When Batman: Arkham Asylum first came out it redefined superhero games.
Its crunching, combo-based combat and fun exploratory navigation made for a heady gameplay blend. It was then followed by two, ever more excellent outings, Arkham City and Arkham Knight, each of which widened the series' scope. And a prequel game, Arkham Origins, filled out the quadrilogy.
Now, after almost a decade, a fifth game with similar gameplay is on the market - Gotham Knights. And, while it isn't technically set in the Arkham Universe, it shares similar themes and gameplay.
Here is what we know about it so far. Enjoy.
Gotham Knights release date
After being heavily rumoured for months, Gotham Knights was fully unveiled during the first DC FanDome at the end of August 2020.
However, while it was originally planned for a 2021 release, it was put back to 2022 due to the pandemic. It was released on 25 October 2022.
Gotham Knights trailers
The first official trailer was released as part of the first DC FanDome in August 2021.
In it, you get to see the new cast of playable characters - with Batman presumed dead. The multiple leads also make for an interesting jump-in, jump-out co-op experience.
A second trailer was shown during the second DC Fandom in October 2021.
It shows the main villains of the piece - the Court of Owls. The Penguin (Oswald Cobblepot) also features.
Gotham Knights plot, characters and villains
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
Set 15 years after Batman first hit the streets of Gotham, the Dark Knight is missing and presumed dead.
The city is, however, still plagued by super-villainry, so up steps the usually supporting cast of Bat family members: Batgirl, Robin, Nightwing and Red Hood.
Players get to take on each of the characters (sometimes two at once, in co-op), with different abilities at their disposal.
Batgirl (Barbara Gordon, who was previously Oracle) is the most like Batman himself, with an array of martial art skills. A trailer dedicated to her skillset was posted during the San Deigo Comic-Con in July 2022.
Nightwing is the first Robin, Dick Grayson. He wields dual Escrima Sticks to help take out enemies. A character trailer for Nightwing was released during Summer Game Fest in June 2022.
Red Hood is also a former Robin, Jason Todd, who is more fond of using guns and tech to get his way. His appearance provides further proof that Gotham Knights is not set in the Arkham universe, as Todd turned out to be the eponymous Arkham Knight in that timeline.
Finally, a more recent Robin, Tim Drake, is more stealth focused than the others. His dedicated trailer was unveiled in June 2022.
They will have to take on several key villains from the comic books, including Mr Freeze (seen in the gameplay walkthrough below) and, as revealed in the latest trailer, the shadowy figures of the Court of Owls.
Gothams Knights gameplay
While Gotham Knights is not based in the Batman Arkham universe, it features similar gameplay - as evidenced by a walkthrough video released during DC FanDome.
An additional 13-minute gameplay walkthrough was released in May 2022. It focuses on the two former Robins - Nightwing and Red Hood - to show them in full action for the first time.
In it, you can see how combat flows in a similar fashion to the Arkham games, but with a momentum bar that, once filled, unlocks extra-powerful abilities. Each character also has a different traversal and fight style.
All of the playable characters will have their own unique way to move and fight, but the open-world landscape of Gotham will feature storyline missions and, seemingly, side quests - much like Arkham City and Arkham Knight.
It is also an RPG of sorts, with characters able to be levelled up and assigned new skills throughout the game.
The biggest addition though is two-player online co-op. While the game will be able to be played in single-player in its entirety, a couple of players can take on different lead characters and play together.
Gotham Knights platforms and pre-order details
Gotham Knights is available for Playstation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC.
Although it was previously announced for PS4 and Xbox One too, it was later revealed that it would be a current-gen title only: "To provide players with the best possible gameplay experience, the game will release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC and will not be available for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One consoles," said WB Games.
If you do have one of the supported platforms, the game is now available to order digitally, through the PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, Steam and Epic Games Store. There's also a disc version available to order, of course.
That includes a Gotham Knights Deluxe Edition, with the base game and Visionary Pack downloadable content (DLC), including exclusive gear, cosmetics, Beyond Suitstyle character skins inspired by the Batman Beyond animated series and more.
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There's also a Gotham Knights Collector’s Edition, which features the Deluxe Edition, an augmented reality collectable pin, 16-page media book, exclusive Gotham City map, four-character statue diorama and more. In addition, all pre-orders received the 233 Kustom Batcycle Skin at launch, based on the vehicle’s first appearance in Detective Comics 233.