5 ways Gotham Knights improves upon the Arkham series

Gotham Knights kicks off with the death of the Batman at the hands of his long-time nemesis, Ra’s al Ghul, in a lengthy action-packed intro sequence. Following the Caped Crusader's death, the four Knights of the Bat Family must take charge and rise to the challenge of protecting the city of Gotham in the absence of the Dark Knight.

Although met with mostly negative reception across the board, there are a few elements that the game has tried to work on and improve, with varying amounts of success.

This article reflects the personal views of the author. Minor spoilers for both Gotham Knights and the Batman Arkham games may follow. Viewer discretion is advised.

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5 things that Gotham Knights does better than the Arkham games

1) A wider scope of gameplay and exploration

Gotham City is fully explorable, with an enormous map that allows players to explore every little nook and cranny of the famous fictional city. Every part of the game's world is engraved with the intricate history of Gotham City straight from the comics, making it feel incredibly real and alive. Some feel that it is the most expansive rendition of the city to date.

Furthermore, exploration is rewarded with various Easter eggs, side quests, and collectibles, making for a pleasant crime-fighting experience.

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2) Bringing the sidekicks into focus

Unlike the previous Arkham titles, Gotham Knights focuses on the members of the Bat Family much more than Batman himself. By bringing the sidekicks to the forefront, we get a unique look into their perspective of the events of the story, while they mourn the loss of their mentor and friend, Batman/Bruce Wayne.

It offers a fresh approach to the cast that was otherwise lightly touched upon by the previous major Batman game, Arkham Knight.

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3) Introducing the iconic Court of Owls into the universe

Gotham Knights throws the ominous and ever-watching Court of Owls against the already chaotic Gotham City, making for an interesting backdrop as the four heroes try to defend their city from the organization's treacherous plans.

Present from the very beginning of Gotham, the Court of Owls has been a formidable enemy of Batman in the comics, being one of the most dangerous criminal organizations he has ever come across. The version present in Gotham Knights is just as sinister and dangerous. Players have to fight through the members of the Court to free the city from their iron hold.

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4) A unique combat experience with RPG elements

Gotham Knights has implemented its own spin on the Arkham games that featured satisfying rhythm-based combat. Players have a variety of attacks to choose from, which vary from character to character. Additionally, each character has its own unique playstyle. This ranges widely from Red Hood’s non-lethal ranged rounds to Batgirl’s martial prowess, allowing plenty of flexibility and personalization.

The game also features an RPG-like progression system, a major change from the Arkham series. Instead of simply unlocking skills progressively from a skill tree, players must spend their XP points in addition to their gear crafting materials to create level-specific gear. As expected, gear scales at later levels alongside the difficulty of the enemies. Gear crafting is vital to surviving the harsh streets of Gotham City, and unlocks a brand new level of customization never-before-seen in the Arkham series.

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5) Greater interactivity between the cast members

While the Batman Arkham games featured a multitude of characters, the story itself was focused primarily on Batman with minimal other interactions.

Gotham Knights executes the interaction between the members of the Bat Family to great success, creating multiple touching and heart-warming moments. Additionally, each character has memorable mini-quests and cutscenes with both the villains as well as the supporting cast within the game.

Completing the game with each character unlocks their own personalized endings, which certainly provides proper closure.

Gotham Knights was developed by WB Games Montréal and released for PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5 on October 21, 2022.