Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is a highly anticipated action shooter game set in DC Universe, developed by Rocksteady Studios. As it happens, it’s a follow-up to Batman: Arkham Knight, continuing the legacy of the so-called Arkhamverse.
Fans’ opinions about this game were already mixed since the first gameplay videos and trailers were revealed. I was among those people. Nevertheless, the recent alpha test in which I played made me more positive about this new DC game. So let’s see what can you expect from Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League and whether is it worth waiting for.
[Warning: Spoilers from Batman: Arkham games are below!]
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League needs an extraordinary story
Rocksteady Studios announced Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League in August 2020. They are the studio responsible for the Batman: Arkham franchise and Urban Chaos: Riot Response. They were initially rumored to be working on a Superman game set in the same universe as the Batman: Arkham series, which was later confirmed to be false. The Los Angeles-based company Unbroken Studios is assisting Rocksteady in the development of the game.
This game will take players into an open-world Metropolis where four notorious supervillains (Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, Harley Quinn, and King Shark) are enlisted by Amanda Waller to create the Suicide Squad. All because of the alien invasion led by Brainiac who gains control of the Justice League, and doing everything he says. Even the strongest minds like Superman or Batman fall under his control. The goal of the Suicide Squad is to eliminate the Justice League members and to save Earth, no matter what.
In this universe, players will encounter a diverse cast of characters. From the Squad’s operatives to characters like Lex Luthor, The Riddler, Oswald Cobblepot, Toyman, Gizmo, Ivy, and many others. The story will focus on the four main characters and Justice League members, rather than other characters who are serving as a background or just pushing the story forward.
The story of this game will take place a few years after the events of Batman: Arkham Knight. The ending that was achievable after completing 100% of the game sees Batman faking his death to save Gotham. He became the spirit of vengeance that put even more fear in the evil people around Gotham.
After those events, the Justice League formed, consisting of Superman, The Flash (Barry Allen), Green Lantern (John Stewart), and Wonder Woman. They saved Bruce and helped him to return to the hero Earth deserves. Sadly, this is the last time Batman will be voiced by the late Kevin Conroy. The even sadder part is that we’ll have to kill that Batman, whom we were able to play as in three games, and who had one of the deepest and strongest Batman stories in non-live action medium.
Differences in the gameplay of Kill the Justice League and Arkham Knight
The game’s dynamic gameplay allows for solo or co-op play, featuring four playable characters with distinct weapons, melee combat styles, and traversal methods. The inclusion of a skill tree progression system adds diversity to the preferable ways of playing the game. It will enable players to customize their characters with different abilities and experiment with various builds. But the whole gameplay will mostly focus on killing monsters and Brainiac puppets while traveling from point A to point B.
What I think is worth mentioning is that when I played the test version of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, I had a similar feeling to playing Destiny 2, but set in the DC Universe. It was flying or jumping and shooting at the enemies the whole time, and I didn’t like it. It felt like a cheaper online game for you to play with your friends in your free time but featuring your favorite comic characters. Something similar to what Marvel’s Avengers game did.
One thing that will definitely keep this game alive for quite some time is the post-launch content, that is on the horizon. It promises additional playable characters such as Deathstroke or Poison Ivy (who is reborn after the Arkham Knight events) that will give players new scenarios to play. The open-world design will also change and grant players the freedom to explore Metropolis and engage in missions beyond the main storyline.
But it all remains to be seen because the initial plans are to make the post-launch content in the form of seasons, with season 2 being the possible end of support for the game. As with any game like this, it seems it will provide a better experience in a co-op mode when you’re playing with your friends.
The Suicide Squad: Playing as Harley Quinn, Deadshot, King Shark, or Captain Boomerang
Deadshot can fly using his jetpack and is the weapon master in this team. His weapons are meant to deal a lot of damage and be unique in every way possible. Harley travels using a zip-line similar to how Spider-Man travels and uses Batman’s grappling hook. She uses pistols and her iconic baseball bat. King Shark travels using his special spirit powers, similar to how Red Hood traveled in Gotham Knights. He usually uses heavy weapons combined with melee weapons. Occasionally, he also uses a mini-gun.
My favorite character to play is Captain Boomerang. He has powers that help him to travel fast and teleport from one place to another. All thanks to the bracelet that connects directly with the Speed Force. He uses his boomerangs and a small rifle. What I liked about him the most, is how quickly he clears waves of enemies and can easily escape if the fight is hard.
The Battle Pass system will provide you with different cosmetics, weapons, upgrades, and various additional rewards. One of the already revealed skins to come, are classic skins taken straight from the comic book. Something similar to what Gotham Knights did by providing the main characters with their New-52 skins, a.k.a. The Knightwatch skins designed by Jim Lee.
Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League final product will hopefully be improvement over test versions
What’s most annoying to me is the potential of this game. It sounds like a great game on paper, and when you hear it’s connected to the Arkhamverse, it makes it even better. But the way it’s done, at least so far with the Alpha and Beta versions of the game, it doesn’t look good. We don’t know what the whole story will look like, but let’s hope it won’t be a nail in the coffin to the legacy of the Batman: Arkham series of games.
I may sound very pessimistic, and I hope the final version of the game will provide us with something playable, enjoyable, and even honorable in a way. I want to have fun while playing it with my friends and spend hundreds of hours running through the Metropolis as Captain Boomerang and saving the world.
To complement the gaming experience, a prequel comic titled Suicide Squad: Kill Arkham Asylum offers insights into the events between Batman: Arkham Knight and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, enriching the overall narrative. Its story explains how Amanda Waller gained her position as such a scary and evil persona, showing her taking control of Arkham Asylum. Additionally, we get to read about how she recruited Team Force X to “save” The Justice League.
The voice cast of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League includes Tara Strong (Harley Quinn), Joe Seanoa (King Shark), Bumper Robinson (Deadshot), Daniel Lapaine (Captain Boomerang), Scott Porter (The Flash), Debra Wilson (Amanda Waller), Zehra Fazal (Wonder Woman), Wally Wingert (The Riddler), Kevin Conroy (The Batman/Bruce Wayne) and others. For a look at the trailer, check it out on YouTube here.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is set to release on February 2, 2024, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S/X, and PC. Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus or in The Cosmic Circus Discord if you plan on playing this game!
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