Batman Bundle is a Humble Triumph

Sometimes it feels like the days of extreme PC discounts is long gone – and then you see the new Batman Humble Bundle and the memories all come flooding back.

For less than £8 – somewhere around $10 – you can have almost every great Batman game made in the last 15 years. And it’s well worth every penny.

The bundle includes Arkham Asylum, City and Knight, as well as the often forgotten (officially) Origins. You’ll also get three Lego Batman games and Batman VR into the bargain as well.

If you don’t own them, or if there are some you’re missing, you really need to get them. It’s a reminder of just how great Batman can be – and how fragile his future is.

Reliving the Greats

I don’t need to introduce Arkham Asylum or City. The former revolutionised the superhero genre, finally giving you a game where you actually felt like Batman. That is no small feat, and it was paid off by influencing countless other titles such as Shadow of Mordor and Spider-Man.

The sequel built on it in every way, only in a bigger, more open playground. By today’s standards it’s pretty small, actually, and even at the time I’d probably guess Assassin’s Creed felt bigger. But there’s a reason City is seen as the ultimate Batman game, and as a classic of the PS3 era.

Origins and Knight are a little less critically acclaimed, but are both worth having. Origins – a Christmas game, by the way – is difficult to play well anywhere but on PC. On PS4/PS5 you have to rely on PlayStation Now, which is spotty at best and, besides, requires a subscription. You’ll be limited in framerate and resolution.

Coincidentally, I was trying to buy Batman Arkham Origins the other day. Copies of the 360 version can go for £50. It’s backwards compatible, but isn’t available digitally. Being able to play in 4k and at 100+fps is a no brainier as part of this set.

Knight includes all the DLC (as do the other games), and isn’t as bad as I think people thought at the time. I thoroughly enjoyed playing it and it nicely rounds off this set. The other games, mostly great in their own right, are just a bonus.

The Future of Batman

There was a time not long ago where a new Batman game felt inevitable. After the success of City, you couldn’t move for rumours about where the franchise was going.

Then Knight came out and it’s been radio silence ever since. Yes, we’ve got Suicide Squad and Gotham Knights on the way, and I’m sure they’ll both be worth looking at, but neither seems like it’ll scratch that Arkham itch.

Bare in mind, it’s been more than six years since Arkham Knight came out.

A new Batman game is inevitable, even if it feels like a giant question mark now. There’s no way that IP is just going to disappear. Even if it’s rebooted, completely separate from Arkham, it will happen. It’s just a matter of time.

But for now, this Humble Bundle reminds us of just how incredible these games were. Even if the future isn’t clear, the past is still an incredible place to visit.