Gotham Knights’ appearance at Gamescom next week is exciting for fans, but it needs to bring with it a look at new content that has not been previously shared. Gotham Knights has been wholly enveloped in marketing Nightwing, Robin, Batgirl, and Red Hood, and that coverage will probably continue throughout the next couple of months until its release. However, bringing that same content to Gamescom could feel underwhelming due to how much of it has already been shown.
Instead, Gotham Knights needs to finally let fans in on one or more villains that they will encounter. If Gotham Knights’ open-world Gotham City is truly the largest yet, then its streets, districts, and boroughs are bound to be saturated with villains. Only Mr. Freeze and the Court of Owls have been shown as legitimate antagonists who players will fight, while the Penguin also appears but seems to be less antagonistic and play a more expository role. Gamescom would be a perfect stage to unveil new villains, and Gotham Knights has already teased one in particular that could be featured.
Gamescom is Gotham Knights’ Opportunity to Finally Show More Villains
Any number of villains could be featured in Gotham Knights, and it is practically impossible to guess which will be included in the game. Gotham Knights’ Mr. Freeze being represented as a villain with seemingly no remorse in his actions suggests that, in this canon, the cryogenics scientist had never reached a place of comfort or peace regarding his wife Nora’s condition.
In fact, any character who appears as a villain in Gotham Knights will have some sort of lingering connection to Batman that apparently had not been quelled. There will presumably be many characters who had been incarcerated following an encounter with either Batman or the Bat Family, harboring grudges against them and awaiting their opportunity to strike back in Batman’s absence.
Gotham Knights has been incredibly meticulous with the gameplay it has shared thus far, and while faction gangs have been revealed, they are dressed in such a way that their aesthetics do not explicitly spoil who they work for. It has already been shared that the Regulators work for Mr. Freeze, but it is unclear who any other gangs may be working for in Gotham Knights.
Looking back at the Batman mythology’s rogues’ gallery, Gotham Knights could have a lot more surprises up its sleeve with an interpretive and original canon. For example, Dr. Kirk Langstrom has now been revealed in Gotham Knights’ first 16 minutes of gameplay, and therefore it is possible that he could be encountered as the Man-Bat.
Harley Quinn Would Be a Safe Reveal for Gotham Knights at Gamescom
There is one antagonist that WB Games Montreal has teased, and it seems absolutely likely that they will appear in Gotham Knights as a result. Gotham Knights is allegedly avoiding the inclusion of Joker, which is fortunate due to how influential the character is, but the possible inclusion of his former criminal psychologist is almost guaranteed. After having not confirmed or denied whether Harley Quinn would be in Gotham Knights, it seems like the perfect opportunity for WB Games Montreal to reveal her would be at Gamescom. Harley is an incredibly popular antagonist and, if she is indeed a part of Gotham Knights, will have made an appearance across a multitude of modern DC games including the Arkhamverse’s tetralogy.
Gamescom could introduce Harley with a look at her particular storyline and perhaps a look at one of her boss fights. Harley would surely have a faction gang backing her, and their aesthetic could mimic her own diamond-patterned harlequin costumes. If Harley is not announced at Gamescom, Gotham Knights should still consider announcing another villain in order to begin opening the door to new content shared from the game.
Gotham Knights is set to release on October 25, 2022, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
