2024 got off to a rough start for Arkhamverse fans. After waiting eight years for a new game fromBatman: Arkhamdeveloper Rocksteady, fans were servedSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, a live service continuation of theArkhamuniverse that was panned by critics and immediately abandoned by players. With how disastrousSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguewas, many saw the announcement of virtual reality gameBatman: Arkham Shadowas salt in the wound. While it may not be a traditional home consoleBatman: Arkhamgame, I can confidently say that franchise fans upset aboutSuicide Squadowe it to themselves to giveBatman: Arkham Shadowa go.
Set between the events ofBatman: Arkham OriginsandArkham Asylum,Arkham Shadowbegins on the 4th of July and sees Batman dealing with thethreat of the Rat King- a mysterious enemy with a gang of devoted followers that has made some apocalyptic threats to Gotham City. Players have to solve the mystery behind the Rat King and save Gotham, all while playing through the eyes of Batman himself.
Arkham Shadowisn’t the first crack at a VRBatman: Arkhamgame, but whileArkham VRwas more of a tech demo,Arkham Shadowis a full-fledged video game. It’s a 10+ hour experience that checks all theArkhamgame boxes. Some may have immediately dismissedArkham Shadowbecause it is a VR game, but that’s a mistake.Arkham Shadowis the real deal, and the closest thing we’ve gotten to a proper newArkhamgame since 2015’sArkham Knight.
Batman: Arkham Shadowdoes a brilliant job of translating the hallmarks of the traditional home consoleArkhamgames to the VR space. Going into it, my biggest concern was that the game would have no way of doing theArkhamfranchise’s trademark combat justice, but what’s accomplished here exceeds all expectations. The shift to a first-person perspective means acompletely different take onArkham’s brutal melee combat, but developer Camouflaj has made the jump while still maintaining the rhythmic essence of theArkhamfranchise’s hard-hitting fights. Though instead of pressing buttons to beat up bad guys, players have to literally punch them, with various visual cues implemented to add extra depth to the proceedings.
Batman: Arkham Shadow is a Genuine Arkham Experience
Yellow indicators pop up to give players some direction while they’re pummeling the many foes they encounter inBatman: Arkham Shadow, not unlike rhythm games or boxing fitness apps. Players are given a warning when another enemy is about to attack, and they are given the chance to swing their arm in that direction to block the hit. As the game goes on, enemies incorporate knives and armor, which add extra steps to fights, like dodging knife attacks by physically ducking and stunning armored enemies with Batman’s cape. Fighting in this game had me sweating on higher difficulties;Arkham Shadowcombat is fun anddoubles as a genuine workout.
Considering how iconicArkham’s combat is, I think that doing it justice was the most important thing forArkham Shadowto accomplish, and it says a lot that it succeeds in that endeavor. But there’s a lot more totheArkhamgamesthan fighting. Atmosphere is another key component, and luckily,Arkham Shadowdelivers there as well.Arkham Shadowis anArkhamgame through-and-through, with its dark, moody environments, impressive attention to detail, and clever references to the largerArkhamuniverse. Simply put,Arkham Shadowhas the vibes fans expect from anArkhamgame.
WhileexploringArkham Shadow’s game world, players have a lot more to do than beating up bad guys. Detective Vision is used to investigate crime scenes, as it is in the main games, with players examining objects for clues. Detective Vision is also useful for Predator sections, where stealth is favored over straight-up hand-to-hand combat. Players can easily swing from one perch to the next, hunting down each guard in the room one by one in a manner that feels exactly like the Rocksteady games.
Arkham Shadowis a perfect translation of theArkhamgameplay to virtual reality. Fans will be happy to know that extends to its story as well. TheArkhamgames have always earned a great deal of praise for their engrossing narratives and shocking twists, andArkham Shadowdelivers. The game is full of surprising revelations and offers interesting backstory onkeyBatmancharacters. I don’t want to go into detail because I thinkArkhamfans should really experience this story for themselves, but rest assured that it’s one that lives up to the other games in the franchise.
That being said, the game is not without its flaws. There are some major drawbacks that keep it from reaching the same heights asArkham AsylumandArkham City, though the good news is that some of the game’s bigger problems will hopefully be fixed through patches.
Forget Rats - Batman: Arkham Shadow Has a Bug Problem
Batman: Arkham Shadowis a buggy game. I lost count of how many times I had to restart a checkpoint due to a progression bug making it impossible to continue. Story events wouldn’t trigger, Batman’s hand would refuse to close into a fist, doors wouldn’t open, and all kinds of other issues popped up frequently during my playthrough. In a couple of especially annoying instances, Batman became stuck in walls. The sheer number of bugs would be absolutely damning in other games, butArkham Shadow’s frequent checkpoints make it so players can reload their latest save to solve the issues and lose virtually no progress. These problems are still frustrating, but they’re more of a minor nuisance thanks to how easily they’re fixed.
Arkham Shadow’s bugs will almost certainly be fixed with future updates, and at that point, it will become an even better game. One problem that won’t be patched out, though, is the excessive backtracking. The vast majority ofBatman: Arkham Shadowtakes place in Blackgate prison, with a lot of repetitive gameplay sections and repeated real estate players have to walk through. One area has players essentially re-do the same Predator takedowns multiple times, but with slightly more and better-armed guards, and it starts to get dull. There are also multiple lengthy story sections where players are stuck standing and listening to characters talk, which isn’t boring because the writing and performances are great, but can become tiresome for a standing VR game like this. I commendArkham Shadowfor offering players a full-length experience, but at the same time, I think its pacing would have benefited from trimming things down a bit.
Along with a full-sized story,Arkham Shadowalso has interesting side content to check out in the form of combat challenges, optional puzzles, and hidden collectibles. Like the otherArkhamgames,Arkham Shadowrewards players who stray off the beaten path. Combine that with an upgrade system that continuously expands Batman’s combat options, andArkham Shadowis easily one of the deeper VR games I’ve played.
Even still, some hardcoreArkhamfans may remain unconvinced. The fact thatArkham Shadowis exclusive to Quest 3and Quest 3S headsets may make them evenmoreskeptical. However, I thinkArkham Shadowis definitely worth picking up a Quest 3 or 3S headset for hardcore fans of the franchise, as long as they also plan on checking out other VR apps and games, of course.Batman: Arkham Shadowis a legitimately greatArkhamgame, one that mostly lives up to the high bar set by the Rocksteady trilogy. A few patches will go a long way in makingArkham Shadoweven better, but even now, it’s an easy recommendation for Quest 3 and 3S owners.
Batman: Arkham Shadow
Batman: Arkham Shadowis out now for Meta Quest 3 and Quest 3S headsets. Game Rant was provided with the game and Quest 3 headset for review.
