If you haven’t already been able to tell, we’re really excited for Batman: Arkham Knight. While Rocksteady’s return to a series slightly tarnished by Arkham Origins is more than enough for us to make ready our cape and cowl, the finale brings with it one of the most iconic elements of Batman: the Batmobile.
In its fourth “Arkham Insider” video, Rocksteady and game director Sefton Hill discuss the vehicle’s features, as well as why they chose to include it in the first place.
“Really, we just felt that it was the one thing that we hadn’t had a chance to do,” Hill says. “To give the player the freedom of Gotham City, as Batman gliding above the streets, in this awesome, incredible, famous vehicle.”
As Batman made so clear in The Dark Knight Rises, “this isn’t a car.” It includes tons of gadgets to help both in puzzle-solving and in combat. “Immobilizer missiles” can be used to take out enemy vehicles, Omni-directional tires allow for extreme maneuvering, and wheel-mounted EMP devices allow Batman to “temporarily stun any of the Arkham Knight’s drone forces.” Perhaps the coolest new addition to the Batmobile is the “drone virus” tool, which allows the Dark Knight to take control of enemy drones and cause them to fight their comrades.
The Batmobile has been utilized in new Riddler challenges, as well. In races that the developers call “an intellectual challenge,” you must use the vehicle’s abilities to open doors, move platforms, and even move from the road to drive along the wall. Each challenge is a three-lap race, and the layout changes each time around, forcing you to stay on your toes as new hazards appear.
Batman: Arkham Knight launches June 23 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC, and we’ll probably still be talking about it for long after that.
