Batman: Arkham Knight

[The_Rev]

Woosh.

[samjp26]

I do get what you're saying though and its an awfully unoriginal name, personally I think its risky making up some new bad guy, with the reasoning being that none of the other bad guys can do Batman any damage.

 

Dangerous move.

[Wainy316]

Are they just trying to combine as many batman titles as possible? The next game will be called 'The Asylum Rises - and Robin'

Edited March 6, 2014 by Wainy316

[Nigel]

 

although it will likely not be the last Batman game, so expect another one from WB Games Montreal who developed Arkham Origins

 

Trust Warner to try and screw up this news!

Edited March 13, 2014 by Nigel

[Ghost]

The Arkham Knight:

 

[Nigel]

 

Batman: Arkham Knight first look preview – Batmobile test drive

Thursday 27 Mar 2014 7:00 am

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Batman: Arkham Knight – only on next gen

CLICK HERE FOR OUR INTERVIEW WITH BATMAN: ARKHAM KNIGHT’S DAX GINN

By the time Arkham Knight comes out this autumn it should be physically impossible for anyone with access to the Internet not to know you get to drive the Batmobile in it. Warner Bros. are already shouting about the feature (literally in the preview we just attended, which sounded like it was being narrated by a Brazilian football commentator) and we’re sure the marketing din is only going to get louder as the release date gets nearer.

But it is a feature worth getting excited about, and as one of the first major franchises to go next gen-only Arkham Knight is an important milestone for console gaming. We haven’t been able to play the game yet – nobody has outside of developer Rocksteady – but we did get to watch 30 minutes of live gameplay, and see the game’s graphics for ourselves.

Although the announcement trailer was criticised for being pre-rendered the actual in-game visuals are very close to the same quality, at least for the buildings and backdrops. The whole of Gotham City is available to explore this time, with a game world five times larger than Arkham City. That’s still not that big compared to other open world games but the attention to detail is staggering… although unfortunately so too is the frame rate.

At times the game almost slowed to a juddering stop, which explains why they wouldn’t let anyone else play it, but given how far away from release it is that’s not really a concern. Although it was interesting how Rocksteady never referred to this fact or the obviously unfinished artificial intelligence (at one point a bad guy gets stuck running into a wall and the person playing just tries to pan the camera down so no-one can see).

And yet the fact that the game already looks so amazing at this early stage is all the more impressive, as we’re shown an introductory mission where Batman starts atop a tower looking out over Gotham. It’s raining heavily and as the raindrops run down his cowl and across his cape you get a feel for just how cinematic the game looks even when you’re only standing still and panning the camera.

As Batman jumps down and begins gliding the lighting system is revealed in all its glory, as a helicopter search light briefly bounces off his cape and the neon signs of Chinatown are reflected in exacting detail. The guy playing is clearly an expert at getting the most out of Batman’s gliding technique, as he uses the occasional grapple onto buildings to boost himself higher into the air. On top of this one of the new features of Arkham Knight is being able to use any gadget while in mid-air.

Batman: Arkham Knight – the actual Arkham Knight doesn’t seem to like Batman

To illustrate this he fires the line launcher, which creates a horizontal rope line between two buildings that Batman can perch on as he watches a crowd of villains beat up on a police officer. The story of the game is set a year after Arkham City, and with The Joker out of the way the Scarecrow has risen to prominence. As the game starts he threatens to detonate his fear toxin across the whole city, causing all of the civilians to be evacuated.

As we later confirmed with Rocksteady’s Dax Ginn, this is to create a story explanation for why the streets of Gotham are empty of normal traffic, allowing you to do whatever you want with the Batmobile. But what it also means is that apart from the odd policeman there’s almost no ordinary people left in the city. So while Ginn insists that this is the ‘ultimate’ Batman experience we’re not sure we really agree: swooping down to stop a mugging or bank heist is a key part of the vigilante fantasy and it doesn’t seem to be present in this game at all.

As great as Arkham City was, and as Arkham Knight appears to be, its set-up is extremely abstract and basically places Batman in an artificial setting in which he’s not protecting a functioning city but an empty shell full of only supervillians and their goons. But while that still means there’s more to do for future games we have a suspicion that most people aren’t going to care once they get their hands on the controls.

Taking down the cannon fodder beating up the policeman barely breaks a sweat for the Dark Knight, especially as we’re shown him targeting and throwing multiple batarangs while leaping down from the line launcher. But once Batman gets a bit of exposition from the cop about a mysterious military vehicle he calls in the real the star of the show: the Batmobile.

You can call in Batman’s wheels at any time and from any place, as it automatically homes in on your position. The design is primarily inspired by the Tumbler from the Christopher Nolan films, and although it looks a little more Batman-esque than that design, with some small fins at the back, it operates in a very similar manner. Indeed its sudden appearances, as it smashes through walls to get to you, are very reminiscent of the car park sequence at the beginning of The Dark Knight.

Batman: Arkham Knight – Gordon isn’t going to be happy when he finds out his daughter isn’t safe

As the Rocksteady guy starts driving around looking for the military vehicle you realise just how much destructible scenery the game has at street level, as the Batmobile bursts through concrete walls, drives straight through parked cars, and demolishes kiosks and roadside objects. Driving on the road is not required at all and short cuts up stairs and across pedestrian areas is actively encouraged.

Taking out the military vehicle with an ‘immobilizer’ rocket proves very easy and after interrogating the badly injured driver Batman moves onto trying to track down The Riddler. An informant is holding out in a nearby building and to get into it Batman drives up in the Batmobile and uses the ejector seat to shoot himself into the air and then smash down through the skylight. Naturally enough the informant gives up the location of The Riddler, who has now switched to setting driving challenges for Batman.

That doesn’t seem to make much sense even for a comic book villain but the course does look great. It’s also unexpectedly reminiscent of PS one favourite Rollcage, as the Batmobile gets up enough speed to drive on the walls and even on the ceiling. There’s also a neat trick in that you have control of colour-coded gates and platforms which you have to activate and alternate between in order to clear the way or create a path to drive across.

As before The Riddler sections seem to be optional extras and as Rocksteady go back to the story missions Batman is told to meet his confident and intelligence procider Oracle at the Gotham Clock Tower. Bat-fans will know that Oracle is Commissioner Gordon’s daughter and the former Batgirl, who was put in a wheelchair by The Joker. Her lying to Gordon about evacuating the city, and Batman keeping the fact secret, seems to be a key plot point in the game.

Oracle’s hideout is filled with fan service, including a poster for the Gray Ghost and a bust of Shakespeare which, in a nod to the ’60s TV show, activates the tower’s bat-gadgets. The pair are trying to trying to track down where Scarecrow is manufacturing his fear toxin and a lead involves hacking a satellite antenna down at the docks, guarded by a trio of goons.

We don’t see much of the game’s x-ray vision detective mode in the demo (Ginn later implies to us in our interview that this is because of a currently secret new feature) but Batman switches it on to creep under a grating and get ready to activate a ‘fear takedown’. This involves him leaping out of the floor and taking down the three heavily armed lackeys at the same time. This is a new feature for the game, but why it’s called a ‘fear’ takedown is left unexplained.

After hacking the antenna and exiting the building Batman is then jumped on by the gun-welding Arkham Knight, a new villain created specifically for the game and positioned as a sort of anti-Batman, with a similar suit (including what look like bat ears) and skill level. Ginn immediately tells everyone not to bother asking any questions about him though, as nothing else is being revealed at the moment.

They’ve shown plenty enough already though and although it may still fall short of being the perfect Batman game it certainly looks like being one of the most exciting next gen games of the year.

[hogso]

Release delayed until 2015, apparently

Edited April 23, 2014 by hogso

[8pints]

Release delayed until 2015, apparently

 

[hogso]

Release delayed until 2015, apparently

Don't worry, it'll be better this way!

[8pints]

 

 

Release delayed until 2015, apparently

Don't worry, it'll be better this way!

 

 

 

...Someone should create a 'Batman' Thread in Off Topic....

[hogso]

Release delayed until 2015, apparently

Don't worry, it'll be better this way!

...Someone should create a 'Batman' Thread in Off Topic....

Only if there is a comics one and a games/movies one. Cos if someone were to post comic spoilers when I haven't read the comics, then oh man, just, don't even think about it buddy

[Nigel]

 

 

 

Release delayed until 2015, apparently

Don't worry, it'll be better this way!

 

 

 

...Someone should create a 'Batman' Thread in Off Topic....

 

It would only turn into a Lambert argument!

[Ginko]

Aw that sucks. I was looking forward to October...

[hogso]

First trailer

http://youtu.be/wCea8U0yoxI

Looks alright.

[vandaq]

Gameplay trailer = 4 seconds gameplay and 2 minutes with cut scenes.

 

Looks great, finally the batmobile as well 

[Rino8]

I dunno how much the Batmobile will be used in the game though, the city won't have traffic and it's probably going to be quite compact. Probably more mission specific

[villarule123]

No delay then?

[vandaq]

I dunno how much the Batmobile will be used in the game though, the city won't have traffic and it's probably going to be quite compact. Probably more mission specific

Maybe, but considering how you can jump out of it at any time, and they show him bring it up one would suspect that it might work like that. Then again that means the total layout would have to be different in the city so who knows. They will probably show or at least talk more about it when E3 comes.  It's still UE3, so I wonder how big of an improvement we are looking at here. I just hope they fix that annoying "grab your head" when you knock out an enemy. Real immersion breaker as they to it every time.

 

In fact, just looked up on wikipedia about the batmobile

 

 

The game introduces Batman's car, the Batmobile, as a drivable vehicle.The bulletproof Batmobile can be summoned to the player's location at will, while on foot or, if airborne, the car can be sent to meet Batman as he lands. The vehicle features the ability to perform jumps, speed boosts, rotate on the spot, smash through objects like barricades and trees, and fire missiles that can immobilize enemy vehicles. At specific locations, Batman can eject from the Batmobile and immediately begin gliding around Gotham City^. Some enemies will run away at the sight of the vehicle, eliminating the need for Batman to fight them, and enemies attacking the car can be subdued by its automated taser defenses. Like Batman, the Batmobile can be upgraded with new abilities. Riddler Trophies return, now including objectives requiring the Batmobile, such as a timed race in an underground tunnel that uses radar pulses to change parts of the track.

[Nigel]

That there is a reason to get a ps4!

[ender4]

So i have a PS3 and i've never played any of the Batman series.

 

What type of game are they?

FPS, 3rd person?

action or puzzle?

shooting or melee/combo fighting?

 

What other big game would you compare it to, in terms of gameplay?

 

Should i start at Arkham Asylum, or is that now just too old?