After the incredibly lacklustre Arkham Origins, one could have assumed that the Arkham series was put to bed.

Although Arkham Asylum and Arkham City were both critical and commercial smashes, the bad taste left by Origins left everyone more or less certain that the series was ended on a bum note. Not so. With the announcement that Rocksteady was returning to right the ship and send her into the sunset, we all breathed a sigh of relief. Finally - we could get the ending we needed.

Or did we? Set almost directly after the events of City, Batman is faced with yet another threat in the shape of the genuinely creepy Scarecrow. Finally explaining why the city's empty of civilians - they're all evacuated because of a bomb threat - we're sent out into the night to force Scarecrow into a headlock. However, he's got back-up in the form of the mysterious Arkham Knight. A terrorist-for-hire who leads a band of well-trained mercenaries, the Arkham Knight is on a personal mission to end Batman and wreak his revenge. Hardcore Batman fans have no doubt deduced who he is, but for those that aren't - don't worry, it's not really an issue in the greater story.

Plot and script have always been important to Rocksteady's iteration of Batman and this is no different. Kevin Conroy's masterful voice as the Dark Knight is pitch perfect, whilst John Noble's near-monastic drone that comes over the PA adds to the sense of unease. Knowing that this is really it for Rocksteady gives you the sense that, story-wise, they're leaving everything on the table. Likewise, with both the graphics and game mechanics, they're throwing everything they've got at it.

What makes Arkham Knight interesting for us is that it really does embrace the open-world ethos. You can fly over the buildings, dive into a riot and beat the crap out of anyone and saunter on to another one. If you want to play the main story and avoid the Most Wanted missions and side-quests, you can do just that. As well as this, there's more than a few ways to solve the brain-numbing puzzles. There's a direct approach, sure, but with a bit of thought and a lot of time, you're able to deduce a different path that'll lead you somewhere much different. Unlike Arkham Asylum, which had a simple trail to follow, Arkham Knight simply points you in the direction and lets you figure out the rest. It doesn't talk down to you, rather it believes you're smart enough to figure it out.

The inclusion of the Batmobile, which has hammered at relentlessly in almost every trailer, is welcome. It does feel pretty great to charge through the streets of Gotham, however the controls are somewhat finicky and the Battle Mode doesn't feel have as fluid as it should. The hand-to-hand combat system gets a cosmetic upgrade as it's one of the best parts of the game. As well as this, you're no longer burdened with finding the tools needed to actually be Batman - you're given a full loadout, more or less, from the start and that's about it. As per usual, upgrades come when you hit XP targets.

Arkham Knight is the largest of the three games, but not necessarily the best. There are quite few issues, not including the disastrous PC port. As mentioned, the Batmobile's controls aren't spot-on and, very often, you're guiding a missile than actually driving a car. The Battle Mode is used for platforming sequences in the game, which feels counter-intuitive at times. As well as this, some of the plot twists feel like they're coming a mile off. It's a shame, especially considering how much time has been invested to build it all up. These, however, are minor complaints. Arkham Knight is as good a game as you can hope for, especially considering that it's the final chapter.

Overall, it's a very respectable finish to a series that didn't reinvent the wheel, so much as make it a whole lot cooler. It's a game worthy of your time and money.

 

4 / 5