Preview: The New LEGO Batman Plays Like Arkham, Brilliantly Rebuilt in Bricks

It’s been 10 long years since Batman: Arkham Knight, a title which was undeniably divisive in its day. We simply didn’t know how good we had it at the time.

After a decade out in the wilderness working on the disastrous Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, there is word that UK developer Rocksteady may finally be turning its attention to a new Arkham game.

But with that likely eons away, you’re going to have to make do with LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight in the meantime. Fortunately, after spending over an hour with the movie-spanning outing at Gamescom, we can say with confidence that this is a worthy substitute.

Much like with LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, long-time developer TT Games is tossing out all that’s come before, and rebooting this franchise as an open world crime drama that pulls from the many different Batman universes.

That means you’ll see references to Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, Matt Reeves’ The Batman, and the iconic Tim Burton era from 1989. For the Batfans among you, it’s going to be fun simply spotting all of the references as you make your way through the campaign.

Our demo consisted of two parts: we got to spend around 15 to 20 minutes exploring the open world, and then we played through a mission at Ace Chemicals.

The sandbox itself is awesome: Gotham City makes for a drizzly backdrop, as you’d expect, but we found it to be teeming with life. There’s a strong sense of humour, as passers-by complain about the weather and the fact that their pepperoni pizza is getting wet.

Much like in Marvel’s Spider-Man, there are crimes you can find by using your scanner, and these trigger short missions where you need to take down thugs and ne’er-do-wells.

Combat is pretty much identical to the Batman: Arkham games, where tapping the Square button slides you towards your opponent, and Triangle enables you to counter incoming attacks. It’s got a great flow to it, and even though it’s not reinventing the wheel, Batman’s various finishers embody that slapstick sense of humour that the LEGO series is best known for.

Playing as Batman, you also have access to a grappling hook to reach higher platforms and a glider to soar back down to the ground. We found the glider to be a little bit finicky, but this is an early demo and we suspect the developer is still refining the controls here.

You can also call the Batmobile wherever you are with a tap of the d-pad. The physics of the car are a little heavier than we expected, so a time trial mission took us a couple of attempts before we were able to earn our gold medal. It’s not bad, it just requires an adjustment – especially if you’re expecting a more arcade-like feel, which we were.

After noodling around in the open world, we headed to Ace Chemicals to complete the main mission available as part of this demo. What’s interesting is that the opening sequence took place out in the open world, so we had freedom to approach as we wanted.

Effectively, we were in the area to bust up a drug ring, although this being a family friendly take on the franchise, said narcotics were presented as teddy bears. We were actually able to use Batman’s stealth capabilities to pick off the local thugs, although you won’t fail if you’re spotted – you’ll just get into a fist fight.

Because the gameplay is so similar to the rules already established in Batman: Arkham, using the entirety of the Dark Knight’s move set actually feels really natural. There’s few surprises, but it feels like slipping on a very comfortable cowl that’s already been moulded to your face.

Inside Ace Chemicals is where the game played a little more like a traditional LEGO title, with a more linear mix of combat and puzzles on the critical path. Accompanied by Commissioner Gordon – who you can switch to using the d-pad, or who can be controlled by a second player in local co-op – you need to use each character’s unique abilities to progress.

For example, Gordon has access to a kind of a foam gun, which can be used to plug up pipes or put out fires. Batman, meanwhile, has his trusted Batarangs and grappling hook, so there’s a nice play between the two.

Our only worry is that, outside of his foam gun, Gordon’s move set is identical to Batman’s, which obviously makes exploring the open world a lot more manageable – but does mean there’s very little difference between the two. If all the playable characters also have access to a grappling hook and glider, then is anyone going to feel unique? We’ll need to wait and see.

The demo concludes with a chase sequence, where you need to run down Red Hood before making your escape from the exploding facility. It’s all very dramatic, but it maintains that LEGO sense of humour throughout, making it light-hearted despite the high-stakes drama on display.

And that was more than enough to make us highly excited for the full game. Playing on PC with a DualSense, this demo felt supremely polished – it looked the part and felt fantastic, some glider wonkiness aside.

We always liked the LEGO games, but we think TT Games has really levelled up with this, and of course 2022’s excellent LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. If you’re a fan of LEGO or Batman, then this goofy romp through Gotham should be right up your alley.

(Sorry, Bruce – we probably shouldn’t mention alleys, eh?)

Will you be donning the cowl when LEGO Batman returns, or does this brick-built Arkham leave you cold like the Gotham weather? Suit up in the comments below.