After the fall of Arkham City and the absence of one of its least-celebrated sons, Batman, Gotham’s streets are somewhat at peace. However, the peace doesn’t prevail for long when the Scarecrow threatens a reign of toxin-induced terror upon its residents.
The titular Arkham Knight is has unleashed a hyper-militarized force upon Gotham City and hero is once again designated with the duty of bringing order to this disorderly city in the brink of complete annihilation. In its predecessor, we saw a minutely detailed Arkham City but Rocksteady has now taken the full-advantage of next-generation hardware in order to create a Gotham that is alive and around five times the size of its predecessor.
Various signature-Batman moves like grappling off buildings under the neon-lit skies of Gotham and soaring through vantage points in the dark is as satisfying as ever. Furthermore, things like the drivable Batmobile and the geographically-increased map is a further proof, that Batman: Arkham Knight is the perfect Batman simulator.
The scope of Rocksteady’s latest creation has increased considerably but the frame rates and texture details are perfect and controlling Batman is as fluidic as ever. This was all possible thanks to the free-flow combat system that was furnished to perfection and designed competently for the fourth installment in this franchise.
There are a large number of button combinations that you can execute during a single encounter. However, it comes after maxing out the extensive upgrade-perk system. There were a lot of moves in the earlier Batman installments but the latest version brings a new level of freshness and satisfaction to the stealth and melee aspects, thanks to the variety of methods available in delivering a good Bat-beating.
The ultimate statement in Batman: Arkham Knight is the addition of a Batmobile. It appears to be a combination of Christopher Nolan’s tank-tumbler and conventional streamlined vehicle of the Batman Comics.
To the Batman fans of today, the Batmobile serves as an excellent addition. Blasting around sharp bends and flying off ramps in a literal war-machine is thrilling to say the least. At the same time, creating chaos isn’t its ultimate objective.
You need to stealthily make your way through dark alleys while evading one-hit kill juggernauts and engaging in strafe battles with huge number of drones in a combat-mode. While the Batmobile is a fresh addition, it somehow diminishes the tagline of this title: ‘Be the Batman’.