A few weeks back, Warner Bros. Interactive and Rocksteady revealed that Robin would be a playable character in the upcoming Batman: Arkham City. Well, at least in the game’s challenge maps, and as part of Best Buy exclusive pre-order downloadable content.
Now, Rocksteady senior concept art Kan Muftic has opened up a bit about the design decisions that shaped the look of the Dark Knight’s young sidekick.
“We wanted to create a Robin that players would identify as a contemporary character and move away from the traditional ‘Boy Wonder’ image that most people know,” he writes.
Rocksteady saw the character as a troubled youth, introverted at times, but dangerously violent when provoked. The shaved head was apparently inspired by cage fighting, an activity Rocksteady thought Robin might do in his spare time. (I mean, who doesn’t these days?)
While these changes were made to help fit the character into Rocksteady’s vision of the Batman universe, he’s still distinctly the Robin we all know. The trademarks remain, including the classic red and yellow, as well as his traditional cape and mask.
While available initially as pre-order content for Best Buy only, Warner Bros. has confirmed with Shacknews that Robin will be made available as paid content some time after release. Batman: Arkham City is out October 18.
