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Do you want Batman Arkham Knight? All the Batman Arkham Knight? Of course you do but the veritable slew of pre-order bonuses and extras is an overwhelming mass of mini expansions and skins. It’s a frankly messy business. You need an IQ worthy of the Riddler himself to work out which way to buy. Is it possible to reach peak Arkham Knight? To buy the game in a way that you both need and truly deserve? Let’s take a look at the options.
First off, you’re going to have to choose what console to play on. If you go for PS4, there’s the instant bonus of time exclusive Scarecrow Nightmare missions as well as a Justice League and joyously glossy classic TV series Batman skin. These bonuses only belong to Sony until ‘Fall’ this year but could definitely sway you towards PS4. Plus, if you needed an excuse to buy a console, Warner Bros is more than happy to oblige with the frankly alarmingly attractive limited edition Batman Arkham Knight PS4.
But where should you buy and is it worth it to pre-order before the release date of the 23rd of June? It doesn’t take the world’s greatest detective to see that the answer to the latter question is yes if you want bonus extras. To make matters worse, we don’t even know what will be available after release. Let’s break it down. Prepare for the liberal over use of the word ‘exclusive.’
Game in UK / GameStop in US - Exclusive pre-order content (PS4, Xbox One)
GAME’s big exclusive (told you) is the Red Hood Story Pack which is only available in their pre-order edition. There’s not much to go on content wise but we will be playing as the “ruthless vigilante” so if you fancy some guns in Gotham, this might be the way to go.
Harley Quinn’s story pack has been a standard pre-order bonus from the get go and is also included in GAME’s version. Harley has her own custom gadgets, weapons and abilities and this edition includes exclusive story content for you to play as the adorable hammer-wielding psychopath.
Amazon in UK / Walmart in US- Exclusive pre-order content (PS4, Xbox One)
The online giant has its own content in the shape of a Waynetech Prototype Batmobile skin that will include “exclusive gameplay features” that show off “bleeding edge capabilities”. Oh good, that’s cleared that right up.
Once again, Harley is standard if you pre-order.
Tesco in UK / Best Buy in US - Exclusive pre-order content (PS4, Xbox One)
Pre-ordering the Caped Crusader from the supermarket chain will snag you the WayneTech Booster Pack. Interestingly, this cheaty bonus pack includes four upgrades that you’re probably eventually going to get in the game anyway. The booster gives instant access to the explosive gel takedown, aerial juggle, Batarangs while gliding and a weapon upgrade for the Batmobile. Given the fact that you’ll unlock these in the course of playing the game, this is the least attractive of the three exclusives but you do get a free controller customisation kit with silicone controller skin, light bar stickers and thumb grips. And don't forget those all important Clubcard points.
And yes, Harley is here too if you pre-order.
Amazon in US - Exclusive pre-order content (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
Pre-ordering from Amazon's US branch will also also get you the standard Harley Quinn story pack, but the special treat here is the "First Appearance" skin pack. Fight crime wearing the tight grey bodysuit, oversized belt, and inexplicably purple gloves that Batman wore in his 1939 début in Detective Comics No. 27.
Steam - Exclusive pre-order content (PC)
The lack of a physical PC edition means unfortunately the only bonus extra you can get for pre-ordering is the Dark Knight Returns and Batman Beyond skins as well as the standard Harley Quinn offering.
So...has this helped or made things worse? Good luck. Gotham awaits.
