Batman Games To Play While You Wait for Gotham Knights

In the meantime, we’ve got a few other fantastic Batman games that you can play to immerse yourself in the gloomy world of Gotham’s criminal underworld.

Why not start off with the game that launched the massively popular and critically acclaimed Arkham series? Originally released in 2009, Batman: Arkham Asylum features the Caped Crusader delivering his nemesis, the Joker, to the titular Arkham Asylum. With the capture being part of his dastardly plan, Joker overthrows the Asylum security and, with Harley Quinn’s help, takes Commissioner Gordon captive. Batman: Arkham Asylum allows players to not only utilise Batman’s brutal fighting abilities, but to truly play the World’s Greatest Detective using Batman’s forensic toolkit to tackle puzzles. Included in the Game of the Year Edition are 4 extra Challenge Maps to extend the fun.

Next on the docket is the vast Batman: Arkham City. Presenting players with the massive Arkham City, a map five times bigger than the previous title’s Arkham Asylum, you can dive, grapple, and glide to traverse the game world. Stuck in the super-prison facility of Arkham City, consisting of a cordoned off portion of Old Gotham, players control the Dark Knight as he attempts to control the disorder that builds on the streets, whilst also trying to uncover warden Hugo Strange's scheme. With further detective tools available and an improved version of Arkham Asylum’s fluid combat system, Batman: Arkham City is a must-play for any Batman fan. The Game of the Year Edition includes a whole load of DLC, with new maps, gameplay content, and Batman skins, as well as new playable characters Robin, Catwoman, and Nightwing, meaning you can get a taste of a couple of the Gotham Knights heroes.

If the previous Arkham games weren’t immersive enough for you, why not have a go at playing directly through the eyes of Batman himself? Having to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Robin and Nightwing, you take control of Batman as he recreates crime scenes with his forensic scanner, as well as interact with his immediate surroundings with the help of his trusty Batarang and grappling hook. It is worth noting that this title is devoid of the combat from previous Arkham titles, instead allowing you to flex your detective sleuthing skills to uncover the mystery at hand.

The thrilling conclusion of developer Rocksteady’s Arkham trilogy, Batman: Arkham Knight ups the ante by allowing you free rein across the entire city of Gotham. Once again you can grapple and glide across rooftops, but now you finally have access to the Batmobile, adding an extra option for traversal across the expansive city. Continuing the story after Batman: Arkham City, Batman is under fire from the enigmatic Arkham Knight who has united several of Batman’s most devious enemies to destroy him, all the while attempting to save Gotham City from Scarecrow’s new fear toxin. With an even more expanded combat system, the new ability to utilise gadgets whilst gliding around the city, as well as a slew of side-missions, Batman: Arkham Knight is bound to keep you entertained well up to the release of Gotham Knights.

With a mass breakout at Arkham Asylum, Batman and Robin have to work quickly to save Gotham City from the Dynamic Duo’s sizeable Rogues’ Gallery. Although a tonal break from the mainline Arkham series, LEGO Batman offers a fun story coupled with the timeless and widely-enjoyed LEGO action-adventure gameplay. This title gives you the option to play the story as both heroes and villains, meaning you have access to a wide variety of characters to get yourself familiar with. 

There’s plenty of choice for Batman experiences to tide you over until the release of Gotham Knights. Do you feel like you have what it takes to clean up Gotham?