Batman: Arkham Asylum is a straight-up masterpiece, a wonderfully interactive Batman adaptation, and an innovative adventure that would've worked regardless of its main character. Unfortunately, over the years, everything that made that game unique has been slowly watered down and eroded in misguided attempts to broaden that gameplay style's mainstream appeal. And that brings us to Gotham Knights ($69.99). This open-world action-RPG isn’t a horrible way to beat up bad guys with friends on your Xbox Series S, but it’s bogged down with tedious, trend-chasing mechanics.

Batman Is Dead!

Batman’s world is so rich and interesting that it's difficult to screw up. Fortunately, Gotham Knights’ narrative at least rises to the level of a high-end animated feature. Batman is dead! It’s up to his remaining protéges (Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood, Robin) to pick up the pieces in this new continuity. You’ll tangle with familiar foes, with Harley Quinn and Penguin feeling inspired by their recent cinematic interpretations. However, Gotham Knights’ larger story revolves around the Bat Family taking on shadowy organizations: the corrupt Court of Owls and the sinister League of Shadows.

As an unapologetic DC fan, I certainly appreciated the game's fan service (keep an eye on building names and various email communications). The game also does a decent job of grappling with the characters' grief and guilt. Even though he looks like a thickheaded ninja turtle, resurrected former Robin, Jason Todd, receives some nice emotional moments involving his own traumatic backstory. 

Still, Gotham Knights' narrative can’t escape the lesser spin-off quality that plagues not only this game, but WB Games Montréal’s previous effort, Batman: Arkham Origins. It just seems superfluous. Although I like that the game's tone doesn’t descend into Arkham Knight’s abject misery, I also don’t need painful covers of Ricky Martin songs or an Iceberg Lounge that looks like a diet John Wick setting. Again, even generic Batman stuff can still be pretty fun, but you feel like you’re settling with Gotham Knights. For a better Batman narrative, track down the Telltale point-and-click adventure game. 

The Heroes Gotham Deserves

Unfortunately, Gotham Knights’ direct-to-video energy also extends to its gameplay. We’re far removed from the days of Arkham Asylum taking place in one tightly designed locale. In Gotham Knights, Gotham City is a full-on open world that bursts with side content, but it’s about as interesting as the word “content” implies.

The game's structure is a major problem. Gotham Knights stretches out its length with RPG mechanics we’ve seen in countless recent games. As a result, you must complete filler missions to make meaningful progress. Want to investigate the Court of Owls? Interrogate their low-level enforcers. Want to unlock the ability to glide around the city instead of using the slow motorcycle and grappling hook? Stop enough petty crimes until you achieve Knighthood status. Even unlocking fast-travel points requires laboriously scanning drones. It reminds me of how Mafia III ruined its pacing by forcing you to complete boring objectives before major missions.

The RPG systems justify themselves more in regard to character customization. Not only can you freely swap between the four heroes, but you can also upgrade their attributes as you gain experience. Is it that interesting to go into a menu and craft Nightwing’s legendary escrima sticks? No, not really. Still, I enjoyed choosing everyone’s goofy outfits. In addition, each character has unique abilities that they can pull off by building up their Momentum meter during a fight. For example, Red Hood enhances his guns with mystical energy, while Robin leaves behind holographic decoys. Tailoring these abilities to your playstyle makes the characters your own.

Make sure to explore those Momentum-based abilities, because the four characters are interchangeable despite their different martial arts animations. Gotham Knights is similar to the mediocre Marvel's Avengers, which took action-RPG inspiration from Destiny and Diablo. But at least those Marvel heroes felt fundamentally different from each other. When you’re not using their Momentum abilities, the caped crusaders possess the same blend of light and heavy melee and projectile attacks. Combat is serviceable for the most part. Crowd control feels about as flowing as the Arkham games, but replaces the counter with a dodge. I often found myself either mindlessly whittling away at health bars or getting frustrated at enemies—like, say, Talons—that require rigid tactics to defeat. 

Gotham Knights at least shines in its main missions, as it honors Arkham City legacy. For example, as Batgirl, I scanned clues in a college laboratory and used logic to solve the mystery. I then beat up a bunch of dudes on campus. There aren’t many main missions, but they’re lengthy. In fact, they resemble the dungeons you'd find in a traditional fantasy-RPG. Gotham Knights also supports online co-op for two players. It's largely the same game, except that you can play the entire campaign with a friend. Certain perks are only useful in this cooperative context, such as buffs that activate when you assist your teammate. A four-player challenge mode is also in the works.

New Bat Console, Same Bat Channel

I played Gotham Knights on an Xbox Series S, and while I wasn’t blown away by next-gen visuals, I also didn’t encounter technical problems aside from a single crash. There’s a bit of sluggishness to fighting and moving, but I blame that more on the design itself rather than the stable, 30-frames-per-second play.

Gotham City is a bit more visually subdued than the Arkham games' neon nightmare, but it has plenty of gothic charm. The same goes for the characters; they’re all recognizable, even as you equip increasingly elaborate gear. The soundtrack sounds like what you expect when you close your eyes and imagine “Batman music.” The presentation sells the superhero fantasy—the main reason anyone would want this game.

For the Biggest Bat Fans Only

Modern game developers have deviously exploited the fact that some people will stay with a game simply to watch numbers go up in an open world; especially if that open world has loot crafting and co-op multiplayer action. Gotham Knights dutifully recreates this formula with workmanlike, almost joyless efficiency, but gets points for wrapping the whole thing in a mildly entertaining comic book wrapper. Batman casts a long shadow, both for his sidekicks and for his video games, but Gotham Knights doesn't quite earn the mantle.   

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