Well, not quite, but pretty damn near close…
WARNING: THE FOLLOWING PIECE CONTAINS SPOILERS ABOUT BATMAN: ARKHAM ASYLUM!
After wallowing for over a decade in a mire of mediocre and downright humiliating titles, the Dark Knight finally has a video game worthy of his own storied reputation.
To borrow a quote from another legendary piece of Batman media, this is the game we need and deserve.
Yet, for all the well-merited critical and commercial success Batman:Arkham Asylum has garnered, my mind can’t help but wonder what the inevitable sequels will hold. The foundation laid here by Rocksteady Games is so solid, the future looks bright for multiple games in the Batman universe to be spawned. Here are some of my suggestions as to what future games should include:
1) An Expanded Playground – Make no mistake: I’m not necessarily proposing Grand Theft Auto: Gotham City. One of the reasons why Batman: Arkham Asylum works so well is that the environment is so sharply focused that it fully immerses the player in the story, much like Rapture did in BioShock. Yet for all the game’s dedication to a confined milieu, Arkham Island still manages to become a living, breathing world, brimming with both detail and diversity. If Rocksteady can manage to bring that same consideration to the next game while widening their scope to more of Gotham City, the possibilities are endless.
2) Vehicle Segments – Of course, if all of Gotham is to be explored, players can’t be expected to traverse from the Batcave to the Gotham PD rooftop entirely on foot and by grapnel alone. And who wasn’t disappointed when the Batmobile and Batwing made only cameo appearances in the game? With miles of highway, unlimited airspace, and an extensive waterfront and canal system in Gotham City, the next game should definitely include driving, flying, and boating segments as well.
3) Discerning Use of Batman’s Rogue’s Gallery – Paul Dini prudently chose which villains to include, being careful not to shoehorn in characters for the sake of eye candy, and the story benefited greatly from his discernment. And with the game ending on Two-Face’s assault on the Second Gotham Bank, we have the perfect kickoff point as well as the perfect lead villain for the next game. Additionally, those villains who didn’t get face time or merely had cameos should get their chance in the spotlight, including Mr. Freeze, Clayface, Black Mask, and Firefly.
4) More Diverse Boss Battles – One minor complaint about Batman: Arkham Asylum is that some of the boss battles either fell into repetition or were downright disappointing. How many times did we battle with Titan-infused thugs and follow the same exact patterns, or wished that we had a real showdown with Killer Croc, instead of just repeatedly activating his shock collar with a Batarang? As mentioned before, Batman has had the benefit of one of the best rogue’s gallery in all of comic book history, and future games should utilize their unique powers and abilities to the fullest.
5) A Parallel Story from the Villain’s Point of View – The PS3 version was additionally blessed with the ability to play as the Joker in the Challenge Rooms, with his own unique animations and weapons. But why stop there? What if the next game gave players the ability to play as Two-Face on the opposite end of the same story, much like how Resident Evil 2 featured Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield on two discs, intersecting at key points of the same game?
6) Multiplayer/Deathmatch – One of the key influences on the game’s design is the Splinter Cell series, with its use of stealthy takedowns and air duct traversal. If you’re going to ape a great series, why not modify the Spies vs. Mercenaries mode from Splinter Cell: Double Agent in a head-to-head multiplayer/deathmatch mode? Players will be able to select either Batman or a villain/henchman and will have different objectives accordingly, like rescuing hostages while avoiding armed gunmen or arming bombs while evading capture by the Dark Knight (A big thanks to 1Up’s Nelson Laut for giving me this idea!).
7) CO-OP – Batman may have stated that he works best alone early in the game, but history has shown he’s not above partnering up when he needs to. A well-implemented co-op mode featuring Robin or Nightwing could give the sequel some much needed variety in its combat system with duo attacks unique to each paring. Where Batman’s combat is mostly ground based and dependent on powerful strikes and counters, Robin’s could be more nimble and speedy, while Nightwing’s would be more aerial and agile, given his upbringing as an acrobat.
That last suggestion is admittedly a thinly veiled attempt to play as Nightwing in the next game, but I believe the rest of them are quite sound. What do you think?