The Gotham Knights universe feels much larger and more alive than the dark corridors of Batman Arkham. Here, the existence of other heroes is not simply hinted at, but rather becomes part of the bigger picture. After Batman’s death, his former comrades receive messages from all corners of the superhero world: Superman personally writes words of sympathy to Dick Grayson and Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon is invited on a journey by the Birds of Prey, and Flash, in his own style, promises to support Robin even before he finishes reading the message. Despite this, each of the Gotham Knights decides to stay. They want to do more than just mourn their mentor, but to prove to themselves and the city that they can be true protectors without his shadow behind them.

Gotham Knights skillfully reveals the personalities and internal conflicts of its heroes. Each of them has their own personal story, a separate story arc that shows how they cope with loss, doubts, and the past. It’s reminiscent of the emotional approach of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy — only while that was all on board a ship, here life is in full swing in the city itself. The characters don’t close themselves off — they communicate, argue, support each other, and interact with the world around them. Gotham is no longer just a backdrop, but a living organism that is affected by their every emotion and every decision they make.

Gotham Knights Free Steam Account

Almost a decade has passed since WB Games Montréal released its last major game, Batman: Arkham Origins. During this time, the industry has changed dramatically: legendary sagas like Batman: Arkham and The Witcher have ended, Ellie has gone through her dark path in The Last of Us Part II, and Half-Life: Alyx featuring Alyx Vance showed that VR is not just entertainment for enthusiasts, but a full-fledged platform for deep stories. And all this against the backdrop of two generations of gaming consoles.

In this context, one can only sympathize with the Montreal studio. After the quite solid Arkham Origins, fate abruptly changed their course – the team was gradually pushed into the background. Instead of their own projects, they had to help other studios under the wing of Warner Bros., remaining in the shadows. The only work in which they still retained creative autonomy was the A Matter of Family add-on to Arkham Knight. The story of Batgirl saving her father from the Joker’s clutches turned out to be cute, but without a deep mark. If you look closely, the studio’s style was already evident: spectacular cutscenes coexisted with drawn-out animations that slowed down the rhythm – the same thing that once almost ruined the early version of DOOM (2016).

At the same time, WB Games Montréal tried to grow something of its own, but, alas, all initiatives were either cancelled or postponed indefinitely. According to rumors, they tried to create a game about Superman – an idea that they could not find the right approach to. Even the planned Suicide Squad, which was carefully hinted at in Arkham Origins and Blackgate, eventually went to Rocksteady. In addition, the outflow of key personnel began. In 2015, the creative director of Arkham Origins Eric Holmes left the studio, going to EA DICE. Something similar — unfortunately — happened to Rocksteady, which also began to have problems with the internal core of the team.

The last hope for WB Games Montréal was a project with the working title Sabbath. There, the main character was supposed to be Damian Wayne, Bruce’s son, who, ten years after the events with Scarecrow, tries on the Batman suit. The basis of the gameplay was built around the Nemesis system from Middle-earth, but this project was also ruthlessly closed. How many such blows can a studio withstand? Obviously, not indefinitely. Apparently, in order not to disappear completely from the radar, it was decided to play on the familiar — to use an already known universe, popular mechanics and “safe” trends. This is how Gotham Knights was born.

Today, the gaming industry is going through difficult times. Many large projects fail, and truly bright AAA games can be counted on the fingers of one hand. In such a situation, Gotham Knights is perceived as an attempt to urgently jump on a departing train. Even Ubisoft, a company that loves to repeat successful formulas, has admitted that it’s time to move away from huge open worlds and tedious leveling, like in Assassin’s Creed Mirage. Although, frankly speaking, it’s still hard to believe in the complete absence of “pants collection” and “sheath crafting”. And now, nine years later, WB Games Montréal is releasing Gotham Knights, a game that was supposed to be their new beginning. But there’s a problem: during this time, they still haven’t had time to “get their hand in” on their own releases, because the entire top of the studio has managed to update several times during this time. Experience, mistakes, rethinking – all this is missing in sufficient quantity.

What happened in the end? We are waiting for another action RPG with elements of looter, grind and optional co-op. Is this a worthy path for the successor to the great Arkham series – that’s the main question. Let’s try to figure it out.

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Gotham Knights plot and characters

The eternal fight against crime is the destiny of those who are not bound by age, pain or fear. The destiny of mortals is to break one day. But it is important – how exactly. Batman chose his path: he stood guard over Gotham until his last breath and died as he lived – alone, among the ruins of his native estate, having entered into a fight with one of the most dangerous enemies. After his death, the city was left without a protector. But not without heirs.

Four of his students took the place of the Dark Knight – each with his own story, his own demons, but united by the common pain of loss and duty to the teacher. Nightwing, once Robin, who became the leader. Batgirl – smart, determined, stubborn. Robin – the youngest, but in his own way a genius. And the Red Hood – cruel, unpredictable, who survived death and returned as a different person. Their task is not just to patrol the streets. They need to become a new symbol. To surpass their mentor. Or at least not to disgrace his name.

At first glance, it may seem that Gotham Knights is a direct sequel to Rocksteady’s Arkham Knight. The initial conditions are too similar: Batman disappears, the legacy is passed on, hidden powers awaken. But don’t be fooled: the new game takes place in a separate universe, although it deliberately uses familiar motifs. This is confusing – especially for those who followed the Arkham series. It seems as if the authors decided to use someone else’s drama, without bothering to build their own. Such a borrowed start could be forgiven if the Gotham Knights universe was built interestingly and from scratch. But Batman’s death here is not a plot twist, but an advertising banner. We are told in advance: he is no more. And with it, the element of surprise goes away. There is no shock, no anxiety – there is staged grief and memorized phrases.

The plot begins to unfold around the mysterious murder of Professor Kirk Langstrom. Someone clearly did not want his DNA experiments to see the light of day. The investigation leads the heroes to the Court of Owls, a secret organization that has controlled Gotham from the shadows for centuries. Sounds intriguing? Maybe. But in practice, these are just new masks on old faces. The first video is really catchy. Cinematic, tense, with harsh, dark music. Batman in it is like a myth. His image is mesmerizing. Arkham Origins immediately comes to mind, and that same nostalgia turns on in your head. But the deception is short-lived: as soon as the game itself begins, it becomes clear that this is a completely different level.

The plot begins to sag after just a few hours. Its development is predictable, the key villains are easy to read in advance. Even the dialogues do not save – they often sound artificial, especially in moments where there should be tension or emotion. Fortunately, the chemistry between the characters does come through in places — sarcastic exchanges between Hood and Nightwing save the atmosphere. One of the developers’ main bets was co-op. But in a game built on history, this decision became controversial. The heroes only really communicate with each other in Belfrey, their headquarters. During forays into the streets, there is almost complete silence. There are no real-time dialogues, no exchange of lines, no sense of a live team. It all comes down to the fact that you are alone, even if you are not playing alone.

Gotham tries to change. Sometimes. For example, in a mission with Mr. Freeze, the streets are covered in ice, a blizzard covers the city. It is a beautiful moment, but there are few of them. Otherwise, the city is static. And this is one of the main problems: outside of missions, it seems to freeze. Again, the same patrols, the same criminals, the same animations. There is no sense of evolution of what is happening. Even the heroes’ suits do not bear traces of battles – everything is like from a showcase.

The game’s key flaws include:

• Weak threat from the antagonists. The Court of Owls doesn’t inspire awe, and the villains’ motivations quickly lose their edge;
• Predictability of the plot. The most important twists and turns are easily guessed and key secrets are revealed in the first third of the game;
• Problems with the logic of the characters’ behavior. The Red Hood, known for his cruelty, suddenly completes side quests for information that he could have gotten in a couple of blows – just like Batman himself did;
• Lack of progression. The world returns to the status quo after each mission, no narrative in the details, the characters’ suits are always perfectly clean;
• Almost complete lack of live interaction between partners in missions. Playing alone feels empty, despite the fact that it is nominally about a team.

And yet, Gotham Knights has the beginnings of something more. If it were possible to call allies in battle, if dialogues were not kept to a minimum, if Gotham lived and breathed with the player, the game could lay claim to something significant. Arkham Knight comes to mind, where you could sometimes switch to Robin or Catwoman, conduct dialogues and even participate in duet finishing moves. Here, everything feels restrained.

Belfrey, the new headquarters of the Knights, serves as a hub. Here they rest, train, discuss the events of the past nights, upgrade their equipment and tune in for the next patrol. Alfred remains the only bridge between the past and the present – a tuning fork that sets the tone for the entire group. His calm wisdom helps them hold on and not fall apart under the weight of loss.

How Gotham Knights’ Open World Works

After the prologue, the player is finally released into the open world, and the first thing that catches the eye is the scale and detail of Gotham. It is noticeably larger than in Arkham Knight, and now, for the first time since the Lego versions, there are passers-by on its streets – not just villains and cops. The city looks alive… but only at first glance. Paradoxically, there are fewer ordinary residents here than there were bandits in the Rocksteady games. Because of this, even Gotham’s gorgeous visuals do not save you from the feeling that you are in an extinct metropolis. The entire city is divided into five districts, and each of them is the fiefdom of local supervillains.

These areas are truly diverse: here you have familiar Gothic cathedrals, and massive buildings in the Dark Deco style (in the spirit of the Bruce Timm cartoon series), and suddenly — cyberpunk high-rises, brick neighborhoods that look like they moved from Harlem, and even streets with cobblestone pavement.

You can get around Gotham in different ways:

• Parkour and grappling hook are the basic and most enjoyable means. Maneuverability, dynamics and a sense of freedom are at their best.
• Unique abilities of each hero:

  • Nightwing is a glider;
  • Red Hood is super jumps with magical power;
  • Robin is teleportation using Justice League technology;
  • Batgirl is classic gliding on a cape.
• Batcycle is a spectacular, but questionable in terms of convenience, transport.

At first, riding a motorcycle along the neon wet streets is a delight, but then it starts to tire. In addition, transport literally appears out of thin air – this violates the integrity of the world, which they are trying to make realistic. Visuals, architecture, effects – everything works for the atmosphere, but the magically appearing equipment and cartoonish flashes instantly return you to the feeling of a “game” and not an adventure. The bike itself is also no gift. It moves slowly, and any collisions noticeably reduce the speed. Physics? Conditional. But it is easy to control, the roads are wide, and there is almost no traffic – there are not many accidents. However, funny bugs happen: once I accidentally hit a passerby, got off the bike, wanted to apologize … but out of habit I pressed the punch. And in response, I received an animation where the hero hits a random NPC in the jaw. Thanks, developers – now that’s unexpected marketing!

But running on the roofs is a real thrill. The city is made with love for detail, it is really interesting to explore. But, as usual, you can’t get far on visual impressions alone. And then the game starts showering the player with activities. There is a lot of content: story missions, mini-quests, skirmishes with classic villains like Harley Quinn or Mr. Freeze – all this is done perfectly. But to get to the interesting moments, you will have to fight your way through dozens of identical fights and tons of grind more than once or twice.

Endless skirmishes quickly become tiresome. After a couple of such runs, Lucius Fox will offer help – a fast travel system. To activate it, you need to scan drones around the city, using the local analogue of “Detective Mode”. After that, you can plan to the desired area on a compact version of the Batwing. Important: you will not be able to completely clear the map in one night. Now a night in Gotham is a cycle. After completing the tasks in Belfrey — the heroes’ headquarters — a new patrol begins, and fresh tasks appear on the map. For completing them, you get experience and resources for crafting — equipment and costumes.

Those who like to “vacuum” the map will find something to do: collections, graffiti, batarangs, scannable objects… and yes, there are no Riddler’s riddles this time, for which many will be thankful. This is more of a mechanic for enthusiasts, but it helps to learn more about the lore and the past of the city. There are so many references in the game that DC fans will be delighted. For example, I especially remember the jump over the crossbar, visually copying the iconic cover of The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller — pure fan service.

However, in the open world, it is annoying to have to return to the hub often. And sometimes too early. For example, if you were badly beaten in a side quest, first aid kits (there are seven in total) may simply not be enough. You can only recover in Belfrey. Theoretically, you can find an ambulance, but its location is constantly changing. And knocking a first aid kit out of an enemy is a risk of getting a fatal blow and being rolled back to the checkpoint. At the same time, some resources will be taken away “as a penalty”. But the only thing worse than backtracking is the challenges. To open up unique ways for the heroes to move, you need to complete a whole series of additional tasks. That is, even just to jump for Hood or fly like Batgirl, you will have to grind.

Honestly, the challenges are bearable – except for Nightwing. His glider is terribly controlled. And if you fail, you forget about the restart: run kilometers through the city to the starting point. This is wildly annoying. Especially when such crooked controls are also encountered in battle.

Gotham Knights Combat Breakdown

Gotham Knights developers, inspired by the FreeFlow combat system from the Arkham series, tried to breathe new life into it: make it more flexible, livelier, encouraging improvisation, as Insomniac did brilliantly with Marvel’s Spider-Man. But if in the case of Spider-Man they got something solid and intuitive, then here there are only rough edges.Take Red Hood, for example. He can punch or charge a powerful blow with a delay, and also fire pistols. Nightwing throws darts, Batgirl throws batarangs, Robin got a slingshot out of the closet – it seems like variety, but it feels like cosmetics. Each hero has a melee and a ranged attack, each in two variations: standard and “enhanced”. It sounds voluminous, but in practice it is almost meaningless.

There are no counterattacks in the spirit of Arkham here either. Instead, you dodge at the perfect moment and only then press the attack button. Classic finishing moves are a thing of the past – instead, there are now grabs that are activated only when the enemy is almost defeated. Having grabbed an enemy, you can slam him into a wall, another enemy or an electrical panel. Sounds cool? On paper – yes. In the game – not always. During combat, a scale of special moves accumulates: four basic, three advanced and one ult, which then takes a long time to recharge. It would seem that there is room for tactics, but no – it all works mechanically, boringly. The system quickly exhausts itself.

There are also advantages: the hero moves with a sense of mass, there is inertia, which is pleasant to feel. The game limits the ability to spam grabs – during the animation, you can be hit, enemies do not stand aside, like dummies. The transition from combat to stealth and back is smooth, unlike Arkham, where everything was divided into modules. In Gotham Knights, you can slip past enemies without knocking anyone out — there’s even charm in that. But everything falls apart when you realize that the system is too slow. And it’s not about the heroes themselves, but about the density of enemies and the complete lack of impact from blows. You can clear the arena for ten minutes of real time — and this is much more tiring than the monotonous clearing of bases in Spider-Man.

The combo system, conceived as the opposite of clicking, requires observing timing and building competent attack chains. But there’s no point in that. The damage is minimal, and over time everything comes down to pressing one button. Everything that the system gives begins to bring results only after installing mods and upgrading equipment. Before that, it’s a dull mess. Grapples? Often they just hurt. In other games, the character in the animation of a special move is either invulnerable, or the enemies retreat. Here, you will be happily beaten up during a spectacular trick – with a shield, bullets, cocktails. And if you are wounded during the start of the finishing move – the animation is completely disrupted.

The monotony of the enemies also adds to the problems. In Arkham, the fights were rhythmic, almost like a dance: a blow, a counterblow, a technique, a gadget, a finishing move. Here, everything is crude. Different types of enemies? Visually, yes. In terms of gameplay, they differ only in the level of endurance and the frequency of heavy blows. Bosses? Forget it. No ingenuity, no interesting mechanics. In Arkham Origins, bosses were almost a calling card. Here, it’s a formality. The controls don’t help either. The character can get stuck, miss, hit the wrong person, or simply attack the air. The enemies are slow, and so is the hero. The abilities are supposed to save you in difficult situations, but in reality, they are barely noticeable. Visually, these are flashes and special effects that hinder more than they help. And the game design seems to not understand who it is intended for.

The game is both too serious and too childish. You’re either walking through bloody corridors or getting a firework of special effects thrown at your face because Kolpak pressed his ult. The game is trying to please everyone, but in the end it loses face. The design is a mishmash: realistic streets coexist with magical jumps and rainbow flashes. The skins can be customized, but this does not save the overall inconsistency. RPG elements? Superficial. Leveling up is cumbersome, but not deep. Yes, each Knight has his own skill tree, but in the end it all comes down to numbers and gear. Why collect loot in a game about Batman’s students? This is not a mobile game – although at times it seems like the developers were trying to imitate it. There is zero role-playing. There is no choice in dialogues, no influence on the plot either. Just level up and complete missions.

The game looks better in stealth. Especially for Robin and Batgirl, they have more tools for stealth elimination. The landscape helps, roofs, ledges, beams – it all works. Enemies, although stupid, can notice the hero if he has already been spotted once. But in general, stealth is a calmer and more understandable part of the game. It’s just a pity that even here there are bugs: the hero can jump in the wrong place, get stuck, miss. Stealth is not brilliant, but against the background of combat it is perceived almost as salvation. At least here it is not annoying.

Gotham Knights is an example of how you can get lost between genres and try to please everyone without pleasing anyone. The game wants to be an action RPG, and a spiritual successor to Arkham, and a stylized comic. But instead of a unique cocktail, it turned out to be an awkward mix, where none of the components are brought to the end.

Is Gotham Knights Worth Playing in 2025?

WB Games Montréal is certainly full of enthusiasm and talent, but with Gotham Knights they seem to have lost their ambition. The game feels like a kaleidoscope of ideas – a lot of things, but they don’t connect very well. The developers took the combat mechanics of Batman: Arkham Knight and tried to cross it with the formula of the new Assassin’s Creed games, adding online elements on top and seasoning it all with questionable technical implementation. The result is something like a “universal soldier” that doesn’t really work for any of the audiences.

Fans of the DC universe may find something for themselves here – the atmosphere, familiar faces, fan service. But those who just want a good game will most likely find the project boring, uneven and tedious. The main difference with the Arkham series has always been that these games worked even outside the context of the comics. Gotham Knights feels tied to its niche, but at the same time does not even live up to the standards of the genre.

There are plenty of problems here: some players are annoyed by the drawn-out sections of gameplay, others do not like the visual style of the heroes, others – the online focus and sluggish plot. But in fairness – not everything is so bad. Gotham Knights is not a failure, just a game that could not realize its potential. With proper polishing, it could well become a worthy successor to the Arkham saga. For now, it is just a “good” experience, even exciting in places, but clearly unfinished.

As a long-time fan of Arkham games, I still enjoyed it – albeit not as much as I hoped for. Returning to Gotham, albeit with reservations, still gave its share of emotions. But for everyone else, it is better to wait for discounts or just replay the classics.

Pros:

• Impressive opening scene
• Good sound and memorable music
• Gotham looks atmospheric and stylish
• Rich lore and competent fan service
• The characters are well voiced, you can feel the chemistry
• There is freedom for stealth
• Excellent work of the artists

Cons:

• Superficial and quickly boring combat system
• Enemies with excessive health
• The plot is predictable and without fire
• Dialogues are unconvincing in places
• Questions about the character design
• Unstable technical part
• Graphics do not reach the modern level
• Boring grind
• Repetitive activities
• Frequent and tedious backtracking
• Heavy, “sticky” controls
• RPG elements are purely formal
• Weak boss fights
• Overloaded interface and navigation

Gotham Knights System Requirements

How to play Gotham Knights for free on Steam via VpeSports

Gotham is an orphan. The Dark Knight has fallen, and now the city no longer has someone who could stop crime with just one look. But emptiness cannot remain emptiness – and in its place new heroes are born. Gotham Knights is not just an action game. It is a challenge. This is a story about those who did not expect glory, but chose to stand between chaos and hope.

Now it all depends on you. The streets are seething with violence, gangs divide the districts, and in the shadows an ancient organization, the Court of Owls, whispers, draining the last of the city’s strength. You are one of those who decided to take on an unbearable burden. Robin, Batgirl, Nightwing or Red Hood – it does not matter who you are. What matters is whether you are ready to go to the end, even when hope dies.

Each task here is more than just a mission. It is an emotional clash with the past, an attempt to understand what it means to be a hero without the mentorship of Batman. Do not expect ready-made solutions. Gotham Knights makes you think, feel, choose — and pay for your decisions.

Launching the game is easy. We have done everything so that you are not distracted by technical details. Quick registration — and in a couple of clicks you are in Gotham. And if you are looking for a way to play without spending money, we have great news: you can get access through a free steam account, which we provide with step-by-step instructions for launching.

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And in order not to miss updates, new accounts and important news, be sure to subscribe to our Telegram channel. There you will find live discussions, fresh patches, tips on how to complete the game and just a warm gaming community. And if you’re confused, take a look at our guide “How to play for free“, where we’ve laid everything out in detail. Or just write to us in the chat. We’re here – and this, perhaps, has its own superpower. Gotham doesn’t need a new Batman. It needs those who aren’t afraid to be themselves.