There are few who can claim such widespread global fame as Batman (except perhaps Superman). Unlike the latter, he doesn’t seem to have any super powers beyond being incredibly wealthy (which some may argue in a super power in itself), and it is the latter that he uses in order to fund and succeed in his exploits. Batman most recently appeared in Arkham Asylum, found among the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 games released in 2009. With the upcoming release of Batman: Arkham City (one wonders whether it will end up having some kind of Kinect compatibility), it looks like we won’t have to wait long until Batman returns (see what I did there?).

Batman as we know him today first appeared in number 27 of the Detective Comics series in May 1939, his concept developed by Bob Kane (although the largely uncredited Bill Finger also helped). Originally referred to as the Batman (a convention that is sometimes present in Batman-related media today), his backstory has varied vastly over the years. However there are some constant aspects, such as the tragic murder of Bruce’s parents. Assuming the persona of a philanthropic playboy and “Gotham’s most eligible bachelor”, Bruce Wayne (like Superman’s Clark Kent) ensures that his two identities are kept separate.

Batman’s enemies frequently recur throughout the media in which he appears. The Joker is perhaps Batman’s most well known rival, first appearing in Batman #1 in 1940. As with Batman himself, The Joker’s backstory frequently varies. A psychopathic criminal genius, his most well known weapon is Joker venom, which causes victims to die laughing, their faces frozen in a horrific rictus grin. His portrayal by the late Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight has been widely lauded, and indeed particularly in the case of this film is often shown to have had a greater fan following than the Bat himself.

Batman: Arkham City is currently due out in the third quarter of 2011. Keep hoping to be able to use your Xbox 360 Kinect with it!