Much like the Dark Knight himself, last year’s breakout hit Arkham City swooped down and beat out some pretty major competition to snag several Game of The Year awards along with numerous high scores and glowing reviews.
One element that eagle eyed gamers especially appreciated were the subtle hints and easter eggs revealing the possibility of a third game in the works. While developer Rocksteady and WB Games haven’t formally announced the existence of any such title, I thought I’d list the top five things I’d want to see included in a hypothetical third Arkham game.
1. New And Returning Villains.
As expansive as the list of starring villains in Arkham City was, I was admittedly disappointed that some of my favorite villains from Arkham Asylum including Scarecrow and Killer Croc were absent from the spotlight. The Scarecrow sequences in Asylum were some of my favorite moments in the entire game and I’d love to see what sorts of new tricks he’d unleash in a third Arkham game.
I’d also like to see other prominent and lesser-known villains from the Batman mythos show up as well such as Black Mask, Phantasm, Hush, and Zeus.
2. Co-Op Challenge Maps.
Arkham City‘s Riddler’s Revenge Challenge mode was a big step up from Asylum‘s, featuring not one but four playable characters in total. Each character came with their own unique gadgets, combos, and special takedowns and while it was fun playing as them individually, the mind swam with possibilities of how they’d function when working together.
I’d love for Rocksteady to take the supposed third game’s Challenge mode to the next level and allow two players to pick their favorite heroes and work together to take down some of Gotham’s toughest criminals. Imagine the possibilities of two heroes using their gadgets in tandem, performing double takedowns, and even helping each other when one or the other gets overwhelmed by bad guys.
3.Challenge Mode Unlockables.
While we’re on the subject of the series’ Challenge Mode, one thing I’d like to see done differently in a supposed third game is the inclusion of unlockables and/or progression into the mix. In both Arkham Asylum and Arkham City the standard formula of earning medals and beating your best times was fun, but it didn’t really add much replay value.
Maybe Rocksteady could make it so that we could use the medals we earn to unlock new costumes, upgraded gadgets, and maybe even new combos for our favorite characters. The xp/progression aspect of Arkham City‘s single-player campaign was one of my favorite new additions and I’d love to see the same concept brought over to the Challenge Mode.
Perhaps as an added incentive, some of the more expensive unlockables could include special Challenge Maps that let players unleash their inner super villain; getting to play as some of Batman’s antagonists such as Joker, Azrael, Harley Quinn, Bane, and Mr. Freeze.
4. A Multi-Character Campaign
The Catwoman segments of Arkham City‘s main campaign, while brief, offered a nice change of pace from Batman’s story and even helped to tie up some loose ends in the narrative. The inclusion of Robin in the post-release Harley Quinn’s Revenge DLC was also a nice addition, however both his and Catwoman’s inclusion in the single-player story was still technically optional content.
If Rocksteady aims to clear the high bar set by Arkham City‘s story campaign, they should try to craft a narrative that sees players stepping into the shoes of not just Batman but also his allies and friends. Make playing as Catwoman, Nightwing, and Robin a standard part of the experience instead of being shoe-horned in as optional content. Maybe even take it further and have players solve crime-scene sequences as Commissioner Gordon or solve decryption puzzles as Oracle.
5. Vehicle Segments
As fun as grappling and gliding around open-world environments is, I’m sure many Arkham fans wouldn’t mind getting to slide into the cockpit of famous Batman vehicle such as the Batmobile and Batwing. Not only could they help with traversing whatever environments Batman and co. found themselves in, they could also open up the possibilities for entirely new mission and objective types.
I doubt many experiences in the Arkham series could match getting to cruise down the streets of Gotham in a souped up Batmobile, striking fear into the hearts of criminals with a rev of the engines and a squealing of tires as you raced off to your next mission.
