E3 2012: Batman: Arkham City armours up for the Wii U

Developed by WB Games Montréal (with assistance from original developer Rocksteady), Batman: Arkham City Armoured Edition has been revealed at Nintendo’s conference by none other than Warner Brothers themselves.

Offering extras not found in the original game, Arkham City: Armoured Edition will apparently contain all of the downloadable content available for the original game, as well as a new combat mechanic called the BAT mode. Batman and Catwoman’s armoured suits (also exclusive to this version) collect kinect energy from enemies, allowing activation of this mode. When in this mode, Batman and Catwoman become stronger and faster, and of course gain access to new skills.

While we didn’t get a lot of details, we did see a remote control batarang controlled by the Wii U Gamepad’s gyroscopic sensor, as well as the ability to lay down explosive gel and detonate them in any order and at any time (a feature that was missing from the original versions).

In addition to this, the Wii U Gamepad is also used to provide access to Batman’s Batcomputer throughout the game in a manner not seen in previous iterations. Players will be able to select objectives, choose gadgets, analyse and examine forensic evidence without having to leave the gameplay if they wish. And thankfully, while we didn’t see it at the conference, WB Games assures us that every gadget has been reworked to utilise the unique features of the Wii U Gamepad.

Batman: Arkham City – Armoured Edition does not have a set release date yet, but we have been hearing it will be out sometime before the end of 2012 which is also the time we believe the Wii U will be launching. It has not been confirmed yet whether it will be a launch title or not, but in the mean time watch the trailer below.

How do you feel about Armoured Edition? Is it enough of an upgrade to re-purchase this game if you already have played it? Or is it just a mish mash of gimmicky features? Let us know in the comments.