In what might be the most exciting piece of news to emerge since the announcement of "Batman: Arkham City" -- the hotly anticipated sequel to last year's superlative "Batman: Arkham Asylum" -- game director Sefton Hill has revealed that "interrogation" will be a new skill added to the Dark Knight's "Detective Mode." Just like in the comics, Batman will be able to track down likely informants from a criminal database, identify them in a scuffle, and then "interrogate" them for clues.Hill told PSM3 magazine, "The Riddler continues to taunt the Dark Knight with mind-bending puzzles and exploration challenges, but the location of his biggest secrets are known only to him and people he's told. Rather than unlocking their locations using maps, Batman will be able to scan a gang of thugs to find a potential informant."

Presumably, if this is indeed faithful to the Batman comic books, "interrogation mode" is a more polite way of saying "break-some-scumbag's-arm mode," since Batman has never been shy about hanging people upside down from rooftops and demanding information while threatening to let them fall to their deaths. I can only hope that players will have the opportunity to reenact this classic scene:

Part of the challenge involved in dealing with informants will be sparing the one goon who has the information you need, while still taking down all the other combatants in his crew. Said Hill:

"This is the guy you need to question, but first you'll have to take down all the other gang members while sparing the one you want. That can be tough when Batman's in a seamless FreeFlow combo chain."

The "Batman Begins" video game from 2005 included an "interrogation" mechanic of its own, but based on Hill's description of the "Arkham City" gameplay, it seems like there'll be a gaming leap in how Batman obtains information from snitches.

[Via Joystiq]

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