WMG / Batman: Arkham Origins

Dick Grayson as Robin will be introduced, with his Origin Story taking place as a (DLC) sidestory

• While Batman's second year is far too early for Jason Todd, as speculated below, it's not inconceivable to move up the first Robin's inception to fairly early in Batman's career. A corollary to this would be that, as per the Schumaker films, Dick would be introduced as an older teenager and already fairly tough, if not a trained fighter. Dick is generally shown to be more athletically gifted, if not physically stronger, than Bruce, so in his late teens he would be a potential asset. The plot will to some extent be about Batman opening up to the idea of allies. It'll be like the Catwoman storyline, to some extent: Dick going through hell for Batman in a makeshift disguise via his circus costume and earn Batman's trust by saving his butt; the terrible 8-on-1 odds of the plot will require Batman to take any chance at evening the odds. This will also act as a contrast for him completely closing down at the end of Arkham City.
  • That actually makes a lot of sense - in the New 52, Dick Grayson makes his first appearance as Robin at 15 or 16, when he plays the role of Big Damn Hero in the middle of a fight against Lady Shiva. Whilst Word of God has stated that Robin won't appear in the game, that doesn't mean a pre-Robin Dick Grayson won't turn up to help Batman, using his Flying Graysons leotard as part of a makeshift costume.
    • Jossed. Dick Grayson doesn't appear in the story mode.
    • Barbara (Batgirl) Gordon does, however.

Arkham Origins will throw in elements from Batman: Year One as well as The Killing Joke.

• Assuming that Batman already has a working relationship with Barbara Gordon, it could be that we'll see her get crippled by The Joker. Not only would this be a good Killing Joke reference, it would also establish Joker as a serious threat, not just another freak.
  • I suppose it's not impossible considering that this is a completely different canon and new rules apply, but that would put a lot of story emphasis on Joker when he's already taken over the plots of the other two games. Besides which, as he's just starting out, I doubt Batman even knows Jim yet, let alone his daughter. She'll probably just get a cameo and maybe some Harsher in Hindsight jokes about crimefighting or something.
  • Yeah, the cameo and bitter humour thing is more likely. If they're going to deal with The Killing Joke in game at all, that's maybe...three games down the line. (You know if they're going to go to anywhere even coming CLOSE to an M rated place, it's probably going to have to be Rocksteady attached to push that boundary and Rocksteady is possibly doing that "Batman meets the Justice League" thing right now.)
  • Given that it's Batman and Joker's first post-chemical bath encounter, it might also take influence from "Batman: The Man Who Laughs".
  • Confirmed. Joker's flashback suggest that his TKJ origin is the canon one and Branden and Loeb from Year One are in the game so that's the Year One influence.

Commisioner Loeb and/or Detective Flass will appear as antagonists.

Since Commissioner Gordon is still Captain Gordon and it was stated there will be Dirty Cops...

• The SWAT team leader from "Year 1" has been confirmed as a character out for Batman's blood, so they'll likely be opponents at some point.
  • Loeb has been confirmed to play a role in the game, due to the fact that he's murdered fairly early on, leaving behind a power vacuum in the GCPD. Flass is less likely to appear, with the majority of his role in Batman's early days taken over by an Expy named Brandon.
  • Brandon's not an expy - he's head of SWAT and was present in Year One and its sequels.
  • Flass is mentioned in one of Enigma's extortion tapes, but does not appear.

There will be infighting among the villains gunning for Batman's bounty.

Seriously. This set-up seems like a prime set-up for some Evil vs. Evil action.

• Confirmed. At least partially. In the cinematic trailer, Deadshot interrupts Deathstroke's fight with Batman, aiming to claim the kill on Batman for himself.
• Tossed. The assassins do not interact with each other at all in the game proper.

The true villain

Current promotional art shows the involvement of Black Mask and Penguin, but come on. We know they aren't going to be the main focus of the game. A team of elite assassins isn't really Joker's style, either, even if the game seems unlikely to resist a cameo. So who will it be?

• Ra's al-Ghul, setting up his history with Batman in Arkham City.
• Scarecrow, taking advantage of his massive Arkhamverse fanbase, even if it makes little sense
• Bane, bringing a small army of other villains to soften Batman up, Knightfall style.
• The Riddler, continuing the Arkham trend of making him edgier.
• Holiday, as elaborated on in the first WMG. It would be an interesting development.
• Two Face, whose Start of Darkness will be shown properly over the course of the game.
• Dr. Simon Hurt and the Black Glove.
• The Joker. Doesn't he always steal the show?
  • The Joker DOES steal the show by masquerading as Black Mask, sending out the hit on Batman.

It was pretty clearly stated that the assassins were lured by Black Mask's bounty on Batman's head, actually.

• You mean like how it was clearly stated that Hugo Strange was behind Arkham City?
• Which he was. Ra's al Ghul was simply paying the bills and waiting to see how it would turn out.
  • Sure, fine. But less-famous villain Hugo Strange isn't the main plot focus (that's Ra's) nor is he the final boss fight (that's Joker/Clayface). So, it's not illogical to assume that someone with a little more credibility than poor Black Mask might similarly upstage him at the end.

The Joker will have a brief appearance... being created.

All we need is a brief appearance by the Red Hood in Ace Chemicals, maybe as part of an early-game tutorial where Batman stops a crime in progress and culminating in him fighting Red Hood. After you finish him, there's a cutscene of him going in the vat for whatever reason, Batman leaves or gets called off, then we pan down to the vat to see a chalk-white hand thrust out of the chemicals. And if Mark Hamill really is done with Joker, they can just have someone else voice Red Hood with the explanation that the chemicals changed Joker's voice too.

• Or his voice would just be muffled and unrecognizable within the costume
• Actually, I think it would work better if the Red Hood was the last assassin to be fought in the entire game.

Seems to be Tossed. Joker will appear as Joker.◊

• Doesn't mean he couldn't appear as the Red Hood at the beginning and appear as the Joker later.
  • Depends on how much time the game takes place over. If it's one day like the other two, Joker would probably still be in the middle of his breakdown.
  • Joker's Red Hood appearance is whom in a playable flashback, but is still in the past of the game proper.

Deathstroke will be dealt with only with help from Robin I, against whom Deathstroke will hold a grudge

He is best known as a Titans villain, after all.

• Highly unlikely. If Batman himself is still new at crimefighting at this point and still on a learning curve, then it's certainly far too early for him to take on a Robin yet.
  • This probably won't be the case in the Arkhamverse, but it's worth noting that Robin's debut was only 11 months after Batman's. Word of God said this was, what, year two?
    • Crime fighting Year Two is far different than Publication Year Two and the first story sort of implied he might well have been working for a year or two already at that point.
    • I sorta meant it as a meta-Mythology Gag. Plus, it's why I said "probably won't be the case".
    • Tossed. Robin isn't in story mode.

The Creeper will appear as a playable or supporting character.

While it is made clear that Creeper exists in the Arkhamverse, it is never stated exactly when he came to be, so he could have existed before Bruce became Batman.

• Tossed. Jack Ryder is in the game during a credits dialogue scene but his Creeper persona isn't in this.

Mr. Freeze will be one of the side missions.

Either it'll be his first encounter with Batman or Batman will have to solve a crime scene that will be revealed to have been the scene of his accident.

• Considering the heavier emphasis on Batman as a detective in this game, the crime scene scenario seems more likely.
  • How about you investigate the crime scene and then fight him later? Besides, it wouldn't be unreasonable to have the snowstorm be supervillain-enhanced.
    • For added drama, maybe a blizzard will hit right when Batman is in the middle of an important quest (or a sidequest that serves as a bait-and-switch), and he'll have to hunt down Freeze to make it stop.
    • Freeze will be a hopeless boss fight. In Arkham City Oracle implies that Batman had got his but kicked by Freeze previously.
    • It's also mentioned that he got his butt kicked ''trying to take Freeze head-on." Now what kind of strategy would a headstrong, armored up, and, say, hypothetically, 15-years less experienced Batman favor?
    • That is awesome and needs to happen.
    • Tossed
    • Actually, it looks like Freeze is going to be the main focus of the upcoming story DLC. So not that far off.

The Joker will make his first public appearance during this game.

He's confirmed for the game, and what better way to unveil Batman's new reign as the Dark Knight than to have his greatest nemesis herald the rise of the freaks to the top of the underworld food chain?

• Confirmed. He'd been present, but almost totally unknown, earlier, but this is the moment when he first makes his mark on Gotham.

Selina Kyle will be encountered, but as the Cat.

Batman's still new in this game, so why don't we see the beginning of his and Catwoman's UST?

• Tossed. She appears in the Arkham Origins: Blackgate handheld game.

Once he proves himself a hero, Batman will be invited to join the Justice League

They are still going to be in it, right?

• I don't quite think so. I think that's going to be Rocksteady's next release, next year.
  • Actually, in one interview, they said Deathstroke would open up a larger DCU.
    • That doesn't mean said DCU will be in this particular game. It's likely that Arkham Origins is meant to set up backstory canon for the Arkhamverse, since they've established that the series can be commercially successful to the executives. They'll probably expand on things like the Justice League in whatever game Kevin Conroy signed up for.
    • Tossed. Refs are made to some of the JL members but none appear in the flesh.

Jason Todd will be in this game.

He was suspiciously absent from the other two Arkham games (even though Dick Grayson and Tim Drake were both present). Even if he doesn't become Robin, his death could lead Batman to become more relentless in his pursuit of justice.

• And he was hinted at in Arkham City. When you use Tim in Joker's Carnival, the Joker says he thought he had already killed Robin.
• Guys, this is a Year Two story. Yes, the multiple Robin thing is confirmed as happening in this series, but I'm almost dead certain that Rocksteady will delve into Dick Grayson with their game next year.
• This is set when Batman himself is only just starting out... it's a little too early for the first Robin to show up yet, nevermind the second one.
• Tossed

Deathstroke will be playable

Much like Catwoman in Arkham City, Deathstroke will have his own (possibly DLC) campaign that intersects with Batman's. His skillset would definitely work with The Arkham Series gameplay. The fact that he is one of the first characters announced to be in the game (and in a game informer article as well) also mirrors the reveal of Catwoman as a character in Arkham City.

• Hmm. That would be...interesting. If they're doing it, though, they might do it as paid DLC with a rating independent of the main game to allow them to go M-Rated.
• Confirmed. Deathstroke will be playable via DLC.

The Batwing will be used for more than fast-travel

It has been stated that the player will not be able to directly control the Batwing in gameplay. However, this doesn't preclude it being used in other ways- perhaps Batman could call it in to deliver an automated bombardment to larger groups of enemies, possibly as a late-game 11th-Hour Superpower. This could result in a nice Batman: The Dark Knight Returns shout out.

"Rubber bullets, honest."

• It gets used as a distraction in the Firefly level.

Harvey Dent will appear.

But not as Two Face. Instead he will be an ordinary lawyer and friend of Bruce, or possibly the true identity of Holiday (If Holiday is even a character, that is). Bonus points if you see him gradually become Two Face and have to fight him.

• Tossed.

Kevin Conroy will narrate the game as an older Bruce Wayne.

While he's not voicing Batman proper in the game, he has been implied to be or is under contract for something in the game. Imagine Conroy doing a noir-esque recollection of the events with a lot of dialogue citing how young and inexperienced he was.

• Tossed.

A major theme of the game will be the complete transition to masks and freaks over the mob.

Black Mask is already a bit too theatrical for old school mobsters, but he still seems to play by their rules. The game will feature Joker targeting Mob members and False Face Society goons to try and give the city a better class of criminal. That's why we see Penguin threatening Alberto Falcone; he's the up and coming young blood versus Falcone's old school.

• Confirmed.

Batman will make at least one Assassin's Creed Shout-Out

As a Casting Gag based on the fact Roger Craig Smith (voice of Ezio from the abovementioned series) is voicing him, such as commenting "I am no assassin" or suchlike.

• Tossed.

In the same vein as the above, Killer Croc will throw a big rock at Batman and block his path

Batman will then proceed to punch it until it moves

• Semi-confirmed. Croc doesn't throw a rock, but his fight does involve throwing things.

Bane will act out the role of The Dragon for Joker.

Some pre-E3 stuff shows them working together and it would be interesting to see.

• Confirmed, in a sense. All of the assassins are working for Joker.

Calender Man will appear in a sidequest.

The game is set on Christmas Eve! They'd be crazy not to include Calender Man, especially after his chilling portrayal in Batman: Arkham City.

• For bonus points, this will be before he gains weight and he'll mention offhand that all the Christmas turkeys are going to his gut.
• A preview video confirms that he's around at this point, but it seems that he was defeated and arrested prior to the events of the game.
  • Tossed. He appears in the opening briefly but that's it.

Bane will break the Bat

Admittedly, this is pretty unlikely, since the game is set early on in Batman's career. However, Bane's bio in the other games states that he broke Batman's back at some point in this continuity, and he's been confirmed as one of the assassins. In a scenario vaguely similar to Knightfall, he may be the eighth and final assassin, and an exhausted Bats will finally succumb. While Bruce recovers, we could get a few chapters playing as a different character, before Batman is ready to don the mantle once more to take down Bane and Black Mask. However, this would mean that the story won't take place in the span of a single night, unlike the previous two games.

• But, if they do that, it raises the other question: Who would do it? I don't think Dick and Barbara are running around. And Deathstroke is specifically pre-order DLC instead of Day One DLC. I'd guess, if they do that, it ends on a cliffhanger and they leave it as a surprise DLC pack. As for who? Considering that this is pre Robin, I'd guess The Question (Vic Sage) or Green Arrow (Oliver Queen) are the two most likely contenders for the part.
  • Tossed.

In order to have lesser known characters, one of the assassins will be: Flamingo

Flamingo would be a terrifying and also somewhat comical as you have run into hardened looking soldier Deathstroke,and then you have the pink-colored Flamingo. People who haven't read Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin run will be laughing until Flamingo kicks the players ass and tries to eat their face. Whereas Genre Savvy players will immediately be filled with dread as this obvious color moves along the street towards them.

• In addition, this could be a good lead in (and twist) to who Flamingo is working for

Over the course of the Flamingo storyline, the players would assume he is simply hired by Black Mask, and then the twist is he actually is working for El Penitente... aka The Black Glove/Dr. Simon Hurt. ~Troper Before Time

• Tossed.

Killer Croc will be a Giant Space Flea from Nowhere

Batman will be hunting down some criminals in the sewer system when out of nowhere they all get attacked by an only slightly less bestial Croc. This will be before he reaches urban legend status, so Batman will be completely unprepared. As soon as the battle is over, Croc will jump back in the water, leaving a battered Batman and many unconscious mooks behind. He'll be a Wake-Up Call Boss, informing both Batman and the player that Gotham's underworld is getting stronger and weirder than first thought when starting out.

• Tossed. Killer Croc is one of the assassins.

The "Arkham" in the title won't be entirely an Artifact Title

Obviously, they just retained the "Arkham" part of the title for brand awareness, but I don't think they'd keep it there without at least one token mention of Arkham Asylum or the Arkham family. Though it's very unlikely that the asylum will be a major set piece in the game, it's definitely possible that the writers could involve Dr. Jeremiah Arkham, or someone else with his surname, into the storyline. Consider the fact that Black Mask has been confirmed as the Big Bad in a game with the word "Arkham" in the title...and that Jeremiah Arkham was the second Black Mask in the comics. Coincidence, or a possible plot point?

• The Black Mask in the Arkhamverse is still Roman Sionis by Arkham City. Unless the one we're dealing with in this game is actually Jeremiah Arkham and they switched the order around to play on expectations, it seems unlikely he'll have any major plot impact. Something involving the Asylum doesn't sound out of the question, though.
• Given the apparent theme of the crazy supervillains overtaking the traditional mobsters and the word "Origins" in the title, the game might end with the creation of Arkham Asylum.
  • Arkham was made years before Batman was in Gotham. But we might get an ending shot of the insane supervillains Batman has captured over the course of the game being transferred there. And the ones you see will change depending on whether or not you completed all of the "Most Wanted" missions.
    • This incident could be the reason why Batman/ Bruce Wayne become involved in the asylum's security.
  • Confirmed in a way. One of the Enigma tapes records Shiva talking to Quincy Sharp on behalf of her employer and telling him that if he wants to become mayor and cleanse the city, the first step he needs to take is to become Warden of Arkham Asylum.
  • Confirmed, in a sense. The radio interview that can be heard over the credits explicitly state the events of the night, specifically the two jail breaks from Blackgate, necessitate the reopening of Arkham Asylum.

Green Arrow will be playable

The Queen industries box in the trailer shows that Ollie Exists in this continuity, and including him would be a good way to introduce a larger Justice League to the series, as he is the other superpower-less millionaire vigilante. His archery-based play style would work well on Predator maps. He would plan ably be voiced by Alan Tudyk and his alternate skins would be animated and Arrow.

• Unlikely, but it would be cool. And it kinda fits, since Bats and GA have always had many similarities.
• He could be a character that can only be used in the Challenge maps, just like Nightwing in Arkham City.
• Tossed by Eric Holmes.

Black Mask hired the assassins to cover up his real plan

If Black Mask wants nothing more than a death Batman, then why did he turn it into a competition between assassins and gave them such a short time limit? That seems to be very counterproductive and actually encourages them to fight against each other. Maybe his hatred of Batman is mostly an act and the assassins are nothing but a distraction: While Batman is busy fighting them off he won’t notice what Black Mask is doing in the meantime. Alternatively he may have secretly hired one of them for a different job.

• Very likely, since promotional material likes to say Batman must figure out why Black Mask wants him dead so badly. Well, if there's no such kind of secret, it's kind of a stupid question; he wants Batman dead because Batman is bad for his business. Now, if the whole "hiring a bunch of assassins to kill Batman" is just smokescreen to keep Batman too busy to discover and ruin his true plans, it would make sense.
  • Tossed. Black Mask didn't hire them at all, Joker did. And he doesn't seem to have any goal other than his usual desire to cause chaos For the Evulz.

Anarky is (secretly) a pre-teen...

...as per his very first appearance in the comics.

• Confirmed after his boss fight.

Ra's al Ghul will appear...

...but not with the intent to claim the bounty. Instead, he'll have another scheme planned. This will be the first time he and Batman meet, and as Batman begins uncovering evidence of Ra's plan, he will earn Ra's's respect and the title of "Detective." Then Ra's will ask Batman to join him in "saving the world." Batman will, of course, refuse and take him on. Talia will probably appear as well.

• If not that, Ra's will act like an ally and try to trick Batman into helping him with a plan. Batman, being something of a rookie, will initially fall for it, but figures out the scheme in time to stop him. Talia might act as his contact, hiding her status as Ra's' daughter and playing dumb when Batman confronts her what Ra's is up to.
  • Partially Tossed. Ra's al Ghul does not appear, but he does send Lady Shiva to attempt to test and possibly recruit Batman in his stead.

The "rock-paper-scissors"-style for the new martial artist thugs will also apply to many villains. And it will really spice up the combat gameplay

Think about it: it's no longer "hit or be hit". The player can now go one-on-one with another character with combat skills. Wouldn't that be awesome?

• Exotic counters apply to Shiva and Deathstroke.

Copperhead will end up being responsible for Harvey Dent's disfigurement.

There's a couple people who believe they can see Harvey in the background of Batman's fight with Copperhead. Seems a logical conclusion.

• I couldn't see Harvey anywhere in that video. I also think it's mentioned that he was disfigured in the courthouse with a face full of acid by one of his mooks, and even if it wasn't, Copperhead's thing appears to be poison administered through cuts in the skin, not burning off someone's face.
  • Tossed. Not only does Harvey not show up in-game, he's also already said that Falcone was the one who caused his disfigurement.

Bane and Joker are both Hidden Agenda Villains

Bane's supposedly in town to kill Batman, but really, he wants to take over Gotham's underworld himself. Joker just wants to run crazy. They have a tenuous alliance that destroys Black Mask's hold on the city and starts the multiplayer campaign when they turn on each other.

• Confirmed for Bane.

There will be a boss fight in the Batcave.

Like say, Batman flies back to the cave for plot-related reasons. He gets there and then BAM! Turns out one of the assassins was hiding on the Batwing! Batman then has to fight off the assassin on his home turf, using the various gadgets and security measures the cave provides while also having backup from Alfred.

• Close. Bane attacks the Batcave after learning who Batman really is, but he doesn't fight him there.

Copperhead is a group, not a person.

Copperhead is actually a team of assassins that look, dress, move and fight the same way. They pretend that they are a single person in order to get the drop on their targets. Basically, they're cheating on the "eight assassins" rule.

• There's more than 4 Copperheads in the trailer. It's most likely that whatever Copperhead poisoned Batman with at the end of her trailer most likely cause him to hallucinate multiple Copperheads.
  • Confirmed. Copperhead is part of a group - you only see the female one. She even hints at her organization.
    • Still the theory that the Copperhead in the game is a group of similar-looking individuals is Tossed.

Black Mask will explicitly be blamed for both the rise of Batman and the Freaks.

Because he'll fail so epically in killing Batman that his empire will be rubble that the other costumes start picking apart.

• Tossed. Black Mask is kidnapped by Joker but is simply taken in by the cops if you finish his side mission.

We'll get to see the start of the Suicide Squad in this game.

One of the side missions will involve Amanda Waller and/or Rick Flagg trying to recruit one of the assassins or other villains for a dangerous mission.Here's my reasoning:

1) Geoff Johns has confirmed that a Suicide Squad video game is in development. The Squad typically doesn't have any A-list villains as members, so it makes sense from a marketing standpoint to make it an Arkhamverse spin-off so they can reach a bigger audience.

2) Of the characters being introduced in this game and the Blackgate handheld, four of them (Deadshot, Copperhead, Electrocutioner and Bronze Tiger) have worked with the Squad.

3) The developers have said that they want to use the assassins to introduce a larger DC universe. Of the options available, the Squad would be both tonally consistent with Batman's world and make logical sense. If you tried to introduce a superhero, like Superman or Green Arrow, you'd have to explain why didn't try to help Batman when it's obvious the odds are against him. The Squad's handlers are just amoral enough to not give a damn.

4) Finally, the Squad provides a handy excuse for why we haven't seen some of the newer characters in the older games: they've been working with the Squad and are either dead or stuck working for them.

• Good idea. But, two notes:
  • 1. Who's going to be the player character/field leader? Between the Post Crisis takes on the concept, I'd put it as between two characters: 1. Bronze Tiger. Former victim of a League of Assassins brainwashing trying to genuinely atone, to an extent or 2. Cluemaster (Arthur Brown). Sees this as a path to redemption and retirement to raise his daughter right, even as forces around him push him further into amorality. Other choices are either 1. Too amoral from the start or 2. FAR too minor to give a darn about.
  • 2. This game is at a point where Batman's just starting out and even THE COPS don't trust Batman. At this point, it's doubtful any superheroes that are around are a community, more disconnected people with fantastic powers.

  • Well... partly confirmed. While the Suicide Squad doesn't appear yet, The Stinger shows Deathstroke being visited by Amanda Waller in his cell. She gives him a confidential file, and says that he can either work for her or rot in jail; he takes the offer.
    • And in Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate, there's an end credits scene where Waller recruits Bronze Tiger and Deadshot.

Batman and Bane have a history preceding the game.

The iOS intro shows Bruce implicitly respecting and even fearing Bane a bit, shows Bane angrily refusing Black Mask's contract, and he's been upgraded to a threat on par and in concert with the Joker. Perhaps Bruce spent time in the Pena Duro while traveling the world, or Bane also trained under Bruce's ninja master.

• Somewhat confirmed. Bane has been studying Batman and has made a name for himself but this is their first encounter
  • Actually, in the cutscene introducing the assassins, Batman does seem to recognize Bane.
  Bane. Here? In Gotham? Why would he be taking money as a hired killer?

Batman will have to rescue Vicki Vale from the Mad Hatter.

• It's been confirmed that Mad Hatter will be returning and will again have his own sidequest in which Batman must rescue "Alice" from him. It was implied in Arkham City and explicitly shown in the Arkham: Unhinged comic that Hatter thinks the blonde, blue-eyed Vicki Vale is Alice (indeed, it is for this reason that he actually abducts her in the latter). As such, the sidequest in Origins will show a similar incident from earlier in continuity. Further evidence of this is the fact that Batman will reportedly have to climb a clocktower to rescue "Alice"/Vicki from Hatter, just has he had to climb a belltower to rescue Vicki from the Joker at the climax of Batman (1989). This is a series that loves the Mythology Gag trope after all.
  • Tossed. It looks very much like an Arkham series version of his co-worker from Batman: The Animated Series.

Cyrus Pinkney is Solomon Grundy

Pinkney was poisoned by Henry Cobblepot, but was saved by Amadeus Arkham and then sought revenge against his killer. Since everyone believed that Pinkney was dead, he had to create the persona of Cyrus Gold to live under. Having gone more than a little mad from his resurrection, he went on to kill others, was chased into Slaughter Swamp in his Gold persona, and became the immortal zombie Grundy. Possible hints as to this in Grundy's first appearance: The name Solomon, who was one of Pinkney's friends, and the fact that he was found by Penguin under the Pinkney museum.

• Adding to that, it is possible that the "concoction" used by Arkham to fake Pinkney's death had some Lazarus Pit components in it. They still haven't really gone into how the Pit is supposed to work in the Arkhamverse, save that it is the source of Grundy's power in this universe, meaning Arkham's concoction might have played a role in his transformation when exposed to more of it. Further, as the OP noted, Pinkey does seem a little...unhinged in his last entry, and madness is a known side-effect of the pit.

The upcoming additional "story DLC" will star the Joker as a playable character.

This one's a bit of a stretch, but given that Joker's character model is given a number of special fighting animations during the comedy club brawl in his therapy hallucination, who's to say this add-on won't serve as a prequel to the main story, recounting how he usurped Black Mask's gang in the first place?

• If so, let's hope stealth challenges are easier this time around.

The inconsistencies between Origins and Asylum for Harley and the Bat-Tech.

• People have been quick to point out that Harley first meeting Joker in Origins invalidates the interview tapes from Asylum. But there's nothing to suggest that Harley has any romantic interest in Joker at this point. Given the events of both Origins and Origins Blackgate Harley's residency will end prematurely and she'll resume it at Arkham, and that's where she'll fall for Joker
• Batman's suit and equipment is functionally similar to his load out in City, just bulkier and less sophisticated. Since we don't know when he streamlines it all to what we've seen in the first games, it's possible that Asylum is the first appearance of those versions, and as such they haven't had all the kinks worked out by then. The batsuit's missing separate bars for melee and bullet protection and the batclaw can't disarm foes? He fixes it all by City. The sequencer's not as versatile? Arkham Asylum has custom made security panels, unlike Arkham City.
  • That second part is Jossed, at elast on the costume front, as Batman is seen wearing the Asylum/City costume in Batman: Assault on Arkham and that is stated to take place two years before Asylum.
• The Batsuit in this game is an earlier model, that is MUCH heavier, and functions more like a suit of Powered Armor rather than the high tech fabric suits Batman opts to use later (due to the high tech fabric weighing him down less and letting him be much quieter). The Grapnel Accelerator is fundamentally different from the Boost used in Arkham City, because he doesn't have to worry about the force it's exterting on his arm - the force is entirely on the suit itself instead. When he switched to the lighter suits, the Grapnel stuff had to be redesigned because it actually exerts a force on his arm instead, and it took some time to make City's Boost upgrade that could be used safely. Once he eventually switched back to a more Powered Armor suit in Arkham Knight, notice the Accelerator came back and was much more powerful than in Origins, because once again the force can be exerted on the suit instead of his arm.
• The Glue Grenade doesn't exist in later games, because the compound disintegrated after about a week and was useless. Batman determined that it was too unworkable to make into something he could use all the time because of its limited shelf life.
• The Shock Gloves were turned into the GCPD by Batman after the events of this game. You can even see them in the evidence locker in Arkham Knight.

Weather Wizard exists in the Arkhamverse

• A newspaper in the Batcave claims that the storm hitting Gotham is expected to drop 400 inches of snow. One problem with that: The all-time record for a one-day snowfall in the contiguous United States is roughly 4 feet, and that was in the Rockies, not the East Coast, where the record is closer to 2 feet. It is not possible for weather patterns to change so dramatically as to break a historical record by a factor of eight (16 locally) naturally. Thus, some artificial factor is responsible for the extreme storm.
  • News in real life has been known to make mistakes like this, so this really isn't as unusual as you might think. One news station reported that when Columbia was destroyed on reentry that its speed was "18 times the speed of light" (should've been speed of sound). I just assume that whoever printed up the newspaper meant to type 40 (which is possible if they're in an area that has lake effect snow - see Buffalo NY), had their 0 key get stuck, and noone noticed it before it went to print.

Arkham Origins as we see it is partially a re-imagining by Joker

Possibly done after his defeat in Asylum or in his failing moments in City. In his re-memories, he brings in female ninja assassins and armored thugs like in City. He brings in proximity mines for the gargoyles like from Asylum, which he arguably shouldn't realize this guy he's never met uses. Some of his dialogue towards Batman slips and makes it sound like they've already been enemies for over 70 years. Game-wise, it would explain the almost psychic-at-times snipers, stalked enemies suddenly turning around, and general effectiveness of the mooks. Even the weather is amped up in Joker's dramatic self-re-write. The original scenario was rough, and a lot of mistakes were made on all fronts, Bats being a relative newbie and his foes unsure how to handle him yet. But Joker likes drama, so he did a mental re-edit of the night he met the one who gave his life meaning.

Batgirl will be a playable character in the upcoming Mr. Freeze DLC.

Batgirl's origin story typically involves her saving a ballroom of people from Killer Moth. Here, that gets adapted as her getting her start stopping Mr. Freeze from killing Ferris Boyle.

• Tossed. You play as Batman the entire time.

Copperhead actually has the power to create multiple copies of herself.

• Rule of Cool. She just waited to use it until she had already poisoned Batman to gain the element of surprise. I don't think she ever actually said that they were a hallucination, only that Batman was hallucinating, (which he clearly was,) and if she did, it was probably just a lie to make him underestimate them and believe that they weren't a danger. After a while, she gets too weak to create more of them - and making copies of herself won't help her get out of that container - but those polceman sent there to arrest her - expecting to find one woman - may be in for a nasty surprise.

The Police hope Batman will be killed in one of the Crime In Progress activities

Doesn't it seem off that the police never really try to stop any CIP even when Batman knocks out two or three attackers? Or how about how many thugs have knives, police shields and body armour readily available? It could be that Commissioner Loeb had secret intentions to knock off the Bat before any problems with him could arise...

• Branden is more likely. During the first run through the GCPD he explicitly states that Black Mask had agreed to treat his SWAT team as a ninth assassin and give them the 50 million if they killed Batman.

If a version of The Long Halloween happened in the Arkham universe, Hugo Strange is partly responsible for the Holiday murders.

The Arkham City Stories and the Mad Hatter tapes in Arkham City revealed Strange used the Mad Hatter's techniques to create the Spirit of Arkham persona in Quincy Sharp and brainwash the TYGER guards. We also know from the extortion tapes that Alberto Falcone, who publicly claimed to be Holiday in the comics, and at least killed Sal Maroni, if you believe the theory that Gilda and Harvey Dent committed the other murders and Alberto took credit for them, as opposed to the "Gilda committed the first murders and Alberto usurped the identity by faking his own death" or "Alberto did them all and Gilda snapped from the stress caused by Harvey becoming Two-Face" ones, was seeing him and he called up Black Mask in the middle of the night in a very different-sounding voice. Ergo, it's possible Strange was already trying to brainwash people before meeting the Mad Hatter and Holiday was the result.