We already knew that Catwoman would play an important role in "Batman: Arkham City." She appeared in the demo I checked out back at GDC, where she was a hostage of Two Face, dangling from a thread over some nasty acid, and the developers have said that she plays a key role in the story. But just how crucial is she? Apparently enough to make her a fully playable character.
While Batman is definitely the main hero of "Arkham City," there's something of a side story being told with Catwoman, who is attempting the heist of all the stolen goods recovered from Gotham's greatest criminals. Catwoman's story is completely interwoven with Batman's, though, and players will have to take control of both leather-clad super heroes in order to make it through the campaign.
As a character, Catwoman controls pretty differently than Batman. Instead of a gliding cape and grappling hook, Catwoman navigates the wide streets and alleyways of Gotham with a whip, swinging almost jungle style from rooftop to rooftop.
Like Batman, she's also rather able in the stealth department, but her more agile frame makes for quicker movements and special abilities. In one sequence, she was able to climb on the ceiling to evade capture. She can still fight toe-to-toe, though, taking on foes in the familiar 360 degree, counter-heavy combat engine, but she's a little less hard-hitting than the Dark Knight.
While there are major story beats that will force the player to control Catwoman, players can also switch between the two characters when exploring the city and not in the middle of a mission. As Batman, you'll come across a couple of cats sitting on a rooftop. Approaching them will give you the option to "Take a break," which causes Catwoman to appear and take control. There are certain objectives and bonus objects (think Riddler trophies) that only Catwoman can access, thanks to her abilities, so completionists will need to bring out the claws for some of those harder achievements.
For a look at Catwoman in action, check out Gamespot's exclusive trailer: