Today's DC Fandome event brought the long-anticipated full-fat reveal of the Warner Bros. Batman game, now officially titled Gotham Knights. And the big moment didn't disappoint either, with both a full-length cinematic trailer and a good amount of gameplay to drool over until we see more.
The cinematic trailer set a rather bleak tone for Gotham Knights, consistent with the Arkham series, beginning with news coverage surrounding the death of Batman and related events. You'll see the fabled superheroes assemble to protect Gotham and continue Batman's legacy, until Mr. Freeze is introduced toward the end of the trailer, presumably revealing at least one major villain.
The gameplay footage centered around Batgirl, and rightfully so, because she looks like an absolute blast to control. The combat is an obvious evolution of the Arkham series' punchy, fluid battling, but it sounds like each superhero will have their own set of moves and stats to work with. Batgirl's grappling hook, which she uses at one point in the gameplay footage to execute a devastating kill from above, looks especially satisfying.
The new trailer confirms a slew of rumors we've been meticulously piecing together in recent days. We know now that Warner Bros' new Batman game isn't just a Batman game - we learned in a post-reveal interview with creative director Patrick Redding and senior producer Fleur Marty that Gotham Knights features "a whole host of playable characters."
We also know those playable characters will have every chance to work together in co-op play, which was briefly demonstrated in the gameplay with some slick-looking co-op takedowns between Batgirl and Robin.
Finally, the trailer revealed a 2021 release window for Batman: Gotham Knights. Given the widespread development complications caused by the pandemic, it's encouraging to know Warner Bros. plans on releasing their next Batman game as early as next year, although release dates are always subject to delays these days.
We're also looking forward to the reveal of Rocksteady's Suicide Squad game during today's DC Fandome event.
