to report back before their true status as cops was exposed and resulted in their capture by the Penguin's Gang.
Batman: Arkham City
Arkham Asylum was seen off the coast behind the old GCPD Building. When scanned, it answered the riddle: "Look out! Can you see where the madness began?"
Joker's Funland.
Bruce Wayne was among those who were unlawfully imprisoned in Arkham City, but he obtained the Batsuit to explore the city and discover the secret of Protocol 10. Batman was eventually poisoned with the Joker's Titan-infected blood, as well as leaking the already poisoned blood to Gotham City to various hospitals, when his attempt to locate the Joker and interrogate him about Protocol 10's nature backfired and resulted in his capture. In order to find a cure, Batman had to locate and free Mr. Freeze, who was held prisoner by the Penguin's Gang along with the formerly-undercover Precinct 13 cops, so he could help develop the cure. After he learned that it required a specific DNA to be bonded with a certain enzyme, Batman had to locate and eventually reunite with Ra's and Talia al Ghul to create a cure with help from Freeze.
Afterwards, Strange, who decided that Sharp had outlived his usefulness to his plans, had him stripped of his position of Mayor, incarcerated in Arkham City, and left him at the mercy of several inmates who wanted revenge against the ex-mayor for placing them in Arkham City in the first place. Batman saved Sharp and then interrogated him about his knowledge of Strange. After the cure was completed, however, Freeze attacked Batman under the belief that he was going to renege on his promise of locating Nora, whom the Joker had held hostage earlier to force Freeze in developing the cure for him. Batman confronted the Joker after he saved Nora at his headquarters, but before the fight could reach its ultimate conclusion, was pinned down by rubble from a concussive blast before he was saved by Catwoman.
Batman eventually confronted Strange in his base, Wonder Tower, after Strange initiated Protocol 10, that was revealed to be a mass bombing of Arkham City by TYGER to wipe out the criminals; the true goal of Ra's al Ghul. Ra's mortally wounded Strange after he had fulfilled his purpose, as well as his failure to defeat Batman, but Strange activated Protocol 11 which destroyed Wonder Tower in the event of his defeat. Batman and Ra's fell from the tower, but Ra's attempt to kill Batman failed and resulted in his own apparent death. Batman confronted the Joker who teamed up with Talia to obtain the cure from Batman, but the Joker killed Talia and revealed that he had worked with Clayface to shadow his moves. Batman defeated Clayface, and in his struggle with Joker, resulted in the cure's destruction, and the Joker's death shortly after. Batman exited Arkham Cty with Joker's body as Commissioner Gordon and the GCPD arrived outside. While the fate of Arkham City remained unknown, it was implied to have still been in operation after the Joker's death, although the prisoners were re-transferred back to Blackgate Prison (and presumably Arkham Asylum).
Evacuation and Shut Down
After the tragic and disastrous ramifications of Protocol 10 at the hands of Strange, the City Council finally realized the deception and chaos that was Arkham City and agreed that the entire site needed to be shut down as soon as possible. As a result, Sharp's martial law was overturned and Gordon and the GCPD were given back full jurisdiction in Gotham and were sent to arrest all of TYGER, transfer all of the inmates away from Arkham City, rescue all of the falsely imprisoned, and shut down the site once and for all.
Harley Quinn's Revenge
Immediately following the Joker's death, Gordon commanded the GCPD to evacuate Arkham City and transport all of the prisoners to Blackgate Prison, and all of the former inmates from Arkham Asylum to a psychiatric ward while the asylum was prepared. However, Harley and Joker's remaining gang attacked the officers and forced them to retreat, but the GCPD managed to knock out Quinn and took her to the ward. For the next two weeks, SWAT evacuated the mega-prison, but, Harley escaped, ambushed three cops, took them hostage, and took over the Industrial District. As that was one of the last areas that was needed to be evacuated, the GCPD were forced to keep the site under lockdown and eventually summoned Batman. After Quinn took various police officers hostage, Batman was lured into a trap by her and subsequently went missing for two days. Worried, Oracle sent Robin in to investigate and locate Batman before Quinn could put her true plans into effect.
After Robin went in, beat all of Harley's Henchmen, overpowered Quinn herself, and rescued Batman from her trap, Batman went off to stop Quinn from detonating bombs within the Shipyard while Robin rescued the cops. After Batman defused all three bombs, Quinn revealed one last explosive that would kill her, Batman, and Robin. Batman apprehended Quinn, was unable to stop the bomb from detonating, and was forced to make a hasty escape just as the building blew up.
Batman was able to get Quinn and himself to safety, but feared that Robin was caught in the explosion. Harley relished in Batman's anguish and moved to stab him in the heart with a knife to finish her revenge, only to be knocked out cold by one of Robin's Shurikens as the young hero revealed himself to be alive and well. Harley was once again arrested by Gordon while Batman left, still scarred from both Talia and Joker's deaths, but Robin assured Gordon that Batman would be fine while a wondering expression appeared on his face. With Harley's plans ruined, her gang was rounded up by the GCPD and Arkham City was finally and officially shut down for good several days later after all of the inmate riots were neutralized.
Batman: Arkham Knight
Arkham City could be seen along with Arkham Asylum, Seagate Amusement Park, Gotham Pioneers Bridge, the Royal Hotel, and South Gotham.
Environment
Arkham City was actually a large part of Gotham City, that was turned into a lawless warzone for the criminals of Arkham Asylum and Blackgate to run free and do whatever they pleased as long as they did not try to escape. The city was surrounded by high, impenetrable walls which could only be accessed via the various high security doors around the facility and presumably via the helicopters that patrolled the city around the clock. TYGER patrolled the walls, doors, and skies via the helicopters, and kept all of the possessions of the inmates in The TYGER Confiscated Goods Vault in the western part of the city which Catwoman tried to break into at one point.
The atmosphere in the city was hell, with most inmates who were violent and were involved in the mass gang war between Batman's greatest enemies. The Political Prisoners hid and scurried around the backstreets of the city, and a small community was established in the middle of the city under a bridge. Despite the lack of general rules, the inmates were under the thumb of Strange who had propaganda posters everywhere, and often issued commands and new authoritarian rules via the citywide intercoms that originated from Wonder Tower, the tallest building in the city which the inmates could not access.
Numerous buildings in Gotham were part of Arkham City regardless of their previous importance in the city. Among them were the First National Bank of Gotham City, the old Gotham Police Department Building, Ace Chemicals, the Solomon Wayne Courthouse, Gotham Cathedral, and a large section of Gotham's docks and the Industrial District. Most of those buildings played a role in the game's story and side missions.
Most of Batman's notable villains made their marks in the city, formed territories in their gang war against one another, and had numerous henchmen who wore masks or clothes that related to their leader(s):
The Joker and Harley took the abandoned Steel Mill in the south-east corner of Arkham, and converted it into the Joker's Funhouse. The Joker developed a violent roller coaster ride for new recruits to try out on, and also built a Ferris Wheel on the site too.
Two-Face, who tried to grow in power, took the Solomon Wayne Courthouse as his base, after he stole it from Calendar Man and imprisoned him in a cell below the courtroom. In the style of Two-Face, half of the courthouse, inside and out was damaged and scarred like his face.
The Penguin, who was the third member of the major gang war, commanded his henchmen from the Museum as well as The Iceberg Lounge. Penguin had his own makeshift museum that displayed numerous objects that were related to his enemies included the captured Mr. Freeze. He also had a giant shark named Tiny, who lived in the flooded atrium of the Museum, and Solomon Grundy, who was beneath the Iceberg Lounge.
The Riddler did not participate in the gang war, and had no real control over the city, had built several death traps to challenge Batman after he kidnapped Aaron Cash and the medical team from the Church. The Riddler also had numerous informants that were hidden around the city, and who were identified by Batman as having a green tint to their clothes.
Among the other inmates were Mr. Freeze, who operated in the old GCPD Building, Poison Ivy, who operated from Gotham Central Park and occupied a hotel in the north-east part of the city with her hypnotized henchmen, Victor Zsasz, who hid out in a building near Joker's Funland and kidnapped victims to kill them, Killer Croc, who lurked in the city's sewers and the abandoned subway tunnels, Bane, who appeared in the Krank Co. Toys Factory, the Mad Hatter and his small, mind-controlled group who lived in a tea shop, and Hush's Apartment that was found near the courthouse.
Sectors
Arkham City Institution map
Park Row
- Church/Medical Center
- Ace Chemicals Building
- Solomon Wayne Courthouse
- The Black Canary
- Finnigan's Bar
- Liquors
- Gotham Hardware
- Glass, Mirrors, Shades
- The Stacked Deck
- Hotel Aventine
- Vote Harvey Dent Campaign Office
- Live Nudes
- Baudelaire
- TYGER Confiscated Goods Vault
- Mad Hatter's Lair
- Monarch Theatre
- Crime Alley
- Selina Kyle's Apartment
Amusement Mile
- Gotham Casino
- Gotham City Olympus Nightclub
- GCR
- GCPD Building
- Prawn Shack
- Gotham Sea Pier
- Scallop Bar
- W. White - Gotham Fish Monger's
- Krank Co. Toys
- Dini Towers
- Leslie Thompkins Medical Clinic
- Poison Ivy's Lair
Industrial District
- Sionis Industries
- Steel Mill/Joker's Funland
- Bill's Hotdogs
- North Gotham Docks
- Tricorner Naval
- Zsasz's Hideout
- Storage Warehouse 5B
- Otis Flannegan Pest Control
Subway
- Subway Station
- Subway Tunnels
- Subway Terminal
- Subway Maintenance Access
The Bowery
- Bank of Gotham
- Live Nudes
- Monorail
- Sal Maroni's Italian Restaurant
- The Cyrus Pinkney Institute for Natural History (Museum)
- Iceberg Lounge
- Shreck's Department Store
- Jezebel Center
- Gotham Casino
- Carnival Toys & Games
- Gotham Perfumes
- Glass, Mirrors, Shades
- Italian Cuisine
- Subway Station
- Magic and Props
Steel Mill
- Waste Exchange
- Loading Bay
- Assembly Line
- Smelting Chamber
- Cooling Tunnel - B
- Cooling Tunnel - D
- Freight Elevator
- Boiler Room
Museum
- Trophy Room
- Gladiator Pit
- Torture Chamber
- War Room
- Armory
- Iceberg Lounge
Wonder City
- Collapsed Streets
- Wonder Avenue
- Grimberg's Occult Store
- Muftic Barbershop
- Underhill & Davies Books
- The Tea Hut
- Wonder City Jewelry
- Billingham Butchers
- Adamson & Stjernberg Drugstore
- Furniture Store
- Fruit & Vegetables
- Cloney Cobblers
- Wonder City Textile Manufacturing
- Crazy Clown Toys & Dolls
- Royal Flush Tobacco
- Wine & Spirit
- Secret Corridor
- Chamber of the Demon
- Wonder Tower
- Tower Foundations
- Observation Deck
- Security Control Center
Staff
- Professor Hugo Strange (Deceased)
- Dr. Thomas Elliot (Formerly)
- Eddie Burlow
- Aaron Cash
- Adam Hamasaki
- William North
- TYGER Guards
Inmates
- Bruce Wayne
- Two-Face
- Two-Face's Henchmen
- The Penguin
- The Penguin's Henchmen
- The Joker
- The Joker's Henchmen
- Harley Quinn
- Catwoman
- Mr. Freeze
- Poison Ivy
- The Riddler
- Riddler Informants
- Calendar Man
- Killer Croc
- Bane
- Victor Zsasz
- Black Mask
- Mad Hatter
- Deadshot - Unofficially
- Clayface - Unofficially
- Political Prisoners
- Jack Ryder
- Undercover GCPD Officers
- Quincy Sharp