Maybe this is a hot take but I think this is the best of the Arkham trilogy. The story is the best of the three games in my opinion.
Everything with the Bat family, the nuances of Scarecrows goals, and Batman's personal trauma in the game are so well explored, and it all emotionally resonates. I think this is what sets the game apart from the other two. The first two games have great stories that have awesome twists and turns and do amazing villain work, but they never really develop batman and the bat family, but this game does in a really intense way that earns an M rating.
The gameplay is the peak of the series. The combat, puzzles, and movement feel the best it has felt yet.
The city of Gotham is beautiful, I have always said that art style is better than graphics and this game has both. I played it for the first time in 2022 (the whole trilogy for that matter in about 2 months). It looks so good on Xbox series consoles. The graphics, art style and atmosphere is so good and immersive. It is always raining in Gotham and that adds so much to the atmosphere. It feels like a old school detective film.
My biggest complaints with the first two games was how repetitive combat feels, and this game answers that critique with the addition of the Batmobile. I know this is the low point for most people in the game, but I have a different take after playing all three games in a row in 2022. The Batmobile adds much needed gameplay variety. The issue with the Batmobile is not how much it is used in the game, or how much time you spend in it, but the lack of enemy variety for Batmobile combat sequences. It was refreshing after three Arkham games to play so differently in the Batmobile, but this part of the game ran into a familiar problem of poor enemy variety (all three games struggle with this). The Cobra tanks are the absolute worst, are tedious, and annoying. The Batmobile is super fun, but the combat sections get tedious and repetitive because of poor enemy vehicle design and variety. But that does not change the fact that this series needed the change of pace with the batmobile, and that it is fun to be in and drive around.
Let's talk about the open world. It is amazing, this is Gotham city at its best. It is a beautiful city that I think is just big enough. There is plenty to do in the world, lot's of side content, and really good extra missions and storylines to tackle. What I find most impressive is that the side content is just enough. There aren't 100 different tiny questlines but around 15-20 well made and thought out quests that offer variety.
This game also has some really good dlc (Please play a matter of family!) and great double hero combat (Nightwing and Batman fighting together is just too good!).
Overall this is a fitting end to this amazing trilogy. I think it is the best, I don't get the hate for this game at all. I encourage you to play all of them. This one is currently on Gamepass too which is a hard to beat deal!
Everything with the Bat family, the nuances of Scarecrows goals, and Batman's personal trauma in the game are so well explored, and it all emotionally resonates. I think this is what sets the game apart from the other two. The first two games have great stories that have awesome twists and turns and do amazing villain work, but they never really develop batman and the bat family, but this game does in a really intense way that earns an M rating.
The gameplay is the peak of the series. The combat, puzzles, and movement feel the best it has felt yet.
The city of Gotham is beautiful, I have always said that art style is better than graphics and this game has both. I played it for the first time in 2022 (the whole trilogy for that matter in about 2 months). It looks so good on Xbox series consoles. The graphics, art style and atmosphere is so good and immersive. It is always raining in Gotham and that adds so much to the atmosphere. It feels like a old school detective film.
My biggest complaints with the first two games was how repetitive combat feels, and this game answers that critique with the addition of the Batmobile. I know this is the low point for most people in the game, but I have a different take after playing all three games in a row in 2022. The Batmobile adds much needed gameplay variety. The issue with the Batmobile is not how much it is used in the game, or how much time you spend in it, but the lack of enemy variety for Batmobile combat sequences. It was refreshing after three Arkham games to play so differently in the Batmobile, but this part of the game ran into a familiar problem of poor enemy variety (all three games struggle with this). The Cobra tanks are the absolute worst, are tedious, and annoying. The Batmobile is super fun, but the combat sections get tedious and repetitive because of poor enemy vehicle design and variety. But that does not change the fact that this series needed the change of pace with the batmobile, and that it is fun to be in and drive around.
Let's talk about the open world. It is amazing, this is Gotham city at its best. It is a beautiful city that I think is just big enough. There is plenty to do in the world, lot's of side content, and really good extra missions and storylines to tackle. What I find most impressive is that the side content is just enough. There aren't 100 different tiny questlines but around 15-20 well made and thought out quests that offer variety.
This game also has some really good dlc (Please play a matter of family!) and great double hero combat (Nightwing and Batman fighting together is just too good!).
Overall this is a fitting end to this amazing trilogy. I think it is the best, I don't get the hate for this game at all. I encourage you to play all of them. This one is currently on Gamepass too which is a hard to beat deal!