Highlights

  • The handling of Batman's death in Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League has upset many fans, who feel that it did not provide a fitting send-off for such an iconic character.
  • Players are comparing Batman's death in the game to Joel's death in The Last of Us Part 2, as both have sparked controversy and elicited heartfelt responses from fans.
  • Comparisons are also being drawn between Batman's death in Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League and his sacrifice in Gotham Knights, with many feeling that the latter gave the character more respect and a better farewell.

The following contains story spoilers for Rocksteady Studios' Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League ​​​​​​.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League has been fighting an uphill battle ever since it was revealed it would have live-service elements, and further marketing material leading to release may have not done the title a lot of good. For example, the reveal of Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League's Joker caught players off guard for the wrong reasons, seeing how the original Batman: Arkham Joker was one of the most popular characters in the DC universe, let alone Rocksteady's own work. Now that Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League is out, though, the latest controversy to surround the game is once more tied to Rocksteady's previous Batman games, and specifically the in-universe Batman's fate.

Although Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League sports great combat gameplay and players can zoom around the world with each squad member's traversal abilities, a lot of fans are in for the story and how it moves Rocksteady's DC universe forward. Unfortunately, the way Batman's scenes are handled made many long-time fans and new players alike unhappy, especially seeing how this was Kevin Conroy's final appearance in the series. After the legendary actor died, many wondered how Batman's story would carry on, possibly with a Batman Beyond game or some sort of continuation of the Arkham series, but Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League seems to wrap everything up - at least for now.

Why Suicide Squad- Kill The Justice League Fans Should be Excited For DLCs
Related
Why Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League Fans Should be Excited For DLCs

Rocksteady Studios recently pulled back the curtain on Suicide Squad's post-launch content, giving DC fans plenty to be excited about.

Why Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League's Batman Death is Upsetting Players

Batman's Death in Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League is The Last of Us 2 All Over Again

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League does exactly what it says on the tin, and it does deliver deaths for each of the four Brainiac-controlled heroes, with Batman being one of them. Although some were upset that it was the Arkham Batman to die in Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, one could argue that it was to be expected, but the main reason why his death became a controversy is the way it all was handled.

The Batman: Arkham series is one of the most popular in terms of DC video games, and after four games, the already-popular Caped Crusader became all the more cherished by fans - especially after seeing his dynamic with Mark Hamill's Joker and how he copes with his death. Players are comparing Batman's death in Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League to Joel's death in The Last of Us Part 2, as it's breaking the internet and it's incredibly heartfelt by fans. An even stronger comparison, however, is that with Batman's death in Gotham Knights.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League's Batman Death Compared to Gotham Knights

A promotional image of a brainwashed Batman in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League's Batman Deserved a Better Send-Off

Even if Gotham Knights was not considered a great game by all means, it had its moments. As of now, Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League players are comparing Batman's death at the hands of Harley Quinn to his sacrifice while fighting Ra's al Ghul in Gotham Knights, detonating the Batcave to protect Gotham. Instead, Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League's Batman is defeated by the squad in combat, and is then executed by Harley Quinn with the Joker's laugh echoing in the distance, as she delivers a speech that is being defined as inadequate as a send-off for a character of Batman's caliber.

The dispute has it that Gotham Knights managed to respect Batman as a character despite the game's flaws, whereas Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League fails to deliver a compelling death scene to one of the most iconic DC heroes of all time. This especially stings for fans who have been around since the Batman: Arkham series, as not only does this seem like an end for the character, but Rocksteady's past work as a whole. It remains to be seen how exactly Rocksteady's DC universe will continue, especially with Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League's Elseworlds playing a huge part in the game's live-service approach, but delivering the final blow to Batman did upset a lot of fans.