Review: Fighting crime together has its flaws in ‘Gotham Knights’

Don’t play “Gotham Knights” alone. That’s the lesson I learned the hard way playing WB Games Montreal’s latest project. Although one could run through the campaign solo as one of Batman’s proteges, it’s not advisable. The whole concept of the experience is that players team up with friends to take on Gotham’s enemies.

Each player controls a member of the Bat Family — Dick Grayson, aka Nightwing; Jason Todd, aka Red Hood; Barbara Gordon, aka Batgirl; and Tim Drake, aka Robin — as they fight crime across the city. Where’s the Dark Knight in all this? He perished while battling the League of Shadows leader Ra’s Al Ghul and it’s up to the younger generation to solve his final case. Batman was looking into a mythical organization called the Court of Owls, and that investigation drew in the League.

GAMEPLAY FROM THE BEST BATMAN GAME
It’s a notable setup for a multiplayer experience. “Gotham Knights” brings in parts of the foundation from Rocksteady’s “Batman: Arkham” series and adapts it to a cooperative open world. If fans ever wondered how four vigilantes would do against a gang holding hostages, they now have the answer.

It works well as squad members mark enemies on the screen, plan attacks and methodically subdue them to save the day. Players have to time their assaults so they knock out patrolling goons in concert in order to maintain stealth. If a mission devolves into a fracas, teammates can use their talents to augment each other’s abilities. When players are down, allies can revive them.

The experience works partly because of the mission design. It’s geared toward teams, and if one plays alone, it’s overwhelming. Players will face encounters where the squad will have to disarm Harley Quinn-armed bombs while also brawling against tough bosses. Some scenarios flood a room with waves of henchmen, and if players don’t have an ally, it’s a long slog. It’s a lot of Bat pain.

GET TO KNOW THE CAST
“Gotham Knight” requires coordination and knowledge of each of the Bat family talents. Being the oldest, Nightwing acts as the de facto leader and has perks that boost allies. He specializes in aerial attacks. Meanwhile, the youngest Robin is a stealth specialist and has moves that rely on trickery and misdirection. Batgirl is an expert hacker who can evade electronic detection, turn enemies’ tech against them and take down tough enemies one on one. Lastly, Red Hood is big and burly while also excelling at ranged attacks.

Deciding on which one is the best is like picking the top ninja turtle. It all comes down to the playstyle preference because each hero excels in certain situations. If stealth is required, Robin is the way to go. If a side quest requires someone to sneak by surveillance cameras or battle a gang with high-tech weaponry, Batgirl is the hero for the job.

Thankfully, players can switch among any of the four heroes when they’re at the Belfry headquarters. They will all level up at the same rate as well so players don’t have to worry about grinding out missions and experience points for every character. If one character reaches level 10, they all hit level 10. They can put new points into skill trees and other progression upkeep.

Unfortunately, gear is another matter. Although players may level up, they will find some equipment underpowered. Players will have to head out in the world and fight crime if they want gear like armor and weapons that match their level.

MISSING THE BIGGER PICTURE
As much as the concept sounds solid, “Gotham Knights” stumbles on the execution. The technical ambition of an online Batman game led to some compromises. The frame rate is capped at 30 fps on consoles and the game sputters at times when playing with online friends. The campaign is still playable, but the limitations on modern consoles are apparent.

The bigger issue with “Gotham Knights” is that its structure is a little scattered. Not only does the Bat crew have to deal with League of Shadows and the Court of Owls, but they also have to tackle the gangs and supervillains sowing chaos and unrest in the city. Players have to juggle several case files, which doesn’t allow for much flow when it comes to the narrative. In addition, it doesn’t help that each chapter requires a certain jump in levels, which nudges players to explore other storylines.

That makes for a little too much freedom in a project that needs more focus. The developers at WB Games Montreal create some nice moments (I especially liked the puzzle-like investigations) and missions that echo the best of the “Batman: Arkham” series, but “Gotham Knights” is missing the necessary structure to hold that ambition together. The team tries to use Batman’s death as a way to tie the villains together, but those connections are tenuous at best.

GETTING AROUND GOTHAM
Other problems that hurt the campaign are the ambient crimes-in-progress missions and the traversal. As players travel the city, they’ll run into criminals bullying Gotham residents and that’s where the heroes step in. The problem is that these missions quickly became redundant as they often repeat the same scenarios over and over again, sometimes in the same spaces.

When it comes to traversal, getting around the city isn’t a pleasant experience. The Batcycle is a little slow, but the bigger issue is that using grappling hooks to soar around rooftops is cumbersome. The game automatically targets holds to swing to places, but the choices the system makes are wrong 40% of the time. It can be especially trying if players are trying to get a drop on goons. Players often zip in an unintended direction.

Later, when players unlock the Knighthood skill tree, they gain an additional way to maneuver around, and it helps, but grappling to the right places is still a problem. That issue is indicative of a larger problem with “Gotham Knights.” The developers absorbed some of the best parts of the “Batman: Arkham” series and adapted it well, but it missed out on the important elements that made the games so polished and well-crafted.

‘Gotham Knights’

2½ stars out of 4

Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Seres X and Series S, PC
Rating: Teen