So off the bat...from the start the game did not put its best foot forward just like me with that intro and my choices.

I just bought Arkham Knight with ALL of the DLC for the PC and registred it on Steam for £10. As my thread title says performance is not an issue (well it is...however I would say that my computer's fault, I get can 60fps on low graphics!) it is the game design itself.

I start off going "Yeah lets be Batman! AGAIN!" and we watched the Joker loaded to be burn..........oh right ok I need to press a button, ok thats cool let me be Batman......on and on and on and on and on and on goes this random old guys voice. Which long after this part and a few more I go "OH! Its Commissioner Gordon.....why the fuck does he bore me to tears?" so they opened with a pan of Gotham going "LOOK AT HOW GREAT LOOKS! EVEN ON LOW SETTINGS!"

Ok now let me be Batman and eventually I am! Weeee I fly around beat up guys and go "This is like old Batman....THIS IS AWESOME!" I then switch out and go into the costumes the DLC gave me and equip Batman Beyond the same costume gave me numerous extra hours in Arkham City purley cos I loved flying in that suit, this time around...ITS MORE AWESOME! ITS REEEEALLY FUCKING COOL! so I am easily amused right now as Batman Beyond.

Time to get into the actual story....cut scene...talking to arms....talking....telling me what to do....I JUST WANT TO PLAY LET ME PLAY! fast forward still very little playing and I get the Batmobile and I go "aww yeah this is cool!.....oh yeah tank mode that's still weird...oh....wave...based...shooting tanks.....this isn't fun." so after failing to do a "Tank Takedown" EG fire four missiles on tanks six times. It realy was not intuitive I eventually got past that bit and played with Batmobile thought it was coolish. Then I go "Lets be Batman more in missions!" what a mistake that was I got to be the Batmobile more and was introduced to the most hideous Batwing and car platforming.

My enthusiasm crashed I just shut down and in my head I was just was saying "I want to get past this...yet I cannot be bothered with car....platforming" so I just weakly rammed myself off the roofs a few times before I rage quit and switched off the game. I moaned at my best friend on steam and he goes "I played and completed Arkham Knight...get used to playing as the Batmobile and boss fights.....arnt boss fights....or even fights."

So I raged at the game for two days. I come back to going "I wanna be Batman and Batman Beyond suit is sooooo cool!!!" I jump back at it still no amused by the car jumping and then I get to a hook point I tried to pull off....nooooooo....turns out run off and climb up the wall with the winch. Sigh well ok that is done now.

I FINALLY get to a Batman section....and Batman is now fucking Ironman. "I cannot fight three men.....I will call in a new suit." I kinda felt like this all is missing the basic points of Batman from the start of playing this game due to the past games doing it before, So we have a suit up sequence which made me go "This suit is just Iron Man's suit now!", I get past that bit annnnnnd I spent a very long time watching Batman throw recon batarangs and talking.

So its been two hours of gameplay and now I am get a big area (after two sucky mini game shit things...) I get to sneak around as Batman to take out thugs! After being taught how to do it 3 minutes ago! Lets go!!! ......nope denied...why? Because Batman says "I cannot get to the worker I need to use the grappling hook the Batmobile.".......nope fuck off fuck off....FUUUUUCK OFFF!!! I JUST WANT TO PLAY AS FUCKING BATMAN!! FUCK OFF WITH THE BATMOBILE!!!!

Which is somthing I never thought I would utter in my life..."Fuck off with the Batmobile!!" how can they seem to miss the mark so much in this that I hate everything about this game. Except being Batman, how...just how?

I would go for a refund if I had not bought it from a third party CDkey site and gave the game enough of an attempt I am now past two hours. There is a part of me that realy just goes "Hey lets play Batman! Its cool being Batman in that Beyond suit!" then the game denies me my simple joys by forcing so many horrible things at me some are unwanted tutorials others are "MEH HERE MINIGAME GO!" with no instructions.

With the fact the Batmobile features more and more as the game goes on I am just going to uninstall it, the game infuriates me as it slowly almost gives me what I want...then rips it away from me to say "Get in the Batmobile...GET IN THE NEW THING FOR THIS NEW GAME! GET IN THE COOL NEW THING! ITS A FUCKING TANK LOOK ITS COOL PLAY WITH IT!!!"

I never got such an impression from other people and reviewers, reading Brad's review of it he is pretty positive about most (mostly how it looks) yet he did give a paragraph of "The makers realy wanted you to drive the Batmobile by putting it in the game so much" yet it did not seem to phase him too much while it annoys the shit out of me.

Bad ports or not this is a pretty lousy designed game to excite players...or at least excite me into playing more. I know they needed to innovate but innovation and dictation are two diffrent things.

When I got the game i heard nothing but people talking bad about the batmobile, not really reviewers but players. I never got the issue, it's not the greatest but it was fine I had fun with it. Then again it took me a month to actually play the game since it was so broken. Anyway, just be glad you got it cheap since you don't seem to like it very much, and yea the batmobile is a pretty big part of the game, there is a lot of on foot stuff too but they definitely did their best to put the batmobile in as much as possible. And there is some MAJOR car platforming in the riddler sections

I had the misfortune of playing the PC version at release and it ran like garbage for me. However,, I powered through the game and came to the personal realization that it had much bigger issues for me. Like you, I was not a fan of the batmobile/tank sessions and, yes, they do have some aggravating later sequences in the game requiring those bits. The story with the Arkham Knight ultimately fell flat for me and the emotional impact of a certain captured character was dull as hell. The Riddle puzzels were generally boring to me and a waste of time. Also, The Joker became such an annoyance and I actively hated every time he popped up (seriously it shocked me that a game could make me not want the fucking Joker as a character in a game). I recall there being enemies that would shock you when they hit you/hit them (I feel like there was both, but can't remember for sure other than being annoyed by them), which broke up the flow of the combat way more often than I liked. I always loved how hard-hitting the combat felt in the AA & AC, but here it didn't flow as well to me and lost some of its luster. Later in the game there was dual play, which (if you aren't too worried about gameplay spoilers highlight this) where you can work with two characters to take out enemies that only take up a small portion of the game. Being able to take the NPC and coordinate attacks with him while stealthily taking down enemeis was some of the best action I've seen in the series and they don't do it enough. It bums me out that this game did not feature this enough. Just a hugely underwhelming experience overall with a limp world, dull side content, lame batmobile action, and not emphasizing some of the best content in the series to me.

I had to quit when the game came out do to it being unplayable, though I had finished about half of it. Just got a 1080 so wanted to replay and finish it. This time around I was A LOT less harsh on the game. I actually had fun with it. Though I didnt do any of the Riddler car BS. That stuff is fucking awful. If I only used the Batmobile for the main story stuff, and a bit of the side missions it wasnt that bad.

I enjoyed Batman although I will agree that the story was probably the weakest of the three and it definitely had its issues. The Batmobile was a problem for me because as a car it doesn't handle nearly well enough for some of the tight chases you need to go on. The tank fights would be alright except a lot of them take place in an incredibly small place being inundated from all sides and blegh. They just weren't good enough to have to do that many of.

Thought the game was fine overall. I waited till early this year to final pick up a copy (PS4) and play it. It's the weakest game out of the 4 (because there are 4 of them despite what Rocksteady says). By the end of the game I thought the batmobile was fine and enjoyed it some, but they shove it down your throat in the beginning and near the 2/3 part of the game and it turned me off of the game mechanics hardcore. The things they built around the batmobile that you HAVE to do sucked ass, but just using it as a tool to get from A to B or do some crazy stuff, I didn't mind it at all.

Asylum is by far the best out of all of them and I stand by my opinion firmly in that Origins is the second best. Thought Origins tried to do a few things different that the previous 2 at the time and succeed mostly, where Rocksteady's additions in each game made the experience worse overall.

I dunno, loved the game. The essential part of that is that I mainlined the story and put it down. Then again, if you don't like the Batmobile it'll certainly skew your opinion of the game.

I really liked the game. It's probably better than Asylum, but Asylum is still my favorite. It was also the only Arkham game I got all DLC, though it's also the only one I didn't beat twice.

@darkeyehails: Really? I thought the story was the best of the three, by far really.

Origins was great, i got all the dlc because i bought knight when it was broken so i was thinking about going through it again and playing those. It's just not the best looking of the 3, it's a step behind city for some reason and it had a bunch of technical problems at launch (similar to Knight) but they are all basically patched now.

I don't even mind the way the Batmobile controlled, it was just their insistence to jam it into every other minute of gameplay that got annoying. They treated it the same way the do the gadgets, only you had to call the car in and then awkwardly maneuver it around before solving the puzzle as opposed to just hitting a button and firing off a gadget immediately. Plus, it always felt like grappling around the city was way faster/more direct than the car could ever be so I don't even know what the point of it was.

Also didn't like that they made the fistfighting even more complex, but that's just because I liked the simplicity of flying around racking up combos without having to think about how every single dude needed to be stunned or something before you could even hit them.

I mean, it seemed like they put the most effort into it, but the other games were so basic story-wise that they were impossible to screw up and so I wound up not judging the older stuff as harshly. Plus, they seemed to get further and further away from the "Animated Series" vibe Asylum had and more into the "Gritty Nolan" vibe that I just couldn't get into.

Oh and Origins had the best story out of the four ;)

I really hated everything about Arkham Knight. It's like they took the worst lessons they learned from the past batman games and then added a very boring batmobile

Arkham Knight was the best game I played last year. I ended up getting 100% in it. Rocksteady just knows how to make great games.

With all of that said, there are issues with Arkham Knight. I'm not going to stick my head in the sand and pretend there aren't any issues. The batmobile is just fine. For some games that would be OK, but with everything else being at such a high quality, it sticks out as a weird addition that doesn't necessarily make the game better. The side missions could be bit more fleshed out too.

I also think this is probably the best looking game I have ever seen. Rocksteady should be commended for it. No loading times along with a large open world that has rain effects all over it.

@teddie: Yep. I think Origins had the best story, if not Knight.

Arkham Knight is great, Origins is great, Asylum is overrated.

What?!? This hyperbolic emotional rollercoaster all happened in the first two hours. I think you'd have more fun if you calmed down a little.

Concerning the series: Asylum is still my favorite. Mostly due to level design. I didn't like City's open-world as much as Asylum's Metroidvania approach. City also turned the Riddler trophies into a massive chore rather than a fun little extra. I haven't played Origins nor Knight yet. Got to get on that.

@darkeyehails: That really isn't dumb by Batman, or really, DC standards. The story isn't really convoluted. I mean, there is such a thing as hallucinogens, and diseases that deal with blood. The infected blood was injected into Batman's veins, and then accelerated due to the fear toxin. It's not that realistic, but more realistic than many things in comic books. The end is unsatisfying, simply because you have to do everything to get the real end, and yet it's not that good. I liked the way they finished the Batman/Joker story, which to me was the best and most important part. I didn't like the Arkham Knight character. It was predictable, and I expected him to be a cooler character.

@sinusoidal: Yup two hours. The game made it feel like such a chore for me every two minutes it just knows how to push my buttons.....which talking about buttons....who thought left and right on the dpad brings up meanus for misson select and activities? The amount of time I want to switch gadgets or do detective mode only to have is decide to bring me in menues due tl xbox dpad or me pressing the wrong button.

This game just does not feel like a game to me. It feels like a half animated boring chore of a movie that just tries so hard to be diffrent.

It certainly seems like they put most of their budget into the art department on this one and while it looks great, its impact on the rest of the game doesn't make it worth it.

Story isn't particularly great, the side missions are the worst ones yet - very dull and just copy pasted over and over. They used the crime scene investigation stuff that Origin nailed once and then that was that. And the final fight being a repeat of an earlier one was just the last kick in the stomach.

Yeah, Arkham Knight is one of my favourite game of the past 10 or so years. It's the best Arkham game.

If that was enough to ruin the experience for you, you should stop now. The later parts of the game involve almost dungeon-esque puzzle solving where you'll do something with Batman, then remote control the Batmobile to do something else, then swap back to Batman and do another thing, and so on and so forth.

An example is attaching the Batmobile to a anchor, and lowering it down a ventilation shaft. As Batman, you go down the shaft, disabling the fans, and remoting back to the Batmobile, lowering it past the fan you just disabled, until it's at the bottom of the shaft and you can continue on your way.

"Bad ports or not this is a pretty lousy designed game to excite players...or at least excite me into playing more. I know they needed to innovate but innovation and dictation are two diffrent things."

I think OP one year and 5 million too late AK grievances are well known, not being a comic book or Batman fan I found the AK story great in particular Jokers inclusion.

Arkham Knight is a bad game, and for the life of me I don't know why the games press at large couldn't see it. Just about every boss encounter boiled down "do this one thing, now do it 5 more times". It felt lazy and uninspired. The story was mediocre; I kinda liked the Oracle being killed part, but they didn't even have the balls to follow through on that. The titular villain was lame, and I didn't think Joker's integration (because we apparently can't have a Batman game without the Joker?) was any good. I didn't hate the batmobile I just felt like it was way overused. Easily worst Arkham game.

I am glad to know my grievances are understood even from people to love the game, since like others have said here the media did not cover it too much on some of these things and what did over shadow it was "PC IS BROKEN! IT'S ON FIRE! IS HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM SALE!"

In all honesty Arkham Knight as made me look at Origins and think "Maybe this is a good Batman game....Maybe I do want to play this. I always wrote it off as a handheld cheap game ported to larger platforms as a cash grab."

To those who like the game as are not annoyed by it, thats awesome I want to love the game the game climbs into the back of my head and goes "Hey.....Arkham knight it cool!" and I go "I WANNA PLAY IT!" but then I play it and....its not.

I bought Assassins Creed Blackflag cos I was in the mood a while ago. I played 40hours of it between Story and side activities I was happy just doing the same stuff I did AC 2 and Brotherhood. It appeased me....do I think Blackflag is awesome....nah not realy. I think the old Bethesda Pirate of the Caribbean which was technically Sea Dogs 2, thats awesome. Yet Blackflag is fun and I hoped this would be the same for me with AK, which is why it annoys me its such a simple wish to play a new Batman doing Batman stuff but slightly better. Yet it makes me do none batman stuff not at all well.

I liked the Batmobile stuff.

*shrug*

I felt the same way about Arkham Knight. The Riddler stuff was just collect objects or stupid races, I have to use the batmobile in every main story mission, and the waves of tank battles was the worst. Then most of the side missions involved the batmobile. I just wanted to be Batman and kick ass, not play a modern version of Tank.

I am back at Arkham Knight despite the rage I have felt in past. I am on 5 hours now and I have legitimately had fun yet I am still annoyed often.

Ok so when I am left to play as batman happy as a pig in shit, I am coming to terms with the Batmobile, however....back to the game design being annoying. So I ripped open a wall at the ACE chemicals factory and I go "Right I am in....why wont it let me grapple up to it...ok fine look the Batmobile lets me jump and glide up here done lets go on..." then Batman's chimes in FOR THE TWENTIETH TIME! "I need the Batmobile before I can go on ahead."...nah....look I am in...let's go..... instead I have to. So I do so and go through things.

There was also a bit with an elevator which....just slowed the game to a crawl....twice....well three times for me cos I went down ONTOP of the elevator and so I had to come back up and go IN it, ok ok that was my fault...but I had to stop and start in taking controll of the Batmobile JUST TO USE AN ELEVATOR...also stop and start to put civilians to safety.

I am sorry I know the Batmobile is being crammed down my throat buuuuut....I have to now take people by car to Commissioner Gordon...I mean Asylum and City would have me surrounded by hundreds of blood thirsty criminals as I recuse people and Batman would just pat them on the butt and say "Get out of here!"

So later we get the Joker in his head stuff, its still early and well....that shit goes on waaaay too long they keep doing Joker stuff waaaay too much and this is me saying this from just the first meeting. I am even off the clock tower flying away and Joker still is talking...pretty much saying the same stuff....just like before I never expected to say "FUCK OFF BATMOBILE!!" I actualy said "Oh fuck off Joker!"

Also I said "oh Fuck off Gordon" for the second time....when you take over him to go see Batman, which was a confusing and unneeded but....also FUCK OFF BATMAN! yes I said it...WHY DID THEY HAVE DO ANOTHER JUMP SCARE WITH BATMAN!!?

Game design and story stuff and mini games alot of this is being crammed into just because. I the most fun on Ryker's Island...why? Because the Batmobile is too weak to do anything there right now in the story and so I am banned from using! HA HAHAHA I WIN! HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Also....that utterly pointless escort mission with Gordon in a cop car and Batman in the Batmobile....woooow...wooow....just...wooow. That bit also made me think about the worst of Batman and the worst of Batmobiles which was Batman Begins game

Batman AK makes me think alot about Batman Begins in choices as well as these words from Rab Florence echoes in my brain alot.Such things as

"Fuck off Batman!"

"Oh look here I am picking a lock...looks difficult eh? No its fuckin not."

"Oh look here we go out in the batmobile, its.....Burnout." "Am gonnae catch ye......am comin...eventually...oooh a thug takedown....fuck off Batman."

"Here is Batman taking down a security guard and then he's gonnae operate a crane...uh a wee catch here?" "Yes that right folks we are gonnae hack into this crane operation device, by playing this little minigame." " So here we go moving crane, you know like you've seen in all those Batman comics. Moving a crane....Fuck off Batman."

I have the game loaded up right now and I am going to play it and enjoy at least parts...man does this game make weird choices like.....why have they chosen to rip off a terrible Batman game?

Just wait until you get to the Batmobile stealth sections. Then you will know the true meaning of frustration.

Arkham Knight is far from a good game but I still did everything in it besides the Riddler stuff. It was the first game since Asylum that I even got close to a Platinum/S-Rank on. I think the core story of Knight could have been pretty freaking great if it wasn't for the forced Batmobile sections. Also it had Batgirl DLC which instantly bumps it up a few notches even if it is a bit overpriced.

In order of favorites I'd go Asylum, Origins, City, and then Knight.