What if you could design your own game?

[Catwoman]

What would it be? What systems and stuff would it be for? What would the storyline be, if there even IS a storyline?

Come up with the Batman game of your dreams and post your idea. This will be fun.

[The Laughing Fish]

If you haven't played any of the Arkham games then you really need to try and get a taste of them as soon as possible. I don't think anyone else right now can come up with a fine action adventure Batman game than what Rocksteady has achieved. Not only is the action top quality, but you get to solve clues and puzzles as Batman too.

But if there was one idea that could be more ambitious and breathtaking than Arkham, it would be creating a role playing video game with Batman in it. RPG games are pretty amazing because any path you choose to take will ultimately change the outcome of the plot. Anybody who has played games like the Mass Effect trilogy will understand what I'm talking about.

For instance, imagine a situation in the game where you must save three people taken hostage by the Joker or whoever, e.g. Gordon, Robin or Batgirl. You have two choices: either you are quick enough to save all three people, or else one, two or even all three die. I guess in this case, any unfortunate choice could lead to A Death in the Family or Killing Joke scenario where Batman has to deal with the tragic consequences for the rest of the game. I got this idea from a tricky scenario in the Mass Effect games where you have to choose a teammate to go on a suicide mission that they will obviously never return from, and it affects how your character progresses into the plot too.

Another idea is that you can change is what sort of moral standing Batman might have: will he be a righteous hero with a strict moral code, or will he be prepared to kill deranged villains despite the consequences it could bring? Again, the Mass Effect games have a Paragon-Renegade system where any positive or negative behavior you demonstrate affects the relationships with your colleagues and any interaction you have with strangers. A similar system like that for Batman could exist with his relationship with Gotham Police and the public, I suppose.

But I reckon this idea would be too ambitious. The amount of story planning and coding for an RPG game is big enough as it is, so can you imagine trying to apply it for a Batman game and not upset the die hard fanboys if they make unorthodox choices that affect the game? You know, the type who would scream "Batman wouldn't do that, and I didn't mean for him to do that!".

[riddler]

So assuming that the Arkham games do in fact exist, I probably wouldn't make it open world for the simple reason that I don't think I could come up with a virtual gotham in that vein.

Here are some random things I'd emphasize
- use the side kicks more. There were some decent missions in Arkham City with Robin. I'd extrapolate on it more.
- I like LF's idea of cause and effect, it works well for a tragic character like batman. Have things like Batgirl paralyzed the scarring of Harvey Dent, Robins death, batman having his own back broken. These events would trigger different missions. Futhermore you could call on the sidekicks for help or delegate them to other missions.
-the new game is probably doing this but I'd have more missions using the 3 main bat vehicles in air, land, and sea


It would be neat if you could have a game progress over several years; you could delegate Alfred and Lucious fox to upgrade different things having a budget of both cost and time... this also allows the player to build the batman of their choosing given the suit and batmobile options from different interpretations. You could see villains and heroes progress for instance Dick Grayson go from Robin to Nightwing and maybe even to Batman, have Harvey Dent as an ally but potentially becoming two face, have Barbara as batgirl but potentially progress to Oracle. The gotham PD could become an ally or a threat depending on the players actions; for instance when Batman beats a villain, you have the option of leaving him for the police or killing. Killing is bad for PR but leaving him alive allows for the  possibility for him to return. And of course Catwoman can become an ally or a villain depending on how you treat her.

[Catwoman]

Ok sooooooooooooo........

After playing the Arkham City game as Catwoman (my cuz is supposed to let me borrow the first one soon and then he's going to have me do a full play through on that one) I've come up with my idea finally, lol.

I'd like there to be a Catwoman game! A full game with a storyline just about her. Get Grey Delisle Griffin to voice her (I swear, every time she says a line in Arkham City I squeal with delight, GAH I LOVE HER!) and it will be perfect! Maybe you can have Batsy in the shadows, like see the Bat Signal ever so often and when Kitty is in an alley she could occasionally come across these pummeled thugs and you might even see him grappling across the sky, but you never actually come across him.

[Seantastic]

I've actually just finished my Bachelors in Computer Game design haha; erm I honestly would look at the Batman & Robin game from 97/98 and work on that.

Because damn, if that game had better controls, it would have been something!  It came before GTA in terms of 3D open world, in fact I think it was the first, or atleast the first that offered such a grand space to explore and the graphics for the time were damn nice.  If only they had better thought-out the controls, that game would be praised a hell of a lot more.

The real-time aspect is something I'd carry over too, hell actually I'd take the format and apply it to all of the original Batman films and make a game that focused entirely on them.
In this day and age, if you too the controls and graphics of the Arkham series, and applied them to the mechanics and idea of B&R I think you'd have one dandy game.  Bring in quotes from the movies as well, and make them straight-up adaptions of the films, but with real-time so its pushing the story and keeps the player invested and immersed in it.  Of course adding in some areas which weren't parts of the film to lengthen out the story, like battles at Axes, or random Red Hood fights in the street, or intercepting mobs stealing resources for Freeze's suit or whatever. 

If I could have a game that encapsulated the original 4 movies in one fun game, each being their own section (think of it maybe as each one being their own Crash Bandicoot Warp Room) that you can explore when finished the core missions.  Would be fun I think.

[Azrael]

EDITED OUT

[galenj01]

id love an arkham style game based on the Forever Gotham.

[The Dark Knight]

The element of being based at Wayne Manor, getting a phone call, or noticing the signal, and driving out to Gotham has not been done. So I'd be thinking along those lines. My world would be more or less what the Arkham games have presented. I'm not sure if I'd go with a snow or rain weather system - either would be good. 

[Catwoman]

The element of being based at Wayne Manor, getting a phone call, or noticing the signal, and driving out to Gotham has not been done. So I'd be thinking along those lines. My world would be more or less what the Arkham games have presented. I'm not sure if I'd go with a snow or rain weather system - either would be good.

What about dynamic weather? Either you pick the weather you want or it is random and changing which can effect what gadgets will/won't work and so forth? Maybe even seasonal changes, either following an in game calendar or your system's clock and date to reflect real life.

Wow. I think we just hatched an idea for a totally bad ass Long Halloween game....