Gotham Knightsis the upcoming game from WB Games Montreal where players can take up the capes of Batman’s four successors. Although the studio worked onArkham Origins, the game will take place in a distinct timeline from theArkhamgames in a new timeline where Bruce Wayne has died, leaving Batgirl, Robin, Red Hood, and Nightwing to defend Gotham from the mysterious Court of Owls.
While the Joker died at the end ofArkham Cityin Rocksteady’s universe,Gotham Knightsis left with a Joker problem. Despite being Batman’s nemesis, two of the player characters’ origins were more defined by the Joker than Bruce’s. Not only that, but the unexplained absence of the Clown Prince of Crime could strike many fans – as well as characters – as a strange omission inGotham Knights. Here are the main reasonsGotham Knights will need to deal with the Joker, and the reasons why that could be one of the game’s biggest challenges.
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The Gotham Knights Timeline
WhileGotham Knightsis not a part of theArkhamseries, its relationship to theArkham-verse is impossible to ignore. TheArkhamgames developed the style of superhero combat and the open-world cityscapes thatGotham Knightswill feature heavily. Rocksteady also helped distinguish the visual and writing style of both studio’sBatmangames as more akin toBatman: The Animated Seriesthan more recent movie or comic portrayals.
In this sense, many fans will not expect to see the Joker going into the new game. Mark Hamill’s Joker died in the dramatic ending toArkham City, and the role was so iconic that evenTroy Baker’s portrayal of the Jokerin the prequel,Origins, was praised specifically for its resemblance to Hamill’s. However, the more it becomes apparent in the game that the timelines are distinct through choices made about everything from the plot to character designs, the more the Joker’s absence will likely become noticeable.
The Joker and the Knights
The Joker is directly responsible for some of the most major events in the lives of the availableplayer characters inGotham Knights. Batgirl Barbara Gordon was paralyzed for a time after being shot by the Joker, becoming Oracle before getting life-changing surgery and returning to the streets of Gotham.
Red Hood is the alias of Jason Todd, who was Robin until his brutal murder by the Joker and his revival in the League of Shadows’ Lazarus Pit. Todd turned out to be theArkham Knightin Rocksteady’s universe, and his presence in this one may remind players of the universe distinction, raising the question of the Joker’s whereabouts. Nightwing and the current Robin, Tim Drake, have fewer personal connections, though Drake was turned into the Joker’s successor inBatman Beyond.
The main question for WB Games Montreal will be how the game addresses the Joker at all, despite a personal appearance by the Ace of Knaves remaining unlikely if the game wants to step of out of theArkham-verse’s shadow. The Joker will already be well-known by the time of the game as Bruce Wayne is already dead, Red Hood is already revived, andBatgirl is recovered from paralysisand back fighting crime head-on.
However, to hand-wave the Joker’s death would also make the game seem like it was leaning on the player’s assumed engagement with theArkhamgames and the Joker’s death in that canon, which could prevent the new game from developing a unique identity. It is possible the game’s new canon will simply establish a different version of the Joker’s death, though withBruce Wayne’s deathalready established, perhaps the Joker’s disappearance will also be referenced in universe. A long-running theme throughoutBatmanmedia is the mutual dependence of Batman and the Joker on one another, and without Bruce, the Joker may have simply retired.
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Gotham Without Batman or The Joker
One problem the game may face is that even ifWB Games Studiosfinds a way to deftly avoid addressing the Joker head-on, the game will then be the firstBatmangame to contain neither Batman nor the Joker. There is a risk tha,t by the time of the game’s narrative, the main conflict in Gotham will already feel long-resolved, even if crime and supervillainy remains rampant with less iconic characters. It is possible that fans will feel like the player characters cannot live up to Batman while the villains cannot live up the Joker.
ThoughArkham Knighttook place after the Joker’s death, it still had Bruce Wayne to ground it as well as hallucinatory appearances by the deceased villain.Gotham Knightstakes a big risk with neither character appearing, especially withArkham-style games no longer a novelty. Rocksteady is also releasing a DC game with four player characters set in theArkhamuniverse,Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. Without Batman or the Joker,Gotham Knightsrisks appearing to play second fiddle to Rocksteady, especially with direct comparisons toSuicide Squadbeing easily invited on the gameplay front.
Withthe Court of Owlsformed from some of Batman’s greatest adversaries, it’s possible the Joker could make a smaller appearance inGotham Knights. With the player protagonists already forming an ensemble,Gotham Knightscould spread out it’s villainy among a larger portion of Batman’s rogues’ gallery. The question that arises then is how WB Games Montreal will make the story feel character-driven. WithGotham Knightsable to be played through entirely as one character, it risks lacking a strong central protagonist, and the game likely cannot afford to make the main threat feel spread thin or impersonal.
For now, however, the fullplot ofGotham Knightshas yet to be revealed. Even the premise, Bruce Wayne’s death in an explosion, seems to set the Caped Crusader up for an easy return after what would be an otherwise unceremonious exit. Perhaps the Joker is simply in Arkham Asylum, a plot device often-used byBatmanwriters to keep the character on-hold without killing him off to allow them to explore other villains. Until the game releases, however, fans will only be able to speculate, and with so many different stories told with these characters across different realities and comic runs, little will be a safe bet untilGotham Knightslaunches.
Gotham Knightswill be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X in 2021.
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