Batman: Arkham Shadowmay be following the path of all theArkhamgames that came before it, but it is hardly a mere shadow. Gameplay and narrative are superb inBatman: Arkham Shadowwith intricate worldbuilding and lore in an environment as intimate as Blackgate, and its bosses are inspired by the game’s locus in the Arkhamverse’s confounding timeline.
TheArkhamverse’s antagonistsare a huge draw to the series and go a long way in distinguishing oneArkhamgame apart from the others. It can also be neat to see one antagonist reappear multiple times throughout the series, though this has either been a boon or a curse depending on what their character development has entailed and how their boss fights have been designed. Taking inspiration fromShadow, futureArkhamgames would be wise to consider which villains could be best applied to boss fights.
Batman: Arkham Shadow’s Bosses are Few Yet Fascinating
Batman: Arkham Shadowonly features three boss fights: Carmine Falcone, Lyle Bolton, and a Shadow Batman figure manifested via Dr. Jonathan Crane’s prototypical fear toxin. Regardless of whether or not more were intended or in consideration, who receives a boss fight and how their boss fight is designed is reflective ofShadow’s meticulousness when it comes to character treatments and development.
Carmine Falcone’s boss fight was overdue in the series and it is great in context because, not unlike Penguin, he’s a crime lord who has little respect or fear for Batman and needs to be violently humbled before soliciting information. Likewise,a Ratcatcher boss fightmight’ve been fantastic under different circumstances but would’ve been redundant in the context ofShadow’s narrative as Otis Flannegan is technically an insightful NPC and not an antagonist.
Lyle Bolton’s boss fight is great because it allows Irving “Matches” Malone to get in bed with Carmine Falcone, though it’s doubly exhilarating as it gives players a comprehensive boss fight that they can’t rely on the Batsuit or gadgets for. Takeo Yamashiro (truly an undercover GCPD cop named Chris Nakano) and Bird are also fought while Bruce Wayne is disguised as an inmate in Blackgate, but they’re designed like ordinary enemies without gimmicks or unique attacks. TheShadow Batman boss fightis quite special since it’s canonically Batman’s first fear toxin-induced hallucination sequence. Rightfully so, it’s especially poignant and reflective of Bruce’s inner turmoil.
Harvey Dent—who was unknowinglyShadow’s Rat Kingbut only becomes Two-Face right as the game’s credits roll—having a boss fight could have undermined the tragedy of his dissociative identity disorder diagnosis and confronting him at the end ofShadowis wholly climactic regardless.
Therefore, these boss fights strike a chord that reverberates toechoShadow’s titular Jungian theme. Unfortunately, not allArkhamgames have had boss fights be as harmonious.Shadowtakes a quality-over-quantity approach with its bosses and, while a decently sized handful of bosses should be expected in an installment as enormous asBatman: Arkham Knight, future games can hopefully decide what antagonists to include by considering how impactful their boss fights or set-piece sequences may be in tandem with the story being told.
Batman’s Arkhamverse Has a Notorious Boss Fight Imbalance
BetweenBatman: Arkham Asylum,Batman: Arkham City,Batman: Arkham Origins,Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate,Batman: Arkham Shadow, andBatman: Arkham Knight, the Arkhamverse has featured many boss fights with recurring and debut antagonists. Some villains don’t actually have a boss fight and are instead better represented via set-piece sequences, such asMad Hatter inOrigins,City, andKnightor Killer Croc and Scarecrow inAsylum, and some are more intertwined with their game’s stories than others.Citygets away with a random assortment of villains due to them all being housed within Arkham City, for instance, whileOriginshas eight of its antagonists tethered loosely to the bounty on Batman’s head.
Asylum’s Bane is a fun culmination of mechanics as he emulates a regular Titan brute, which is about as much that could be done with Bane to make his boss fight interesting since theArkhamseries was in its infancy.Bane then has two boss fights inOrigins—one at the Royal and one during the second Blackgate riot. The first is akin toAsylum’s with Bane behaving similarly to a brute enemy once again, though the second phase gives him Venom-fueled attacks that make him much more oppressive. The second, however, is starkly unique as its second phase has Bane inject himself with TN-1 and become a hulking monster who players employ stealth tactics against.
Mr. Freeze’s boss fight inCityis one of the Arkhamverse’s bestwith dwindling stealth takedown strategies suddenly being vital to remember.
Ra’s al Ghul’s boss fight inCityis cinematic and epic as it progresses through routine phases but, as an antagonist, Ra’s is weakened by his surprise role as Arkham City and Protocol 10’s master planner. Ironically, Professor Hugo Strange is revealed to be working for Ra’s, who dies almost immediately after killing Strange. Both deaths are then rather trivial with the game’s overarching plot of Protocol 10 expressly swept under a rug to make room for a finale with Clayface and Joker, which results in a dizzying third act.
Professor Pyg’s boss fight inKnighthardly seems like one given that players are primarily subduing Dollotrons and intermittently catching and throwing Pyg’s cleavers back at him. Still, there is arguably no worse boss fight inKnightthan Deathstroke.
Deathstroke’s boss fight inKnightis perhaps the franchise’s most damning and a perfect example of antagonists demanding the right time and place for an appearance or boss fight. This boss fight is essentially a culmination of Battle Mode Batmobile combat with Deathstroke replacing the Arkham Knight as the red-and-white militia’s commander, and yet that could’ve been left to Simon Stagg’s Cloudburst boss fight and the Arkham Knight’s massive drill pursuit sequence due to its unsavory conclusion.
Reheating Ra’s al Ghul’s nachos as a couple ofOriginsboss fights do,Origins’ Deathstroke boss fight is memorable due to its emphasis on parries that can be satisfying and cinematic when consecutively landed (an in-game achievement even exists for defeating Deathstroke without failing a single counter). Thus, the fact that Batman effortlessly knocks Deathstroke out the second he emerges from his tank squanders Slade Wilson’s role inKnight, much less the Arkhamverse in general, and begs the question of whether he should’ve been included inKnightat all.
Some bosses may be filler content to ensure the game’s open world is saturated, but that shouldn’t be an excuse for lackluster or incongruous bosses. Thankfully,futureArkhamgames have a blueprint to follow now withBatman: Arkham Shadow, especially if Rocksteady truly is returning to the action-adventure formula.
