10 Things All Superhero Games Can Learn From Batman: Arkham
5. Give The Player Excuses To Live In The World
Perhaps one of the most iconic elements of the Arkham Series; Riddlers numerous trophies, puzzles and riddles have added plenty of more hours to the Arkham Games lifespan. Whilst the actual act of collecting some of these trophies can be tedious at times, the clever and often inventive riddles that the player must solve more than make up for them. Many may groan at the idea of yet more collectibles entering the gaming sphere, but the Arkham series demonstrates just how to employ them effectively. They not only serve a purpose in relation to the story, but also as unlockables to various maps and upgrades that aid the player in both honing and improving their skills as a costumed crime-fighter. The problem with collectibles in other series is that they often feel tacked-on and disjointed from the game itself, with the grind to collect them all in order to unlock that tasty platinum trophy or that last achievement often being off-putting to players. The Arkham titles remedied this by tying the collectibles to a particular character, replete with specific dialogue and in Arkham City's case, a showdown at the end for all your efforts.
WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well.
In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.
