Whilst Gotham Knights has managed to pick up its fair share of fans, one of the biggest complaints about the game is that it just couldn't leave the shadow of the Batman: Arkham games and it suffered from countless unfavorable comparisons. However, it's possible that nostalgia may be playing a part in just how fondly the Arkham games are looked back on.
All games have their weaknesses and the Arkham titles are no exception. Whether it's dated combat or tedious collectibles, these are some of the harsh realities a player may run into while replaying the games.
Combat Just Doesn't Feel As Good After Arkham Knight
Everyone has their preferences when it comes to different kinds of combat gameplay and it's fair to say that every Arkham title has its own flavor in this regard but it's impossible to deny that Arkham Knight didn't take depth and polish to the next level. Movements feel smoother and combos feel more satisfying.
The downside of this is that it makes replaying the older titles just that extra bit harder in comparison. Whilst Arkham Asylum was limited due to having nothing to build on, even games like Arkham City that were heavily praised for their combat feel slightly underwhelming when played back-to-back with Knight.
Every Arkham Game Has At Least One Disappointing Boss Fight
The Arkham games have some incredibly distinctive villains that usually make for equally incredible boss fights. However, that's not always the case as every mainline game in the series seems to have at least one boss fight that's either unfairly difficult, too tedious to actually be fun, or simply not fun for gameplay reasons.
Arkham Knight has the notorious Deathstroke boss fight, a tedious vehicle-based battle with a conclusion that's almost laughably brief, Arkham Asylum's Titan Joker fight feels completely mismatched with everything that had come before, and Arkham Origins' Firefly boss fight is far too repetitive for how visually spectacular it is.
Arkham Asylum Has The Weakest Story
Perhaps it's unfair to compare a game from well over a decade ago to its newer sequels that also benefited from the groundwork it laid down in the first place, but that doesn't make Arkham Asylum's weaknesses any less noticeable whilst replaying. It's also still a game with a vivid sense of atmosphere and one that's aged surprisingly well all things considered.
Unfortunately, it has to be said that the story isn't at the level of its follow-up titles. It's far more simple than the later titles and, although there's nothing necessarily wrong with that and the game certainly still has its moments, it makes it harder to play through again than the later games.
Return To Arkham Still Feels Like A Wasted Opportunity
Now that Batman: Return to Arkham is six years old, it's actually older than Arkham City was when the collection promised to remaster and revamp the first two Arkham titles. That might be partly why it feels like the remaster itself needs a remaster when replaying the collection now.
Arkham Asylum was a visually stunning game in its original form and, whilst the remaster does improve plenty of aspects, the added detail draws attention to some of its drawbacks as well. On the other hand, Arkham City's remaster had so many compromises that some argued that it was more of a questionable port than a remaster.
Batman: Arkham VR Is A Good VR Game But A Bad Arkham Game
For a five-year-old Virtual Reality game, it's fair to say that Batman: Arkham VR is an extremely solid and well-made experience. It looks good compared to other VR games of the time, its compact story is engaging, and the puzzle-solving gameplay is the closest most players will get to actually feeling like Batman.
Having said that, action is at the heart of what makes the Arkhamverse iconic and, without it, it's hard to deny that the game doesn't feel like it's missing something. Without the Arkham label, Arkham VR would be a lot easier to enjoy for what it is.
Arkham Asylum Has Little Replayability
Though it's partially the fault of the later games for getting players used to post-game fun and New Game Plus modes to provide entertainment long after the campaign has ended, Arkham Asylum still feels disappointingly empty once the story is completed. Not only does it lack New Game Plus, but roaming around Arkham after the story's over reveals that there aren't even any enemies left to fight anymore.
As a result, it's hard to get nearly as much enjoyment out of the game as its later counterparts. Whereas a player can easily lose hundreds of hours to games like Arkham Knight and Arkham City even after the story is over, that's just not as possible with Arkham Asylum.
Arkham Origins Is Actually Quite Good
Whilst a game being better than the player remembers would normally be a good thing, it might well still be a tough pill to swallow for fans who piled on the criticism for Arkham Origins when it was first released. Developed by WB Games Montréal rather than Rocksteady, the game had a mountain to climb to impress Arkham fans and so it quickly gained a reputation as the weakest game in the series.
However, on actually replaying the game, it's hard to deny that its combat, story, visuals, and even the voice acting aren't top-notch. Though the lack of innovation is still a fair complaint, it's one that's grown far less noticeable with time and there are a ton of other things about Arkham Origins that are underrated.
Bigger Maps Don't Always Mean More Fun Arkham Games
Replaying the Batman: Arkham games in order makes it easy to see just how much the maps have increased in size since the very first title and, whilst that seems like it would automatically be a good thing, some of the larger maps leave something to be desired.
Arkham Asylum's compact setting is one of the most effective in the series, for example, while Arkham City is much larger but also feels like there just isn't that much to do. Arkham Knight's map is absolutely massive and perfect for free-roaming but at the cost of some of the focus of the previous editions. With the next Arkham game likely to continue the trend, it's worth noting that the maps haven't necessarily gotten better as they've gotten bigger.
Arkham Games Have Too Many Collectibles
Collecting Riddler Trophies and finding hidden easter eggs have been fun side missions in the Arkham series since Arkham Asylum and it's hard to imagine the games without some form of trophy hunt to keep things interesting as the player explores the world. That doesn't mean they can't go too far, however, as Arkham City proved.
In that game, there were no less than 440 collectibles including the Catwoman DLC, meaning that attempting to beat the game with 100% completion is a challenge only for those with unlimited patience. Arkham Knight's 315 collectibles spread out on a larger map is slightly more manageable but it still feels tedious at times.
The Arkham Games Make It Hard To Play Other Batman Games
As the reception to Gotham Knights has proven, a big downside to how good the Arkham games generally are is that any game in the Batman universe is now doomed to look worse in comparison. With great combat, engrossing storylines, and fun missions, the mainline Arkham games just hit all the right notes for what a Batman game should be.
Along with Batman: The Telltale Series, it's clear that Gotham Knights is intended to be its own thing in the world of Batman games, but that doesn't mean it's easy for fans to put aside their biases and judge them on their own merit. Ultimately, replaying the Arkham games just makes it more difficult to give other titles a fair judgment.