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Believe it or not, we here at GameXplain do play games that aren't made by Nintendo. And
one of my favorites is the Batman: Arkham series. The team at Rocksteady captured the
feeling of being Batman so well that it's hard not to love. So with the reveal of Batman:
Arkham Knight, we couldn't help but break out the old analysis machine. Just what secrets
and hidden details are there to find in the debut trailer?
There are a few details that we do know thanks to the interview with the developers in Game
Informer. For one, unlike Arkham Origins, there will be no multiplayer. This is a game
that's completely focused on its story. And that story picks up a year after the events
of Arkham City. Rocksteady has already confirmed that Scarecrow will be one of the main villains.
That certainly seems to be the case based on the narration at the beginning of the trailer.
It looks like the Scarecrow has made good on his promise in the secret message of Arkham
City. By finding hidden radio signals and decoding
the numbers, you could find a message from the Scarecrow that states, "I will return
Batman. You will pay for what you have done to me. Fear will tear Gotham to shreds." And
from what we can see of Arkham Knight, the Scarecrow seems to have kept that promise.
This is a city in the middle of evacuating its citizens while its cops wage an apparently
losing battle against the rampant criminals. But just why is Gotham evacuating? Is it because
the Scarecrow's fear toxin has already been spread and these are the survivors? Or is
it only a threat for now and the city is evacuating just to keep everyone safe? It's difficult
to say, but looking at the state Gotham is in, it seems like it could've been torn apart
by more than just criminals. At any rate, the police are being hunted down by goons
who are also better equipped than them. It's the first part of Scarecrow's message
that has us curious though. Only hints of the villain could be found in Arkham City,
but based on this Easter Egg, it sounds like he may have been disfigured in some way after
his run-in with Killer Croc. We see no physical sign of Scarecrow in the trailer so what will
he look like? Could it be a major redesign? Then there are the other villains. Unlike
Arkham City, where the factions of Two-Face, the Penguin, and the Joker were at war with
one another, here we see all three of them working together with Harley Quinn filling
in for Joker. What changed to make them become allies? Could it possibly be because they're
all working for Scarecrow? After all, the goons are seen wearing a vest with a skull
on the back. In Arkham City, it was possible to find a
boat belonging to Scarecrow that had a kidnapped cop stored aboard. Painted on his shirt was
a very similar skull emblem. But the emblem also has the words 'Hell's Gate' printed on
them. This actually references one of the challenge maps in Arkham City that took place
outside Talia al Ghul's hideout. We doubt it actually has any significance though there
is another reference with Hell's Gate. It's actually a slight reworking of what Azrael
told Batman at the end of his sidequest. He stated that dark days were coming and that
Batman would be the one to close the Gates of Hell. And that from the ashes of Arkham,
fires would rage and Gotham would burn alongside Batman. This could be interpreted as the Scarecrow
controlling the Hell's Gate group, and it being Batman's mission to shut them down.
But it could require his sacrifice since both he and Gotham would burn. This burning theme
can even be seen in the logo at the end of the trailer.
Even more intriguing is the confirmation that there will be a new original villain that
will premiere in the game. Though just how integral this new enemy is to the plot is
still unknown, we do know that Geoff Johns helped Rocksteady in his creation.
Beyond the story and villains, there's a lot more information on how Arkham Knight will
play. For one, the city will be five times the size of Arkham City, and the streets have
been made wider. This means that the Batmobile will now be driveable. That's awesome all
by itself, but the Batmobile actually holds a clue to just how big we can expect Gotham
to be in Arkham Knight. We see a map in the Batmobile that matches the southern tip of
this map of Gotham. And looking at the maps notes, we can see Arkham Island here. The
larger island to the north is actually where Arkham City took place. So if we assume that
the southern tip of Gotham is explorable, then it's possible that the entirety of Gotham
is available to players. Maybe even Arkham Asylum.
The Batmobile has undergone a redesign since we last saw it in Arkham Asylum. There it
looked more like its appearance in the 1989 film or the animated series. But this one
takes more inspiration from the Tumbler in the Christopher Nolan Batman films. That tank-like
design is not just for show though as revealed by Rocksteady. Like we see in the trailer,
it can be summoned at any time by Batman. However, it will smash through anything in
its way to meet him. This includes other vehicles, traffic signs, and even building corners.
Entering and exiting the vehicle won't take long either. As we can see in the trailer,
Batman can eject himself from the Batmobile at any time. Rocksteady confirms that he'll
immediately be able to glide or use his grappling hook to maintain his momentum. The major question
for the Batmobile though is just how much use will it see. Will it only be used for
traveling around Gotham, or will there be missions built specifically around it? It
very well could be the latter since we see him giving chase to Two-Face at the end of
the trailer. Combat in Arkham Knight looks like it will
be expanding as well. The developers have confirmed that there will be new moves and
takedowns and even more thugs to use them on. Some riots could potentially have up to
fifty characters on screen. But what has us interested are the moves Batman uses against
the goons in the trailer. He starts the fight by disarming a guy holding a Molotov cocktail.
We can't see what he uses to destroy the bottle, but it's safe to say it was a batarang. The
truly cool thing though is that he does this from the air, something he was never able
to do in the previous games. Is it possible that you can now throw projectiles while gliding?
After disarming the thug, Batman tosses him into the others. Air takedowns in Arkham City
always had Batman pouncing on an enemy and knocking them out. Maybe they've been expanded
so that he has more options on what to do with their body? We can even see hints on
exactly how the freeflow combat has been expanded. When Batman goes to takedown the guy with
the baseball bat, he slams him through a car window to finish him off. Maybe he can now
use the environment to take down enemies as well?
Now, we know what you're thinking. Because this trailer is pre-rendered, anything we
see in combat could just be to spice up the movie. But we don't think that's the case.
Everything Batman does is in line with the actual gameplay other than the potential new
moves. The best example of this is him using his cape to disorient the thug with the knife
before knocking him out. As we mentioned before, we actually see some
of the villains that will be found in the game, and many of them have gotten an updated
design. The first is Harley Quinn who once again has a new outfit. This one appears to
be a combination of the ones found in Arkham Asylum and City though. The most significant
change is that she no longer has the black makeup around her eyes or at least not as
much to make it look like a mask. Penguin has also been updated slightly. He
no longer wears his coat, and his head is now completely shaved. Two-Face looks to have
the least amount of change since Arkham City. They've improved the detailing on his scarred
side, making his look appear closer to the Dark Knight version of him than ever before.
Of course, the villains aren't the only ones with a redesign. Batman himself has a brand
new suit that is much more armor like now. He even has a body suit beneath the actual
batsuit. This could be for extra protection since the outer layer flexes with him, creating
openings. It looks to explain how he can be so agile while staying protected from harm.
Okay, we're almost done here, but it's worth mentioning that Harley Quinn will act as pre-order
DLC. Whether she'll have her own side-story like Catwoman or just be available in the
Challenge Rooms like the Joker is still unknown though we think the latter is more likely.
But we also get a small taste of how she'll fight.
She doesn't seem as agile as Catwoman though she's probably quicker than Batman. She can
disarm the police with her kicks, but what's really interesting is that she uses a counter
to deflect a policeman's punch, rolls over his back, and kicks the other officer. Could
this be a new double counter just for her? Or is it another example of how freeflow combat
has evolved. Maybe you can now evasively counter an enemy to attack another before returning
to finishing the first off? Finally, it's been confirmed that the voice
cast of Arkham City is returning with Kevin Conroy back as Batman, Nolan North as the
Penguin, Wally Wigbert as the Riddler, Tara Strong as Harley Quinn, and Troy Baker as
Two-Face. With the Riddler back, it's safe to say that his trophies and puzzles will
be too. And that's everything we could find in the
debut trailer for Batman: Arkham Knight. Rocksteady has done a wonderful job with Batman in the
past, and they're promising that this will be their final game in the series. We can't
wait to find out more and see just how this saga comes to an end. If you liked this video,
be sure to like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at GameXplain. Thanks for watching
and be sure to stay tuned for more on Batman and other things gaming too.