As promised, WB Montreal Studio unveiled its newBatmangame,Gotham Knightsduring today’s DC FanDome event. It’s set in DC’s Batman Universe, and it stars Nightwing, Batgirl, Red Hood, and Robin instead of Batman himself. And whileGotham Knightscontains many unique features compared to itsArkhamcompetitors, one new feature stands out.Gotham Knightswill include cooperative multiplayer for the full game.
WB Montreal has confirmed thatGotham Knightswill allow players to go through the game cooperatively, with players able to take on the role of one of the fourGotham Knightsand join their friend’s game. Batgirl andNightwing, Red Hood and Robin, or whichever pair players choose, will have unique dialogue between them as well as combination moves that’ll make the cooperative experience unique in a special way.
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Gotham Knights' cooperative multiplayer does feature one major limitation, which was already hinted at, it’s only for two players. There will be no three-player or four-player cooperative action with all of theGotham Knights,or at least, only two of them will possibly be player-controlled. Some might see this as a frustrating decision, while others will appreciate how it keepsGotham Knightsfrom becoming significantly different thanpriorBatmangames.
There may or may not be other limitations onGotham Knights' multiplayer functionality, as details provided are relatively scant. For example, it’s unclear whetherGotham Knightswill supportcross-platform play,or even cross-generation play since it’s coming out on both PS4/Xbox One and PS5/Xbox Series X. It will require online, which isn’t a surprise, but there’s no word on whether there will be matchmaking or anything of the like.
Cooperative gameplay makes for a major shift inGotham Knightscompared to theBatman Arkhamgamesthat came before it, as one of the biggest themes of aBatmangame is the character’s independence. Batman takes care of things and rarely depends on others, stalking his foes in the shadows and instilling fear, and that doesn’t really work with a co-op buddy.Gotham Knightswill allow the developers to create a much more open and active game, even though the protagonists are supposed to be proteges of Batman.
Some fans of theBatman Arkhamgames do have a worry with regards to multiplayer being added toGotham Knights,that being that WB Montreal is shifting toward aGames as a Service or always onlineexperience. That could imply more microtransactions or meta progression systems that detract from the more natural aspects of the game. That’s just one more aspect ofGotham Knightsthat will have to be addressed in the months to come.
Gotham Knightsreleases on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X in 2021.
