It’s hard to distill Batman down to a single, definitive version of the character. Since debuting back in 1939, Batman has seen countless reboots across comics, TV, film, and video games. Some of these new versions of the character have been much darker and grittier in nature, while others have been more comedic and have seen Batman doing everything from cracking jokes to breaking out in a dance routine.
LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight looks to pay homage to all of these various versions of the Caped Crusader in a manner that feels cohesive, while also adding in the levity that the LEGO games have come to be synonymous with. The resulting product doesn’t just make for one of the best Batman games over the past decade, but is an experience that virtually every Bat-fan will love.
Rating: 4/5
Perhaps the most unique aspect of LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is that it combines many of the Dark Knight’s stories seen in film over the years. While Batman’s primary origin story might be based on what’s seen in Batman Begins, other characters have their own appearances based more heavily on movies like Batman (1989), The Batman, Batman Returns, or even Batman & Robin. This leads to Legacy of the Dark Knight having a familiar feel throughout, but it also keeps things interesting by never fully committing to one version of Batman as the definitive one.
It’s also simply fun to see how TT Games looks to recreate some of the most iconic scenes from Batman’s history with its own unique style of humor. This also keeps the game from ever feeling too samey, as many of the scenes it’s remaking are ones that Batman fans have surely watched plenty of times over the years.
Outside of the main story, there are countless other references and callbacks to different iterations of Batman. I often felt like Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, pointing at the screen whenever I recognized a deep cut easter egg that TT Games had thrown in. Heavy-handed references and allusions to other shows, movies, or games can often feel stale and uninteresting, but in LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, it ended up being one of my favorite elements of the title.
When it comes to gameplay, the majority of LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight’s mechanics are borrowed from the Batman: Arkham series. The fast-paced melee combat, high-flying gliding, and even the ability to plow through the streets of Gotham within the Batmobile are all reminiscent of what’s seen across Rocksteady’s acclaimed Batman trilogy. Given that there hasn’t been a proper new Batman: Arkham game in over a decade, this leads to Legacy of the Dark Knight easily being one of the most enjoyable Batman titles in a very long time, and further proves just how much life there is for games in this vein.
That being said, the Arkham-style gameplay in LEGO Batman doesn’t compare perfectly to the series it’s emulating. Combat, in particular, doesn’t have the same sense of brutality or speed, which makes it become a bit more stale over time. Stealth sequences in Legacy of the Dark Knight are also a bit more difficult, primarily because the level design in these areas isn’t as well-designed to allow for pure stealth gameplay.
Outside of playing as Batman, Legacy of the Dark Knight lets you control Catwoman, Robin, Batgirl, and Commissioner Jim Gordon. All of these characters, including Batman, come with their own unique abilities that provide diversity that not only extends to combat, but also to puzzle-solving. This diversity also leads to Legacy of the Dark Knight being excellent for co-op purposes, as each player can often equally contribute in different ways within each level.
When you’re not playing through dedicated levels in Legacy of the Dark Knight, you’ll be spending the majority of your time running around Gotham City. Thankfully, there’s plenty to do in the city as it’s filled to the brim with collectibles, in typical LEGO fashion. Some of the side tasks in Legacy of the Dark Knight are once again akin to what was found in the Arkham games (AR challenges, Riddler puzzles, etc.), which means there’s a certain level of familiarity with what the game offers. Despite occasionally feeling like a retread, I often found it enjoyable to try to complete all of these secondary tasks, as doing so would allow me to unlock new cosmetics or improve certain skills.
If there is one issue with the open-world element of Legacy of the Dark Knight, though, it’s that it doesn’t always highlight the areas of interest that you should be looking to navigate toward. While you can purchase in-game upgrades that help you better identify where certain items or challenges might be, the simple act of stumbling upon where they are is sometimes the biggest hurdle. If this issue were resolved, it would make Legacy of the Dark Knight’s exploration aspects much less bothersome.
Even though it doesn’t break a whole lot of new ground, I find it very hard to be disappointed by LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight. This is a greatest hits compilation of sorts for the character that pulls from every medium that he’s touched over the many decades since hitting the pages of Detective Comics. While I would have preferred to see more new ideas at times in Legacy of the Dark Knight, my own experience was a consistent joy that helped remind me of why I fell in love with Batman to begin with.
LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is available now across PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, with a version for Nintendo Switch 2 coming at a later date. A review copy of the game was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review and was played on PS5.
