When Rocksteady Studios released Batman: Arkham Asylum in 2009, it completely changed how people viewed licensed games. With revolutionary gameplay mechanics, a thick coating of mood and a storyline worthy of the comics, this game took everything that makes Batman great and successfully transferred it to the console world.
From there, Rocksteady came out with a followup in 2011, Batman: Arkham City. Touting a larger map, improved combat, more DLC and a bigger story, Arkham City was seen not only as the best superhero game ever released, but one of the best titles to come out during that console generation.
Finally, this week the last installment in the trilogy, Batman: Arkham Knight, hit store shelves, and despite the curse of the third act looming over its head, the game is already one of the best examples of what this console generation can achieve. With an even bigger open world, improved fighting mechanics and the ability to finally pilot the Batmobile, Arkham Knight gives fans exactly what they want.
But is it enough? Does Arkham Knight trump all of the other games in the series, or does Arkham Asylum or Arkham City still come out on top? I’m breaking down the entire trilogy to determine which game really is the best.
Warning: HUGE spoilers for Batman: Arkham Knight follow…please turn away now if you haven’t played yet.
Story
The Edge: Arkham Knight
Rocksteady has always prided itself on bringing captivating stories to its Batman games, and Arkham Knight truly feels like a deserving climax for the whole trilogy. Filled with gripping twists and emotional battles, this game is an epic—and not in “Internet” sense of the word, either. This is a huge, sprawling story that deals with themes of fear, morality and failure.
Sure, there are moments that raised an eyebrow or two for me as a comic book fan (especially when it comes to the Jason Todd reveal or the Deathstroke fiasco), but in the separate universe that is the Arkham world, this story hits on every level.
Even the side missions pack more of a punch than some entire video games—studios should just look at the saga of Man-Bat for how to craft a tortured, sympathetic villain. And the Joker aspect adds a paranoid Chuck Palahniuk vibe throughout.
While Arkham Asylum was more about mood and City was more about gameplay, Knight depends more on the story, and Rocksteady definitely delivers.
Gameplay
The Edge: Arkham City
How could Arkham City be the tops in the gameplay department when Arkham Knight basically improves upon combat in nearly every way? Get back to me after trudging through those Batmobile sequences for a few hours.
While the car works well most of the time, there comes a point when clunky Riddler challenges and the endless barrage of tanks no longer feel novel and actually begin to detract from the game.
Arkham City—at least from a gameplay perspective—feels more like a Batman game. No puzzle-solving tanks; just fists and an arsenal of bitchin’ gadgets. The Batmobile was a great idea on paper, and it’s generally pulled off well, but after a while, the Dark Knight’s signature ride becomes more of a headache than an ally.
Setting
The Edge: Arkham Asylum
This one might be a bit debatable for some, but bare with me. Arkham City and Arkham Knight have tremendous open worlds soaked in impeccable detail and an endless stream of Easter eggs; however, there is no matching the mood of Arkham Asylum.
This claustrophobic cove of madness oozes terror, and Rocksteady did a perfect job of bringing one of comics’ biggest landmarks to life.
Traversing the vast world of Gotham in City and Knight is always a thrill, but the Asylum gets your pulse pounding like nothing else. The inmate cells, the infirmary, the operating rooms—every inch of the Asylum adds to the atmosphere, turning the mad house itself into the most prominent character in the game.
Comic Book Accuracy
The Edge: Arkham Asylum
Rocksteady has remained extremely faithful to the Batman lore over the course of three games, but Arkham Asylum is the one that most feels like it could have made the jump to the comic book page. Some of that has to do with the game being influenced—albeit superficially—by an actual comic book, Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth.
In Asylum, the Joker’s motivations and characterization are spot-on, and all of the supporting characters and villains are pretty much just like their comic book counterparts. City and Knight both shoehorned characters into the storyline, despite their roles not being a natural fit for their personalities—I’m looking at you, Hush and Ra’s.
Asylum was different—there were no characters there that didn’t feel like they belonged, and they were all just as they appear in the books.
Voice Acting
The Edge: Arkham Knight
This is a tough one because many of the same cast members appear in all three games, but once you hear John Noble’s take on Scarecrow, you’ll see why Arkham Knight gets the edge. Sure Kevin Conroy’s Batman, Mark Hamill’s Joker and Jonathan Banks’ Commissioner Gordon are all great, but Noble will make you lose sleep at night.
His voice is calm, deep and intense as it slowly gets under your skin and festers in your subconscious throughout the story. He’s weak and human, yet seems otherworldly at the same time. And Noble, just from his voice acting, elevates this version of Scarecrow to the best interpretation of the character in any medium—yes, even including the comics. This is a villain worthy of the moniker The Master of Fear.
Boss Fights
The Edge: Arkham City
For as great as the Arkham series has been—and it will be seen as a watershed franchise in the years to come—the boss fights have routinely fell flat. Whether we’re talking about the titan Joker in Asylum or the endless tanks, vehicle chases or “beatdown” moments in Knight, the series never quite nails the big battle.
That’s why Arkham City wins almost by default. Just by virtue of the Clayface and Mister Freeze battles, Arkham City makes itself at least passable. Where Arkham Knight does succeed, though, is the buildup to the boss fight, especially in the side missions as you make your way towards a villain. That’s at least something…right?
Overall
The Edge: Arkham Knight
Despite some shortcomings in other areas, Batman: Arkham Knight is still the best installment in Rocksteady’s trilogy. Sure the Batmobile didn’t quite click and some of the boss fights are maddeningly disappointing—why is Deathstroke in a tank again?—but no game in the series is quite as immersive as this.
The story and character make Arkham Knight feel like a living, breathing movie. The game’s scope is both vast and intimate, the stakes actually feel real and the gameplay (when on foot) makes you feel like Batman more than ever.
There are some shaky points, but Rocksteady hits the landing, and in the process has crafted a Batman saga that ranks right up there with Batman: The Animated Series, The Dark Knight Trilogy and comics like The Dark Knight Returns and The Long Halloween. And anytime you can impact a 75+ year old character’s legacy like that, you’ve more than succeeded.
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