About the game
Batman: Arkham Knight is a 2015 action-adventure game developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, it is the successor to the 2013 game Batman: Arkham Origins, a direct sequel to Batman: Arkham City (2011) and the fourth main game in the Batman: Arkham series. It was written by Sefton Hill, Ian Ball and Martin Lancaster.
The story is set nine months after the events of Arkham City. Batman confronts Scarecrow, who has launched an attack on Gotham City and caused a citywide evacuation. With the help of the mysterious Arkham Knight, Scarecrow plots to unite all of Gotham's criminals in an attempt to finally destroy Batman. Along the way the Joker, who died in the last game, keeps appearing to Batman as a hallucination.
The game is played from a third-person view, with the focus on Batman's melee combat, stealth, detective skills and gadgets. Gotham City is an open world that can be explored freely from the start. Combat chains attacks together in the Freeflow system, while stealth lets Batman take enemies out silently using gadgets and the environment. Gliding is faster and longer than before. Arkham Knight adds the Batmobile as a playable vehicle, used for travel, puzzle solving and combat, including a tank mode. Side missions unlock extra content and collectibles.
Development began in 2011, after Arkham City, and took four years. The game was revealed in March 2014. Rocksteady decided early to make it only for the new generation of consoles, so it could use the hardware fully. That allowed up to five times as many enemies on screen as in Arkham City and cutscenes rendered in the game engine instead of pre-rendered video. It was the first in the series to use the Apex physics engine for things like Batman's cape. Unlike Arkham Origins, it has no multiplayer. Nick Arundel returned to score the game, joined by David Buckley, and Kevin Conroy returned as the voice of Batman.
Arkham Knight was released on PlayStation 4, Windows and Xbox One on June 23, 2015. It was first set for October 14, 2014, then delayed to June 2, 2015 and again to June 23. It received an ESRB Mature rating, where earlier games in the series had been rated Teen. Free updates later added a Big Head mode, a photo mode and the option to use the original voice cast. Retail editions included a Limited Edition with a Steelbook case, an 80-page art book, a comic and a Batman statue, and a Premium Edition with the season pass. A Game of the Year Edition with all the season pass content came out in 2016 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Downloadable content ran through 2015 and into early 2016. It included story packs such as Batgirl: A Matter of Family, Harley Quinn, Red Hood, GCPD Lockdown, Catwoman's Revenge and A Flip of a Coin, the Season of Infamy Most Wanted missions, extra Batmobiles with their own racetracks, challenge map packs and many character skins. The Scarecrow Nightmare pack was exclusive to PlayStation 4.
The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions received generally favourable reviews. The game was praised for its open world, voice acting, combat and story, while the Batmobile's tank battles and the Riddler challenges drew criticism, as did the way the Arkham Knight's identity was handled. The Windows version launched in a poor technical state, and sales were suspended until October 2015. Arkham Knight was the fastest-selling game of 2015 at the time, and had sold over 5 million units worldwide by October 2015. It has been cited as one of the greatest games of the 2010s.
The text above is adapted from Wikipedia and licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
What critics said
Metacritic 85 out of 100 (Xbox One). Metacritic 87 out of 100 (PlayStation 4). OpenCritic 82 out of 100 (all). Individual reviews: IGN 9.2/10, Polygon 10/10, Game Informer 9.5/10, VideoGamer.com 10/10, GamesTM 9/10, Edge 8/10, Destructoid 7/10, GameSpot 7/10.
Extra content
The season pass and single packs added story missions, Batmobiles with racetracks, challenge maps and skins between July 2015 and January 2016. Scarecrow Nightmare was PlayStation 4 only, so it is not part of the Xbox One game.
- Batgirl: A Matter of Family: A story mission for Batgirl and Robin set at the Seagate Amusement Park, with hacking and Dual Play.
- Harley Quinn Story Pack: A short story mission playing as Harley Quinn in Bludhaven. Started as a pre-order bonus.
- Red Hood Story Pack: A short story mission playing as Jason Todd as Red Hood against Black Mask. Started as a pre-order bonus.
- WayneTech Booster Pack: Four upgrades for Batman and the Batmobile available from the start.
- 1989 Movie Batmobile Pack: The Batmobile and Batman skin from the 1989 film, plus two racetracks.
- GCPD Lockdown: A Nightwing mission that stops the Penguin breaking out of the GCPD.
- 2008 Tumbler Batmobile Pack: The Tumbler Batmobile from The Dark Knight and two racetracks.
- Batman Classic TV Series Batmobile Pack: The 1960s TV Batmobile, skins for Catwoman and Robin, and two racetracks.
Good to know
- The game was only made for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows. There is no PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 version.
- It was first dated for October 14, 2014, then moved to June 2, 2015 and finally to June 23, 2015.
- The Batmobile Edition with the transformable Batmobile statue was cancelled days before launch because of a quality problem with the statue. Buyers could get a refund or switch edition.
- Scarecrow Nightmare, a pack set in a nightmare version of Gotham, was exclusive to PlayStation 4 and never came to Xbox One.
- It is the first Arkham game rated Mature by the ESRB. The earlier games were rated Teen.
- A free update added Big Head mode, a photo mode and the option to use the original voice cast with localized subtitles.
- The Harley Quinn and Red Hood story packs began as pre-order bonuses before they were sold as DLC.
Made by
Director Sefton Hill, Producer Daniel Bailie, Producer Nathan Burlow, Designer Ian Ball, Programmer Ben Wyatt, Artist David Hego, Writer Martin Lancaster, Writer Sefton Hill, Writer Ian Ball, Composer Nick Arundel.
