Like with Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy movies, Rocksteady revolutionized Batman in gaming with their Arkham series. Including WB Games Montréal's prequel Arkham Origins, there were four mainline games in the franchise. Each of them pulled in at least a positive reception.
And while that varies from the more moderate response of Origins to the outright critical acclaim of City, they all brought something worthwhile to this rich world of the Dark Knight. Many of their features and mechanics hold up well today, including open worlds, combat, and well-written stories.
Arkham Asylum:
The Metroidvania Elements
Before most games in the industry transitioned to the open-world format -- for better and worse -- Arkham Asylum is an excellent example of a tight, concise game. The franchise opener drew from some of the most genre-defining Metroidvanias in gaming that fit seamlessly in the game's setting.
Arkham Asylum incorporates some light elements from the subgenre, having players backtrack through prior areas to move forward in the story. Gadget upgrades helped influence this, especially for completionists trying to solve all of the Riddler's riddles and find his tucked-away trophies.
Arkham Asylum's Claustrophobic Settings
Tying back into the Metroidvania elements of Asylum, Arkham Island and all of its facilities were perfect backdrops for a Batman story. Gothic horror tends to find itself in Batman's stories in the comic books to some degree, and it was expertly executed here.
The eerily abandoned facilities with villains possibly around the corner heightened the tension, and the game's corridors felt suitably claustrophobic. The Killer Croc boss fight is another great showcase for this, with players trapped in the villain's domain. Arkham Asylum perfectly justified its smaller scope.
Redefining Action With Freeflow & Stealth Combat
When it comes to gameplay, one of the most enduring qualities of Asylum and the franchise as a whole is its combat. The Freeflow Combat system, namely, is incredibly addicting and rewarding. Twisting, turning, and flipping Batman through hordes of thugs is immensely satisfying and fluid.
Throwing gadgets into the mix helps with player creativity, which also carries over into stealth combat. The Predator sequences are arguably just as rewarding, as it plays on the element of Batman as a terrifying creature of the night. Ingenuity was encouraged even more so here, with players being invited to think outside the box on how to take down thugs efficiently and undetected.
Arkham City:
A Densely Packed Open World
Even during the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 console generation, it was inevitable for Rocksteady and their sequel to raise the series' ambitions. But unlike some of the worst offenders in the open-world format, Arkham City did not waste any space.
The fantastic story moved players as Batman through Arkham City with purpose, as each area was densely packed with purpose rather than bloat. One of the best gameplay mechanics to come out of this was emphasizing gliding, which was a breathtaking way to enhance the experience of a Batman game.
The Mr. Freeze Boss Fight
Though he started as a joke character, Mr. Freeze became one of Batman's most fearsome villains thanks to BTAS. The key to this was grounding and humanizing him as a tragic character to sympathize with, but he also gave players the best boss fight in Arkham City. It was a fight where Batman couldn't rely squarely on his martial arts prowess, so players needed to take Mr. Freeze down with stealth surprise attacks.
With each takedown that players executed, Freeze would adapt and force them to use unique attacks every time. It was a great way to create a boss fight with true tension that wasn't a button-mashing contest, and it was even more exhilarating on New Game+.
The Joker's Death
The Clown Prince of Crime is the Dark Knight's most notorious foe, and even though he admittedly feels oversaturated, he's still a compelling villain. Arkham City's story is made even better by having the beloved and classic Mark Hamill in the role opposite Kevin Conroy's iconic Batman. Though the Joker is brought back spiritually and psychologically in Arkham Knight, Rocksteady made the bold choice of giving the supervillain his physical and literal end.
Killing the Joker served a meaningful purpose for Batman's character development and a fascinating new look into his psyche after the story's end. In a world where comic book deaths often don't mean much, City once again provided a story with genuine stakes.
Arkham Origins:
The Series' Best Boss Fights
Mr. Freeze in Arkham City remains one of the most memorable encounters, but Origins arguably and collectively has the best boss fights in the Batman: Arkham series. WB Games' prequel understandably received critiques for its needlessly large open world and not innovating enough from City, but fights against the likes of Deathstroke, Bane, and Copperhead were among the most engaging.
Deathstroke in particular managed to make quick-time events entertaining, as well demanding real-time action-based reflexes. Bane had more than one boss encounter in Arkham Origins and presented players with real challenges each time.
Investigating Crime Scenes
Batman's epithet as the "World's Greatest Detective" is simultaneously one of his most important yet overlooked traits. Bruce Wayne has genius-level intellect, and he's well known in comics for applying that knowledge to detective work. So while Arkham Origins implemented this superficially, it was welcome to see crime scene investigations become a gameplay mechanic.
It was a good way to keep the gameplay loop varied and served as a solid demonstration of the Caped Crusader's sleuthing prowess in the story. Origins laid this groundwork for Rocksteady to develop it further in Knight.
Arkham Knight:
A Sprawling Open World Gotham City
Arkham City gave players a fittingly grimy and concise open world, Origins bit off more than it could chew, and Knight debatably perfected it. In addition to Rocksteady using the space that they laid out well and filling it with meaningful gameplay content, the graphics gave fans a stunning, neon-gothic rendition of Gotham City.
Just as well, Arkham Knight worked in a masterful level of verticality for the map by giving Batman nooks and crannies to explore in the city at every level. Even by today's standards with the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and RTX 30 series graphics cards out, Arkham Knight looks around as good or better than some games now.
Joker's Psychological Effects
After the Joker's demise in City, the villain made his aforementioned spiritual return by being the biological and psychological disease degrading Batman throughout Knight's story. Even if it was giving the same villain a spotlight again, it was an inventive way to do it and make it integral to Bruce's growth and eventual triumph. Batman and the Joker spent years being -- essentially -- a metaphorical manifestation of an abusive relationship.
The hate and vitriol were always there, but suddenly being rid of the Joker in the way that Batman was left him growing cruel and angry. Arkham Knight culminating in Batman rooting a narcissistic clown out of his psyche and banishing him into obscurity where he belongs was cathartically satisfying.