Batman: Arkham Origins developer Warner Bros. Games Montreal had a tough road in developing a follow-up to Rocksteady Studios' two previous Arkham titles, both internally and externally, said senior producer Ben Mattes in an interview with Eurogamer.
"Resistance and reluctance exists at every level," said Mattes. "There were fans who said: 'They're not Rocksteady, they can't make an Arkham game.' And there were concerns within the organization that we weren't going to be able to deliver the special sauce of a Rocksteady game."
That internal pressure of living up to Rocksteady's pedigree was a major force in the development of Arkham Origins, according to Mattes.
"You don't want to be the guys who messed up and ran into the ground one of the absolute top-rated franchises of all time. You don't want that at the top of your CV," he said. "So I think there was an extra desire to create something really great as we were fully aware of the opportunity that we had."
Mattes estimated a 60/40 split between excitement and hesitation, or perhaps "outright dismay," among fans about Arkham Origins upon the game's unveiling this past April. But he believes that WB Games Montreal has won over the skeptics with everything the studio has shown of Arkham Origins since then. And a modest dose of skepticism is healthy, anyway.
"I think everyone ought to have that attitude," said Mattes. "If we'd come in saying, 'Rock-who? Eff those guys man, we'll show you how it's done,' we wouldn't have gotten here."
Batman: Arkham Origins launches tomorrow on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows PC and Wii U. For more, check out our interview with creative director Eric Holmes on how Batman is defining his persona in Arkham Origins.