Gotham Knights is set to take the place of the Batman Arkham series, giving fans another version of Gotham City without the watchful eye of Batman. Instead, the game is set to let players control four of Batman’s sidekicks and members of the Bat Family, Nightwing, Batgirl, Red Hood, and Robin. With over 400 years of lore in this version of Gotham Knights, and the sinister Court of Owls set up as the main villain group, there is a lot of potential for expansion. The game could take up an Arkham series approach, releasing multiple titles as well as DLCs to give fans something to look forward to.
The Arkham series is one of the most critically acclaimed superhero video games ever created, giving fans a variety of missions, allowing them to explore the universe of Batman, and giving them the opportunity to play many of the most famous characters from the comics. Arkham's approach of introducing new villains, storylines, and playable characters would work great for Gotham Knights, which is dedicated to team-style gameplay. With the possibility that the game will expand into its very own series, Gotham Knights needs to look at the Arkham series, how it achieved such longevity over multiple titles, and how it furthered the lore of the world through DLC and side quests.
New Characters in Gotham Knights
While the Arkham series was solely focused on playing as Batman, additional playable characters were introduced through DLCs, allowing players to play as some of Batman’s allies. This gave the series a greater sense of immersion as many of the playable characters had their own missions and skills, giving players a different style of gameplay, all while improving upon the lore within the franchise. With Gotham Knights taking a team-based approach, DLCs could introduce other members of the Bat Family such as Batwoman and Damian Wayne, giving players more to do.
The Bat Family has many more members than just the four that fans will get to control in Gotham Knights, which leaves room for growth. It's possible that if Batman doesn't appear in the game, Nightwing will assume the role of The Dark Knight, allowing other characters to enter the fray in future installments. From older fan-favorite characters like Azrael and Huntress to newer members of the Bat Family like Gotham Girl and Batwing, the list of characters that the game could introduce as playable characters is long, and each of them brings something different to the table.
Potential Villain Groups for Gotham Knights
One of the things that gave the Arkham series its success was the number of famous villains that made their presence known in the game, whether as the main villain or through side quests and challenges. With Batman gone, many villains will be expected to come out of the shadows and try to take over Gotham City in Gotham Knights, giving the game an opportunity to expand into a long-standing series. To ensure that future titles attract gamers and keep them interested, Gotham Knights will need to introduce different villain groups that are popular among fans, as well as some lesser-known ones that could shine through.
As it stands, Gotham Knights will feature the Court of Owls as the main villain group that the Bat Family will be trying to take down. However, many other villain groups could make their way into the game in future installments, setting up interesting storylines between these villains and members of the Bat Family. Groups like the League of Shadows, The Jokerz, and even the Legion of Doom could try to take over Gotham City now that Batman is out of the picture and force the Knights to defend their city, while others like Slade Wilson could expand on individual stories due to the history they share with members of the Bat Family.
New Storylines in Gotham Knights
The Arkham series has followed many storylines through multiple titles including the death of Batman, however, not much is known about how Batman died in Gotham Knights, and fans will need to wait till the game is released to fully understand the circumstances behind that. Throughout Batman canon, there have been multiple iterations of the death of Batman, many of them leading to major events that threaten the very existence of the DC Universe. Gotham Knights could introduce some of these storylines in future titles allowing for more expansion into characters outside the Batman universe and giving players the chance to experience some of the greatest storylines in DC Comics history.
One of the most popular comics revolving around Batman is Dark Nights: Metal, where various evil versions of Batman enter the DC Universe and threaten to wipe out the current universe. This storyline would work great as it would show the Bat Family members fighting against different versions of their mentor and could lead to a Justice League tie-in. Additionally, bringing the Justice League into the Gotham Knights universe means that future titles could feature storylines following the Crime Syndicate or even an invasion by Darkseid, giving fans the chance to fight alongside and against some of the most powerful characters in DC Comics.
Gotham Knights has the potential to be a long-standing game series spanning multiple titles, with DLCs and spin-offs bringing in a wide array of characters to expand its already impressive lore. By looking at the Arkham series and using it as a blueprint, the game can successfully integrate some of Batman’s greatest villains along with other of his closest allies into the universe. With so much room for growth, fans will hope that Gotham Knights continues to release titles and DLCs in the future, giving them newer characters to play, villains to fight, and storylines to explore.
Gotham Knights is scheduled to release on October 21, 2022, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.