The Best Batman Game No One Played
Before Arkham, there was Vengeance.
Today, Batman is considered something of a gaming icon. Having bossed comics, film and TV, that shouldn't come as such a surprise; Rocksteady's Arkham games are modern classics in every sense, but while they enshrined The Dark Knight in gaming history for years to come, it hasn't always been smooth sailing for the character in the medium.
For every good Bat-game, there've been about five bad ones (give or take). Cast your mind back two decades and the character didn't hold nearly the amount of reverence on consoles as he did elsewhere, and though the lauded DC Animated Universe was still in its prime - with both Batman and Superman's animated series' going strong - inspiration for a genuinely good title was found wanting.
Until Batman: Vengeance came along.
Based on BTAS' New Batman Adventures reboot and featuring the talents of Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Arleen Sorkin and the rest of the show's original cast, Vengeance debuted as not just one of the strongest BTAS spin-offs going, but also as one of the character's finest forays into the gaming medium.
Yes, it may pale in comparison to the dizzying highs of Rocksteady's Bat-titles, but that doesn't mean it's not worthy of your time. Revisit it today, and you find a game that offers a complete Batman experience, giving players the opportunity to embody the World's Greatest Detective top to bottom with focus on combat, traversal, flight and driving over its - admittedly short - running time.
Bat-fans today might be spoiled for choice when it comes to video games, but in reappraising a forgotten Ubisoft classic, they could yet find another title to turn to and enjoy.