Summary [10 out of 10]

The conclusion to the Akham series, Arkham Knight finds Batman dealing with a deadly threat from Scarecrow to gas the entire city with a new fear toxin that causes people to kill each other. To make matters worse, Scarecrow has teamed up with the Arkham Knight, an unknown villain who has major beef with Batman. The game marks the return of greatness to the series and gives us the best Batman game yet with an engaging story, a refined side quest system, vastly improved graphics, expansions to systems without breaking them or throwing the balance off and the inclusion of the Batmobile. This is easily the best of the series and washes the bad taste of Arkham Origins (which was not developed by Rocksteady) out of my mouth. It breaks my heart that it brings the series to a close but it also offers up the ultimate Batman experience so I am not sure what else would be left to do at this point. It is the best game in one of the best game series ever.

What It’s Like

Arkham City: With an expansive open environment to move in, Arkham Knight is most like Arkham City but it is like Arkham City on steroids. The environment is bigger, has more to do and is organized much better. Everything that works in Arkham City is even better here.

The Great

The Story: One of the things I love about this series from a story perspective is how unafraid it is to change things up and show no fear of making big moves within the mythology. The story here is absolutely crazy and hardcore. There time and again there are twists and turns that are genuinely shocking and surprising and it makes the player feel like anything can happen. On top of this there is the mystery of who the Arkham Knight is and that is a compelling reason to keep charging forward. I will say I figured out who it was before it was revealed but I didn’t get too far ahead of the game in that regard. The story was epic in scope and absolutely satisfying from beginning to end.

Graphics: The graphics have always been top notch in the Rocksteady entries of this series but the visuals here are head and shoulders above anything we have seen before. The detail is intricate and it looks like a living breathing city, albeit one that has been evacuated. Persistent damage is back again and it adds an extra layer of realism to the proceedings. Environmental cues for side-quests are also seamless and dynamic. I cannot overstate how gorgeous this game is. Looking back at the graphics of the past games, this one makes them look pretty bad which is really saying something given how good they looked initially.

Most Wanted Missions: This time around the side-quests are better managed and doled out with their own stories and trigger points. They also do a better job of not making you feel sidetracked by the nature of how they are set up. When they would occur in previous entries it felt like you were being pulled in all different directions at once. The presentation here made them feel less immediately compulsory while offering fun diversions from the main story. If you don’t feel like working on whatever is up next in the story you can choose one of these and have some different play experiences to keep from feeling stale. In addition to that, these sections help you improve your skills for different aspects of the game which help with the progression in the main story. The villains you face here are also fun to take on and offer up some new villains and different sorts of experiences with old ones. This is also a great way to bolster your skills and gadgets so that you aren’t underpowered in the main story.

Progression: The Arkham games have always featured upgrades and progression but Arkham Knight really nails it here. The story escalates such that you need to improve your own skills as well as Batman’s and it does it in a way that feels organic and fair. There were challenges I had in the game in terms of progressing past a particular section or task and more than a few I had to practice to get through but it was all very doable and I never felt the game was throwing anything at me without giving me the chance to be prepared or that I couldn’t work a strategy out for. This may be the best progression/escalation system I have ever seen in a game as it is full of challenge but never overwhelming or taking you out of the game. If you are playing Batman you should always feel capable even while being challenged. This game completely nails it.

Side-kicks: Robin and Nightwing have shown up in DLC and small cameos in the series before but never in a way that is terribly impactful on the story. Here both make significant appearances and contribute to the story without overshadowing Batman or breaking game play. The way that they are incorporated feels much more smooth and natural than Catwoman was in Arkham City. The interactions between Batman and Nightwing and Robin are both meaningful and different as befitting their very different relationships. I would have liked to see Nightwing and Robin interacting with each other but what we got was great and pretty much nailed it.

Controls: The controls are not significantly different here than in previous games but there are some additional skills, gadgets and the Batmobile that have been mapped on the controller as well. These additions feel organic as opposed to throwing the controls off and I never fought with the controls here, aside from the learning curve with the Batmobile, and things flow effortlessly. The Batmobile did take some getting used to but after you get the hang of it, the controls are smooth and intuitive.

Combat: I once would have thought that the combat was unassailable in this series because of how tight it was but Arkham Origins absolutely ruined the timing of the combat and took it from seamless, intuitive fun and turned it into rage inducing frustration. Thankfully with Rocksteady back at the helm the combat goes back to Arkham City’s quality and adds some new dimensions to it without throwing the balance off. It was nice to have the solid combat back.

Cast of Characters: The characters involved in this game are great and I was happy to see some new faces popping up along with the old. I don’t want to go to deep into them because some of them are surprises but they are awesome. They are also pretty hardcore which is nice. This games pulls no punches and it is cool to see the Arkham version of those characters. I really love this version of the Batman universe and seeing it expand is even better.

Voice Acting: As usual the voice acting is fantastic here with a lot of old favorites and some new surprises. Kevin Conroy makes a triumphant return as Batman which is nice after his absence in Origins. Roger Craig Smith did a good job last game but Conroy is the definitive Batman for me so him being back is for the best. Jonathan Banks steps up for Commissioner Gordon which is nice as he is super talented but it took a little getting used to for Gordon to sound like Mike Ehrmantraut. I don’t want to go too deep into voice acting because I don’t want to spoil anything but suffice it to say that old favorites are present and new additions are great.

Batmobile: When I first heard about the Batmobile being present for driving in the game I was really worried it would ruin the balancing of the game and the Batmobile would be incorporated too much. When I first started playing I thought my fears were coming true but once I got into the game the Batmobile becomes another gadget in your arsenal and the different missions and uses for the Batmobile are fun new additions that allows for more creative problem solving without shortchanging the rest of the experience. The Batmobile was a great addition and was implemented very well.

Balancing: Whether it is the ratio of play styles, the challenges offered or the variety of side-quests, the balancing here is spot on. Difficult sections were difficult because of the challenge and never because the game was broken or lopsided. The game feels very even handed in this way and it is the perfect blend of all the things that the game is. This is great and makes it an even experience that never gets boring or tiresome.

Stealth: The stealth based Predator mode is one of my favorite aspects of the series as it offers a great challenge while feeling very Batman. In this installment Batman is given more options for takedowns and controlling the field but enemies are also given upgrades that amp up the challenges. The addition of the fear takedown which allows Batman to take out multiple enemies at a time once the meter is full is a great one and gives you a bit of an edge even in the face of automated cannons and drones that can end your game super quickly. This mode remains tight, fun and open to multiple strategies.

Gadgets: Arkham games have always had awesome gadgets that allow Batman to do all sorts of cool Batmany things and then upgrade those gadgets to do even more cool things. Arkham Knight gives you new gadgets and even more new upgrades and they open up gameplay in entirely new ways. Some old favorites are left by the wayside a bit but with the influx of new stuff they aren’t missed. Again, you can use them all in a variety of situations throughout the game to give you more options for how to complete challenges so even if the story doesn’t directly call for a gadget’s use you can still use them however you see fit.

Easter Eggs: I really missed the easter eggs the series is known for in Origins so I was very happy to see them back here. There are tons of inside references and recordings to the comics as well as a decent amount of references to previous games. The Gotham City Police Department is a treasure trove of Easter Eggs but that is not all. There are tons scatters throughout the whole of the city and it makes the whole thing feel much more full and complete.

The Bad

It ended eventually

Conclusion [10 out of 10]

Batman Arkham Knight is absolutely great and I loved every second of it. It is a huge game with a ton of things to do and those things have even more variety than in previous installments. If you don’t like the series there is not much here that will change your mind but if you liked the previous games you will be very happy (Unless you are on a PC but this is a console review anyway). I can’t recommend this game enough.