As Ed detailed in his review earlier this week, Gotham Knights is a bit of a disappointing dud. I've also been picking my way through Gotham City as various members of the bat family, weightlessly punching dudes in alleys before crafting new sticks that hit 2% harder than the one I was using before. Despite a relatively good looking rendition of the iconic gothic metropolis and a pretty engaging story, Gotham Knights ultimately failed to capture my imagination.
It didn't help that throughout my time with Gotham Knights, I was thinking about the Arkham series. Rocksteady's trio of Batman-em-ups are essential superhero games, titles that redefined the genre and provided a template that still feels contemporary to this day. Aslyum, City and Knight fully immerse you in the Batman fantasy, successfully crafting a depiction of the caped crusader that was deadly, capable and - perhaps best of all - human.
]]>I'm a big fan of shared, collective funtimes, so I must lay flowers at the feet of posters on the Batman Arkham subreddit (maybe not flowers; like, bat-themed knives and big stompy boots. I don't know, what does Batman like?). A couple of weeks ago, with no new mainline Arkham game since 2015's Arkham Knight, they started discussing Batman: Arkham World, a fourth game in the series that came out in 2021. Except, of course, it does not exist.
]]>In the giant jumbled word cloud of all my qualities and traits, I'm willing to bet that "pluviophile" would be one of the biggest words. I adore rain. Whenever it starts, I tend to drop whatever I'm doing - work, dishes, significant other - and I'll be out frolicking in the downpour before they've hit the floor.
Because I love rain so much, I hold games to an almost unfair standard when it comes to the simulation of precipitation. How in the world can a videogame come close to emulating that wonderful, transcendental feeling of being outside in the middle of a thunderstorm? The answer is, it can't. Games have to rely on other things, like textures, sounds, and clever little animations to really sell the idea of being out amongst the H₂s and the Os.
The time has come, fellow pluviophiles. It's time to grade the very best rain that PC gaming has to offer. Below you'll find our eight worthy contenders. Each has been chosen for their spectacular rendition of one of nature's greatest phenomena. Each one shall be marked according to my patented and cutting-edge WIPERS grading system for digital rain. So drop what you're doing. It's time to frolick. No umbrella required.
]]>Ultrawide gaming monitors can seem excessive compared to regular 16:9 gaming screens, especially when their demanding resolutions often require powerful and expensive graphics cards to make the most of them. Once you try one, though, there's no going back. I've been a big fan of ultrawide gaming monitors for years now, as their extra screen space not only makes them great for juggling multiple desktop windows, but supported PC games also look uttery fantastic on them - and to prove it, I've put together this list of the best ultrawide games on PC.
]]>Rocksteady Studios, the creators the Batman: Arkham games and the newly-announced Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, on Friday night issued a response to the week's reports of sexual harrassment and discrimination. These allegations stemmed from a 2018 letter of complaint written to management by most of their female employees, one of whom felt the company hadn't done enough since then and shared the letter with a newspaper. Rocksteady say they investigated all formal complaints and disciplined or terminated some staff back then, and now have called in a independent third-party to help investigate any potential further complaints.
]]>Update: Rocksteady issued a full, proper response on Friday.
Follow recent reports that Rocksteady Studios failed to sufficiently address sexual harrassment, the Batman: Arkham developers have responded in a most curious way. While they have yet to issue a public statement themselves, they have posted an "unsolicited letter" from some of the employees behind the 2018 letter which first raised the issues. The new letter's writers say they think Rocksteady have been better than was alleged. But without meaningfully addressing the allegations themselves, Rocksteady just casually posted that letter on Twitter. That makes it their first public response and defence, a purpose for which the letter is woefully inappropriate and inadequate. This is: mystifying.
]]>Update: Many of the women who signed the original letter have now said that Rocksteady have improved more than The Guardian's account suggested, though the company have handled this in a weird and inappropriate way. Thennn on Friday Rocksteady finally posted a proper response.
In November 2018, the majority of the female employees at Batman: Arkham studio Rocksteady reportedly signed a letter raising issues of sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. Since then, a Guardian report says, things haven't changed enough. In light of this, the former senior writer of Rocksteady's upcoming Suicide Squad game - who was behind that 2018 letter - has asked Rocksteady to take her name off it.
]]>From an early age, humans know that if they want to be taken seriously, they must learn how to deliver a convincing car noise. Vrrrrummm, they might say. Or perhaps: brrrrrr-bp-brrr. These are the nascent efforts of the budding speed freak, and they must be respected. But once again the realm of videogames encroaches upon the germinal life of the human with pitiless velocity. Car games put a stop to make-believe noise, and introduce fully realised cars on a screen, ready for the racing, shiny bonnets and vrrrrummm noises included. Thus, the imagination dies, and these, the 10 best cars in PC games, are born. Beep beep.
]]>The last ten years have brought us many joys. We've already celebrated the best games of the past decade, but with such scattergun nomination comes neglect. Only three of the fifty games we picked had grappling hooks, so clearly the entire endeavour was pointless and you will need an alternative resource.
Here's my definitive guide to the swinging tenties. I haven't mentioned Worms, because they get everywhere and I don't want to spend my whole day talking about helminths.
]]>Light the candles, roast the goose, Father Epic has come to town. Bearing gifts of cost-free games, he's telling tale of a masked menace from a far-off metropolis. Clad in black and the cowl of a bat - what delightful nonsense! For the younger children, a toy-like series of marvels await in the Lego Batman trilogy. Ah, and for you older rascals, the Arkham series awaits with a devilish tale of detectives, criminals and fast-flying fists. But make up your mind quick, there's only a week to spare.
]]>Today's Humble Bundle - probably the PC gaming deal of the day - contains a lot of grimdark Bat-biffery, and a few surprises on the side. Seven games for (up to) $12, mostly comics-themed, but with some underappreciated stuff in there. Plus, the incongruously bright Bastion and the wildly weird and happy Scribblenauts Unlimited, all capped off with the complete edition of Batman: Arkham Knight (which I reckon has grown past a lot of the flak it caught at launch) at the top tier. Below, trailers both cheerful and bat-grumpy, and some thoughts on the games included.
]]>Have You Played? is an endless stream of game retrospectives. One a day, every day of the year, perhaps for all time.
Maybe it's the E3 scent in the air or maybe it's just that I'm craving some big budget biffing, but I'm missing my favourite Multiple-A franchises right now. The Arkham games in particular. Oh, to be the bat-like man once more.
]]>A few hours into Arkham Asylum [official site], I thought Batman's cape was glitching. It does occasionally catch on railings if you brood-squat at an odd angle, but this was different; an occasional flash of colour in the gloom of the garment* caught my eye and I thought Bats' big old utility belt was glitching through the cape. But, no, the cape had been torn and as the long night in Arkham continued, Batman's beatings would make marks all over his suit.
More importantly, he gets a heck of a five o'clock shadow.
]]>After leaving goggheads mumbling "Na na na na na na na nah really mate, thanks for giving us a go on your goggs" on PlayStation, Batman: Arkham VR [official site] is coming to PC. Arkham VR will be on Oculus Rift and HTC Vive cybergoggles on April 25th, Warner Bros. announced today. It lets players see through Batman's Bateyes and engage in Batdetective work using Batgadgets to solve Batmysteries - all in a Batnight's work. Batpeep this Batrailer:
]]>This is some kind of sick joke, isn't it?
]]>Oh dear. It's a shame that Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] has been such a mess on PC because it is a pretty fun game. But it was pulled from sale the day after launching due to its awful performance, took five months to relaunch, and was still a bit wonky after that. That'll sour impressions a touch. Now Arkham Knight's planned Mac and Linux versions are cancelled. Even though Batman himself digs *nix! Oh dear.
]]>There was much confused rejoicing earlier this month at news that the honest-to-God Alien (and also Leatherface, but whatever) was becoming a fighter in Mortal Kombat X [official site], but now there is even more confused snarling. It turns out that only the konsole I'm so sorry, console versions of the game will be receiving the Kombat Pack 2 DLC which contains the new chaps. The PC will also be denied the Mortal Kombat XL bundle-o-pack. It's an as-yet unexplained and perhaps unwise move from Warner, the publisher already accused of unduly mucking PC-folk around with that very messy Arkham Knight port.
Even Batman wants to simply kick back at Wayne Manor over Christmas in his Batdressing gown and Batslippers (they're just hollowed-out flying foxes, I hear), so Rocksteady Studios have wrapped up Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] with a few days to spare. The final load of DLC is out today - and I do mean load. The core of it all is the 'Season of Infamy: Most Wanted' gubbins, four new missions starring big ole Batvillains, but there are also new gobs of challenge maps and costumes from movies and comics and things. Merry Batchristmas!
]]>Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] returned to sale in October, after months of work fixing the poor performance that saw it pulled from sale. It was still wonky. That's a shame, becase it's a pretty good game according to our Adam. Work still continues, and this week has brought another patch which fixes more things but, apparently, still has issues.
]]>I've long felt that multi-GPU systems are playing with expensive fire, and even worse can, like audiophilia, lead to an anxious, ongoing preoccupation with whether you have the 'best' at the expense of actually enjoying what you're playing/hearing. Even so, I sympathise with people who invested both money and time into their SLI or Crossfire setups, only to now be told that one of the biggest games of the year will effectively never support 'em. Warners/Rocksteady have officially thrown in the towel for Batman: Arkham Knight [official site]'s errant multi-GPU performance.
]]>UPDATE: Green Man Gaming will also be honouring full refunds until the end of 2015. I've updated the article to reflect this.
Warner Bros have announced they will offer a full refund to Steam owners of their troubled PC port of Batman: Arkham Knight [official site].
"Until the end of 2015, we will be offering a full refund on Batman: Arkham Knight PC, regardless of how long you have played the product," announced the company on the game's Steam page. I'm flagging up the Steam stuff because it looks like this is an offer or an attempt at damage limitation which relies on Steam's refund system.
]]>There's been so much talk about Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] but one question has been left unanswered, at least round these parts. Is it any good? While the game was unavailable, there seemed little point in telling you Wot I Think but I did in fact play this latest Batventure in its entirety when it first released. I was mid-way through my introductory review paragraph when Warner pulled the game from digital shelves. It'd be dishonest to pretend that my thinking about the game hasn't changed in the months since – I enjoyed it much more in the moment than my memory allows me to believe – but on one point I still stand against the critical tide.
I love Rocksteady's Batmobile.
]]>Last night's re-release of the troubled PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] tries to fix two things: one is the misbehaving technology, and the other is the reputation. The game was pulled off Steam in June after a torrent of complaints, refund requests and negative customer reviews. No doubt its makers had hoped the Steam reviews would turn positive come this much-anticipated update, but it seems the opposite is happening - the new version has new problems, and the negative reviews are pouring in once again.
]]>So, let's try this again. After a three and a half month hiatus, Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] is now available on Steam again. It was pulled off sale in July after criticisms of the PC version's poor performance reached fever pitch, but I don't think any of us really expected it would take this long to return. But now it has, along with all the DLC released for the untroubled console versions in the meantime. Warner are also offering all previous Arkham games for free to folk who purchased Arkham Knight between its initial release and November 16, along with a forthcoming Community Challenge Pack DLC and "Batman: Arkham inspired Team Fortress 2 items created by the Batman: Arkham community."
The re-release hasn't gone completely smoothly, however. SLI and Crossfire aren't playing nice, and some folk with single GPUs are even reporting issues on newer drivers. Meanwhile, "For Windows 10 users, we’ve found that having at least 12GB of system RAM on a PC allows the game to operate without paging and provides a smoother gameplay experience." Holy high disposable incomes, Batman - 12 Gigabytes?
]]>Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] will be re-released on October 28th, just over four months after it was pulled from sale for launching with big performance problems, publishers Warner Bros. announced today. After months of interim patches fixing it up for folks who bought it while it was available, they're planning one big final patch including extra content that has since arrived for console versions.
]]>Bam! Bif! Pow! Those noises and more may finally emerge from your computer at the end of this month when Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] finally really for real reals will be fixed enough to be re-released. Its delayed DLC will arrive then too.
This isn't much more specific than the last update from Warner Bros. on their broken game, but it's at least a relatively firm time. Just in time for folks to be distracted by shiny new end-of-year mega-franchise releases like Fallout 4, Assassin's Creed Syndicate, Cod Blops 3, and StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void.
]]>"Coo-ee! Is that the Batcar from the Batfilms?" you might wonder. "That'll be more Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] DLC, I'm sure," you'll intuit, and I'll be both impressed and a bit weirded out by your adherence to RPS formatting. "But what does this matter to us when the game still isn't back on sale on PC?" I'm glad you asked!
The announcement of yet more Batknight DLC has also brought the clearest indication we've had of when the game's performance woes will be fixed and it'll be released again: "in the coming weeks."
]]>Once a week most weeks, the RPS hivemind gathers to discuss An Issue. Sometimes it’s controversial news, sometimes it’s a particular game, sometimes it’s favourite things and least favourite things, sometimes a perennial talking point. This week, off the back of most of us being obsessed with Metal Gear Solid V, we're talking about open world, or sandbox games. Big map, go where you please, kill or don't kill - the GTA, Assassin's Creed and Far Cry formula. And it's very much a formula now. How do we feel about that? Has the promise of earlier open world games such as the first few Elder Scrolls been lost? And just why are we apparently giving MGSV a free pass given we often roll our eyes as Assassin's Creed?
]]>The thing about Batman, people have repeatedly told me in pubs, is that he can overcome any situation and anyone because he plans for everything. Confirming that Warner Bros. are not run by an billionaire who gets his jollies wearing a wacky costume to beat up poor people, the launch of Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] was such a shambles WB pulled the game from sale, and their recovery plan has gone awry too.
After a delay, and a too-early launch-then-unlaunch this week, one of the planned performance-boosting patches is properly out. The game's still not back on sale.
]]>Remember when Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] was released? Yeah, the memory's a bit hazy to me too. Warner Bros. pulled the game from sale two months ago due to its shoddy performance, and still have no clear idea when it might relaunch - though it seems it'll be longer than expected (and planned).
Warner Bros. had planned to release an "interim" patch in August to improve performance for folks who managed to buy the game before it was yanked, but their latest community update makes that seem unlikely. That patch only entered testing last week, with WB saying they hope to launch it "in the next few weeks".
]]>Rumour has it that the decrepit Arkham Knight port beat a retreat on account of Steam refunds. After all, what better way to get a dastardly developer to blush and shuffle its hooves than to reverse its cash flow? Until June, when no-questions-asked refunds came into force, such a feat was impossible. Perhaps, after years of pro-consumer jabs at Microsoft and other corporates, Valve sought to make a material gesture that player interests are truly the heart of the Steam empire. Or perhaps they dislike being sued. Hint: they are currently being sued.
By now, you’ve likely encountered a shop and have a reasonable feeling about how refunds should work: if it doesn’t do what it’s meant to, you take it back. Nothing could be simpler. Refunds for digital products – or, as is often the case, licenses for digital products – are a legal hellscape of false assertions and misinformation, in large part a product of outdated legislation that no one is keen to test in court. To sift through the muck, I got in touch with Ryan Morrison, founder of the New York law firm by the same name (and no relation of mine this side of the 17th century). Whether you’re European, Stateside or in the wrong hemisphere altogether, here’s the plain English version of where and through which service your purchases are best protected and why some retailers still risk refusing refunds.
]]>Zam! Biff! Pow! Bap! Awk! Boff! Flrbbbbb! Vronk! Zlott! Zlonk! Swa-a-p! Crunch-eth! These onomatopoeias and more are the sounds that have surely filled meeting rooms at Warner Bros. since the disastrous PC launch of Batman: Arkham Knight [official site]. Almost four weeks after pulling the game from sale until they'd fixed it up, it seems WB and Rocksteady are still a fair way off bringing it back.
The next patch for folks who bought Bats before he was sent to the Batcave's naughty step will arrive in August, WB have announced. This is described as an "interim patch update", which suggests that The Big One is still lurking in the future beyond.
]]>Given that Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] is not yet back on sale, after publishers Warner Bros. pulled it from stores due to shonky performance, it's no surprise that its DLC is being delayed. That is, however, now official. While next week will bring Batgirl and her own brand of Batbiffing to console versions in the Batgirl: A Matter of Family DLC, it's delayed indefinitely on PC.
Warner Bros. have apologised again for the game's shoddy state. "We are taking full responsibility for releasing a product that did not meet our quality standards", they say. "We are modifying the internal review process for all of our games," they say. As they jolly well should.
]]>The first in a new (hopefully) weekly series, in which the RPS hivemind gathers to discuss/bicker about/mock the most pressing (or at least noisiest) issues in PCgamingland right now. Hot Takes are go.
Alec: It will surprise literally no-one to hear that we are discussing Bat-Like Man: Arkham Kerrnigut and its somewhat disastrous PC port, which while technically last week’s news remains this week’s news because every fecker’s still talking about it. Including us.
I guess the first thing to ask is if y’all think its publisher pulling it off sale was GOOD THING or WHAT THE HELL THING?
]]>Rumours are shifty things, and we should recognise that we're more inclined to trust ones which support our existing opinions. That said, I TOLD YOU SO. A mate of Ian Video Games has told Kotaku that publishers Warner Bros. knew for ages that the PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] was wonky - it's bad enough that WB have pulled it from sale while it's being fixed - but released it anyway.
]]>Okay, so the PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] was so shoddy that Warner Bros have temporarily removed it from sale. That doesn't mean those of you playing despite the temperamental frame rate and occasional freeze can't enjoy a little something not available on console, namely, a mod which allows you to play as ten characters other than Batman, from Harley Quinn to Jim Gordon. Even if Harley Quinn: Arkham Knight doesn't have quite the same ring to it.
]]>I would have preferred it if Warner Bros. had decided not to release Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] in a wonky state rather than chuck it out then quickly pull it from sale and throw people who've just finished a game back to crunching. But they're the publisher we need right now, not the one we deserve (and by "need" I mean "personally benefit from").
Saturday brought the release of a small patch for the Batgame, along with a list of what developers Rocksteady (who're leading patch development, not the folks who ported it) plan to tackle next. It's a list of fairly important things.
]]>I doubt we'll hear news of exactly how and when harmony will be restored to Gotham City for a few days yet, but after yesterday's shock withdrawal from Steam, it does at least appear that all hands are on deck to rescue Arkham Knight PC from its doldrums. Rocksteady big boss Sefton Hill has confirmed that his studio is pitching in, rather than leaving it in the hands of initial PC porter Iron Galaxy, and even revealed that console updates are on the back burner until the wonkily-performing PC port's in hand again.
]]>In an absolutely extraordinary move, Warner Bros. have announced they're to stop selling Batman: Arkham Knight on PC until they've fixed the massive technical issues so many are having. Posting to their forum, they stated, "We take these issues very seriously and have therefore decided to suspend future game sales of the PC version while we work to address these issues to satisfy our quality standards."
]]>The wailing and gnashing of teeth regarding Batman: Arkham Kerniggut's PC port continues, as the publisher/developer's first attempt to improve matters involves essentially telling everyone to turn all the settings right down for the time being, then make do with a game running in 720 at 30 frames per second. Oy gevalt.
So, hardware which many feel should be capable of running the game with most of its bells and whistles on is now deemed capable only of much lower settings, and ones which fall a long way short of the console version. This might be but a short-term measure, but it does feel a little like being told to eat your posh dinner off a paper plate.
]]>We didn't have Batcode for Batman: Arkham Kerniggut [official site] until yesterday (perhaps because of issues with the PC version), so Adam's full verdict is a little way off yet, but as both he and Alec have been playing it when they can, they had a chat about what's working and not working in their experiences so far. Does the transforming, deathdealing Batmobile open up or limit the Batman simulation? Could the wonky voice-acting be deliberate? Can a mere human really hope to master all those combos? All these things and more are dicussed, but one thing that isn't is the kerfuffle about performance problems in the PC version of the game. We wrote plenty about that yesterday, so wanted to concentrate on the game itself for this particular piece.
]]>Batman: Arkham Kerniggut [official site] is, by all accounts, a pretty good videogame with a pretty shonky PC port. Everyone on RPS who's tried it has had framerate issues of varying degrees - I think I got off lightest, but my FPS is still all over the place to the extent that I'll probably shelve it and wait for a patch or driver update - and the internet's very much doing its internet thing about it. At least devs Rocksteady have now 'fessed up to there being problems with the release build, though reveal that an "external PC development partner" is involved.
]]>Edit: Further in-house RPS testing is inconclusive. I've rolled back my Nvidia drivers to the previous release and now have a steady framerate (with Gameworks switched on and settings maxed) until I hit a Batmobile sequence, at which point I'm experiencing dips seemingly at random. Alec, on similar hardware, is using the latest drivers and having a better experience., though still has Batmobile problems. John is on AMD - we'll check back with him soon.
There was no pre-release PC code for Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] so I started the crusade through another long Halloween early this morning to bring you a full judgement as soon as possible. As I loaded the game, I spotted the "mostly negative" regarding Steam reviews and resolved to pay close attention to any stuttering, glitches or other technical issues. Close attention wasn't necessary.
Even half an hour into the game, I'm seeing the framerate fluctuate wildly, even during cutscenes. The benchmark test (which reports highs of 47fps even though the game itself is locked to 30) reckons my average fps is 38 but with single digit lows. Once the game starts, the framerate is about as steady as Harvey Dent's moodswings.
]]>Did you know that Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] is out today? You did? Then Warner Bros’ marketing budget has been vindicated. Did you you know that the early Steam reviews suggest that the PC port has serious bugs and performance issues? You did? Good.
Adam is playing it now and should have more detail shortly [Update: here is more detail]. In the meantime, here's a launch trailer for the game with all its leather clad bombast.
]]>Well now, someone wants to be making Bioshock games instead of superhero games, don't they? This trailer for this year's Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] does a number of unusual things. Like be in first-person, like star someone other than Batman (a Gotham cop who sounds an awful lot like Breaking Bad's Mike Ehrmantraut to my ears), like be kind of a shooter, and like depict a retro-futurist city collapse into zombieish chaos as period music plays. HMM.
]]>Watching the latest gameplay trailer for Batman: Arkham Knight [official site], I've come to a realisation: the Gotham I'd like a Batman game set in is from Joel Schumacher's Batman & Robin.
This new trailer has Batman fly, leap, and drive around town, see, and though it has some nice detailing and neon signs, it's all a bit drab, I want the city to rise a mile high, skyscrapers pierced with roads atop the shoulders of colossi, lurid mood lighting, and marauding gangs of kooky punks. Please watch this trailer then pat me on the shoulder saying "There there, Alice, of course."
]]>Spare a thought for the person responsible for turning game features into Marketing Points™. One of the things Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] brings to the series, along with loads of Batguns, is sections where Nightwing, Catwoman, and others join the fray as AI partners you can switch between.
So here, look, it's a new video showing off the feature that surely dozens of hours of meetings and agonising and focus testing named Dual Play Combat.
]]>Hey, Batfans! It's the Bat-official Bat-trailer for Batman: Arkham Knight [official site].
Bat-watch it after the Bat-jump:
]]>Batman is well known for having some of the best villains in comics, but there are far more that are less well-known though, for one reason or another. Calendar Man for example is a villain whose crimes are related to the day upon which they're committed. That sounds like the kind of thing I can tenuously relate to news that Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] has been delayed from June 2nd to June 23rd. There's a new, seven-minute video of Batpunching below.
]]>Batman: Arkham Knight [official site] won't be released until June but I already feel like I'm involved in a turbulent relationship with Rocksteady's latest. After the disappointment of Arkham's Oranges, I was relieved to hear the makers of Asylum and City were back on the case. That relief was soon replaced by doubt - much as I liked City, I felt it went too big and the addition of the Batmobile seems like it'll steer the game even further away from the original's tight design. The Batmobile trailer seemed to confirm my worst fears, like one of Scarecrow's guffs, but now there's another trailer. And I'm happy. Happier. Conflicted.
I might end up filing divorce papers before the bloody thing has been released.
]]>Hardly any time has passed since the previous Arkham Knight trailer but I wanted to share this one for reasons that will become obvious. It's all about the car, that being the big new feature and all, and it has managed to eradicate any enthusiasm I had about getting behind the wheel. The Batmobile looks more like a military fetishist's wargasmic dream (never forget), and in the new clip we see more of its weaponry as it fights an army of tanks. Presumably they're unmanned tank drones of some kind because Brucey does not seem concerned about the crew. Or collateral damage. It's more Battlezone than Batman.
]]>Batman's taste in cars has changed over the decades. The new trailer for Batman: Arkham Knight shows Rocksteady's integration of the Batmobile into their particular brand of urban exploration and fisticuffs. The driving sections aren't relegated to minigames or interludes, the vehicle is right there, in the thick of the action. In the scenes below, Batman uses his car to fight some tanks because, for reasons that I don't understand, he is beating up a sci-fi army. It's a good thing his car is the most advanced piece of military technology on the planet. He used to drive a Sedan.
]]>Pootling around Gotham City in the Batmobile on a sunny Sunday afternoon certainly sounds pleasant, but what the dickens is Batman doing in Arkham Knight that he needs that all that firepower? Battling tanks in the streets for some baffling reason, a five-minute gameplay trailer out of E3 shows. But look, I won't harp on that because oh my giddy aunt the game looks gorgeous as he swoops above the city and screeches through its streets. It's the Batexperience I Batdreamed of.
]]>If I didn't know better, I'd swear this new Batman: Arkham Knight trailer was attempting to sell toy Batmobiles. Pop and lock the wheels for battle mode! Awesome! Deploy the 60mm cannon! Radical! Actual working missile barrage firing eight foam warheads! No way! Dispense justice with the armor-piercing vulcan cannon! Pow pow pow! And put badguys down for the count with the riot suppressor cannon! Take that, Joker! Yeah! [The two boys high-five.]
No, it's just to accompany the marketing campaign now starting to show off the Batmobile (see, US Gamer played with it) and to soften the blow of Warner Bros. delaying the game into 2015.
]]>To go out with a bang, and perhaps to shake up the slightly stale series, Batman: Arkham Knight is introducing a drivable Batmobile of your very own to pootle around Gotham City. Nipping down to the shops to buy Shark Repellent Bat Spray, dropping Robin off at school, taking Catwoman out for a night on the tiles, oh what fun you'll have! The first "gameplay trailer" gives a peek at Brucie behind the wheel, though it's a gameplay trailer in the sense of "mostly cinematic snippets with a few seconds of gameplay spliced cut in."
]]>Update: official trailer released, and below, right at the very bottom of the post.
First there was Batman: Arkham Macguyver, then there was Batman: Arkham A Bit Of City, then Batman: Arkham Oranges, and now there is Batman: Arkham Nighty-Night. Oh, alright, just Arkham Knight. But I'm only calling it that this once.
And it has a driveable Batmobile! Jeez guys, why'd it take you four games to come up with that idea? But all jolly exciting - a car, and Rocksteady back at the helm, should mean a mite more sense of advancement than the solid but rinse'n'repeaty Arkham Oranges. (Though hopefully the returning dev has learned a thing or two about thug dialogue.)
]]>
