I was so disappointed to hear Catwoman wouldn't even appear let alone be playable in Arkham Origins. Her being in Arkham City had me sold on the game, I bought it as soon as it came out for MAC but with Catwoman not in this game and not even a female player as an option, I feel let down. Catwoman was perfect for consumers who wouldn't usually buy games, people who aren't as included (or often even welcomed) in the gaming world ie- women and gay men.

Like, really? I know some a-holes whined about Catwoman in the last game (But still had her DLC?) and it wasn't the most erm....nuanced depiction of her. Paul Dini, in lieu of lesbian subtext a la Batgirl/Supergirl or Harley/Ivy, wrote her as kind of like a chauvinistic nightmare. But it was still more than we ever got before....

Agreed, but it's not a deal breaker for me, haven't bought the game yet, will get it later. However Batman Arkham Origins Blackgate has Catwoman, the game is only out on 3DS and PS:Vita and i'm not sure if she is even playable.

Hahaha..Yes!!!I could care less.I rather have Jason Todd Dick or any Batgirl in the online..

If there's been female options before and now there isn't, that sounds disappointing.

I don't understand your link between Catwoman and gay men though.

They saved Catwoman for the Blackgate version on 3DS/Vita. Because otherwise, no one would be inclined to buy it.

It's a Batman game, not Batman and friends. Also

wot

@peppeyhare & @v_scarlotte_rose

I'm gay and I love Catwoman, I also have many other gay friends who wouldn't regularly play videogames but they liked the Catwoman option. I also saw a ton of guys who did online video walkthroughs for Catwoman that were gay as well. She resonates with many people, I'm not saying gay men don't relate to Batman. Ha, that's not true at all but for some of us it was just more of a draw, I'm sure of it. I loved Batman when I was kid but I loved Catwoman even more because you could live vicariously through her almost and the fact she was considered a villain and an outcast (belonging to neither the "good" or "bad" side) who was able to seduce Batman. Batman is a pretty gay-friendly character classically but since you'll never see him swing that way, you root for Catwoman.

I knew Arkham Asylum was good but I wasn't going to shell out the money. But then I saw the Catwoman trailer for Arkham City and I was totally going to go the next step with it.

Frankly, I think that "people who would definitely buy a game because of Catwoman but would otherwise have no interest in it" is an extraordinarily small group. It does not surprise me that major development decisions were not made to cater to such a group.

I can't imagine that's so, Catwoman must cast a pretty wide net otherwise they wouldn't continue to make a profit off of her inclusion in various forms of Batman media. Within a concentrated group of comic fans, people know who Deathstroke is but outside of it nobody really knows who he is, the same with Black Mask. Catwoman has held a solo title that has been pretty consistent, they also keep making action figures of her, she's always included in every animated series, she's been in the movie franchises with enormous praise. A lot of the other characters in this game couldn't hold a candle to that. She's got to have some more universal appeal or they wouldn't continue to use her and make money off her. And it isn't as though seniority is her only claim to popularity, a lot of the other characters in the game have been in comics for 20, 30, or 40 years.

They included Joker as a playable character in the extras which probably means they had to come up with a combat engine from scratch whereas Catwoman already has one intact from the last game they could've improved upon.

@hexthis:

Those comparisons aren't really relevant though. We're not comparing people who bought the game for [insert support character here]. Where comparing people who bought the game because it's a Batman game (or bought the game based on their enjoyment of previous games) with people for whom those factors were insufficient. You're quite right if you assert that probably more people would buy a game for Catwoman than would buy it for Black Mask. But that isn't what I was talking about. Neither of those groups of people figures into major decisions in the development of this game. The largest, and most important fanbases, are gamers and Batman fans. People who fall into either or both of those categories already have good enough reasons to buy the game regardless of any one side character. And that's what I said: that the percentage of people who would make their purchase decision purely on whether or not Catwoman was included is small enough that she would only be included if such inclusion coincided with the story the developers wanted to tell (in Arkham City, it did; in Arkham Origins, it would not have).

Joker (spoiler alert, here) actually is playable within the main game. He has a different style and skill set and it makes sense that since they had a (very cool, I might add) reason for incorporating him in the story, they would make that available in the multiplayer. Seeing as a completely different studio made this game, you can't take for granted that the Origins team had access to the Selina model from City, nor you can you take for granted that her programming would be balanced with other characters using the newer Origins engine. Likely they would have had to start from scratch to incorporate her. And who knows? Maybe they did have access to those resources and she could show up as DLC down the line.

Its a game about Batman so expecting to play another character just for the sake of gender is kinda beside the point in my opinion.

That said I wish she was in, but I wouldnt make it a sexuality issue. I also wish Grundy was in. :(

iam a straight guy and i love catwoman i missed her in the game i liked the harley cameo though.