Is It Time For a Batman Beyond Video Game?
With the adventures of Terry McGinnis living on in comic books and some landmark anniversaries ahead, is it time to visit Neo-Gotham in a video game setting?
In January of 1999, DC animated series fans were introduced to a new protagonist in the Batman universe. As Bruce Wayne aged and Gotham City embraced the technological advances of the year 2039, fans were introduced to the new setting of Neo-Gotham.
The story introduced us to a new setting and a new cast of characters, both good and bad. Bruce Wayne hung up the cowl and began coaching the high school teenager Terry McGinnis who has taken up the mantle of Batman.
Although a video game was released to accompany the movie Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, we have not seen McGinnis star in a video game since.
With the last couple of major DC Comic video game releases receiving less than stellar reviews from gamers and critics alike, is it time to consider a return to Neo-Gotham with current generation systems? Let’s explore some ways gamers could step foot in Neo-Gotham and some plot and gameplay possibilities.
Is It Time for a Batman Beyond Video Game?
The Comic Books Have Kept the Series Front of Mind
The original series aired from January 1999 to December 2001 and the show developed a cult following long past the final air date of the program. Although the show only ran for three seasons, fans were able to stay engaged in the adventures of Wayne and McGinnis through the comic book series.
The first volume of the comic books was released alongside the animated series as a tie-in. From there, the series had sporadic tie-ins within Batman comics' main entries. That changed in 2010 when a six-issue mini-series was released.
From there, Batman Beyond was largely in print in one version or another until 2020 when the run ended with the DC Rebirth series.
The most recent run of comics came from writers Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing and artist Max Dunbar. The series sees McGinnis once again as Batman, but the big difference is that Bruce Wayne has passed away. In addition, comic creator Scott Murphy added the character to his White Knight series in 2022. A direct sequel for the White Knight series is also reportedly in development.
Although the Batman Beyond universe has not had a television show or film since the early 2000s, the continued run of successful comic books shows that there is still an audience for the adventures of Wayne and McGinnis. The comics have been running for the better part of a decade plus and have generally received good feedback from fans and critics alike. This shows that fans are still invested in the world of Neo-Gotham and the characters that inhabit it. Those same fans would likely enjoy visiting Neo-Gotham in video game form.
In addition to having source material to work off of from the show, the comics can serve as another source of inspiration for the plotline of a video game.
There is Plenty of Source Material to Develop a Video Game Plotline
With the comic books building on what was created in the television show and animated movie, there is no shortage of material to work with to take up an entire campaign of a video game.
The original world created had its own set of supervillains including Blight, Inque, The Terrific Trio, Shriek, Spellbinder, The Royal Flush Gang, and many others. In addition, several classic Batman villains such as Bane, Ra’s al Ghul, and Mr. Freeze (although he is killed off in the series) make appearances in the television show.
In addition, there are several gangs that run around Neo-Gotham causing chaos. The most well-known are the Jokerz which are based off of Batman’s arch nemesis The Joker. The gang has several different iterations that are seen throughout the show and the Return of the Joker movie. Other gangs in Neo-Gotham include The T’s, Kobra, and The April Moon Gang among others.
McGinnis also has an ally outside of Bruce Wayne. In the animated series, Maxine “Max” Gibson. She discovers Terry’s identity and occasionally assists him remotely in his vigilante efforts.
With plenty of support characters, gangs, villains, and story arcs to explore, there is more than enough source material to pack into a video game.
Potential Game Integrations From the Source Material
In addition to fighting the main villain the game could integrate gang territories into an open-world map of Neo-Gotham. Between main missions, McGinnis could take down gangs while they commit street crimes to drive them out of the particular territory.
If the game wants to pick up on the latest comic book lore of Bruce Wayne being dead, Max could step fully into the remote support role, like that of Oracle. Even if Bruce is still alive, there is room to integrate her into a game campaign as a remote sidekick.
Another main campaign plot that could be looked at could be that of the villain Blight. Blight’s true identity is Derek Powers, who is responsible for the death of McGinnis’s dad in the animated series. He is presumed dead at the end of the first season, but the game could easily bring him back as McGinnis’s arch-nemesis. With the game taking place in a highly technologically advanced society, there is enough room for a plot angle that brings him back to Neo-Gotham.
While the main story would focus on McGinnis attempting to stop Blight once and for all, other villains from the show could stir up smaller trouble that also adds to the main campaign, similarly to how the Batman Arkham Trilogy played out.
In the animated series, Barbara Gordan is the Police Commissioner of Gotham City. The relationship between her, Bruce, and McGinnis is flushed out in the show and movie. She would be an easy character to integrate into a game. She could take a similar role to that of Jim Gordan in the Arkham Trilogy or of Rene Montoya in the Gotham Knights game who works with the hero in an off-the-books manner to help get crime solved.
If the game were to take inspiration from the expanded universe in which Damien Wayne takes up the mantle of Ra’s Al Ghul, we could have a fight of actual son versus adopted son in a battle for control of Gotham City. This would make Damien and the League of Assassins the main villains as McGinnis tries to rid them from Neo-Gotham.
Between the original source material and expanded universe/comics, there is no shortage of material to draw inspiration from for a video game.
Console Tech Can Handle It
The original Batman Beyond game was released on PlayStation, Nintendo 64, and Game Boy Color. The graphics at the time did not exactly do the cyberpunk setting of Neo-Gotham justice.
With the advancements made in gaming technology, a game released in the modern era would have the benefits of 4K graphics, ray tracing, and higher frame-per-second abilities, Neo-Gotham can come to life.
Look no further than games such as CyberPunk 2077 or Matrix Awakens. Picture the technology behind those games creating Neo-Gotham for a video game. Although graphics are not the end-all-be-all for a great video game, it would help add to the overall gameplay experience of exploring Neo-Gotham and fighting crime.
This would all add to the overall marketability of the game and may even bring in more casual fans who are not as up to date on the lore and comic book material of Batman Beyond.
Landmark Anniversaries
With the post date of this article being in 2024 we are currently 25 years from the premiere of the Batman Beyond animated series. 2026 will mark 25 years from the conclusion of the show and 2029 will mark the 30th anniversary of the premiere of the show. With how long game development can take, these are great dates to target for a potential game release.
Having the game released on a landmark anniversary helps naturally add to the marketability of the game as fans can have fun with the nostalgia behind a landmark anniversary.
Less Than Stellar Reviews for Last DC Games
The core Batman Arkham Trilogy (Asylum, City, and Knight) was released to stellar feedback from critics and gamers alike. They set the standard for what a Batman, and to an extent superhero game in general should be.
Main DC Comics-themed video games that have been released since then, specifically Gotham Knights and Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League were not released to the same fanfare as the Arkham Trilogy.
A well-developed Batman Beyond video game would bring gamers back to DC games and set the DC comics video games back on the right track.
There are many different angles a Batman Beyond game could take. This was put together simply to show that no matter the final form, a Batman Beyond video game would build excitement for plenty of Batman and video game fans.
Would you like to see a Batman Beyond video game? What features would you like to see? Sound off in the comments below.
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