In 2009, Rocksteady released Batman: Arkham Asylum, changing the superhero genre and gaming forever. Within the next few years, the developer went on to produce a couple of direct sequels that expanded the original title's scope, gameplay, and world. Arkham City and Arkham Knight are both considered masterpieces in their own right, creating a trilogy that is among the best in the industry.
While those three projects are the most well-known, the Arkham series extends well beyond just the core trilogy. In fact, the franchise goes beyond Arkham Origins and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League as well. So, that raises the question: which are the best Batman Arkham games?
Updated January 27, 2025 by Mark Sammut: Now that Arkham Shadow has been out for a couple of months, the game's strengths have become much clearer, cementing itself as a worthy addition to this storied franchise. Consequently, the section on Camouflaj's release has been rewritten and expanded.
Every Batman: Arkham Game
Over the last 15 years, the Batman: Arkham series has ballooned to more than 10 games, making it a far more expansive franchise than might seem to be the case if someone is only familiar with Rocksteady's main entries. The upcoming list includes every Batman: Arkham game in release order.
Click on one of the above games to jump to their ranking.
13 Batman: Arkham Origins (Mobile)
Rough Mobile Game That Has Nothing To Do With The Main Version (That Is No Longer Available To Purchase)
Batman: Arkham Origins (Mobile)
- Developer(s)
- NetherRealm Studios
- Genre(s)
- Beat 'Em Up
- How Long To Beat
- 1 Hour
Despite having the same name, Arkham Origins on mobile is a completely different game from the one on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. Primarily because on iOS and Android, the game was a brawler, not an action-adventure title. In 2021, Arkham Origins Mobile was removed from the Apple and Play Stores, so it is no longer possible to legally download the free-to-play game.
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It was a freemium game, so expectations for it were never high. The fighting was simple, and the lack of variety in Batman's opponents didn't help. However, the restrictive stamina system meant players could not brawl for long periods unless they wanted to spend money.
12 Batman: Arkham Underworld
A Decent Enough Management Strategy Game (That Is No Longer Available To Purchase)
Batman: Arkham Underworld
Underworld is a different sort of mobile game from Origins. It's also a freemium title, but instead of fighting Batman's villains, players control them. Similar to its companion app, Underworld was eventually removed from stores, and it lasted a far shorter time than Origins.
The goal was to build up a criminal empire using management skills. Players also get to partake in a little bit of fighting during missions. That said, the game was mostly about strategy. It was fine, but aside from the voice actors, it was an Arkham game in name only.
11 Batman: Arkham City Lockdown
Very Solid Fighting Game With A Respectable Upgrade System (That Is Not Available To Purchase Anymore)
Batman: Arkham City Lockdown
- Released
- December 7, 2011
- Developer(s)
- NetherRealm Studios
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
- How Long To Beat
- 5 Hours
Any game that followed Asylum and City was going to struggle to live up to their excellence. Arkham City Lockdown, however, has avoided any comparisons to those classics because it's nothing like them.
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The title has more in common with its successor, Arkham Origins (mobile). It's an iOS and Android fighter, where Batman takes on various goons. The brawling is simplistic and repetitive, but at least it's fast-paced. In comparison to most mobile fighters, it's fine; compared to the best of the Arkham series, it's mediocre.
10 Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate
Repetitive Side-Scroller That Simplifies The Arkham Formula While Being A Mediocre Metroidvania
Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate
With Blackgate, Armature Studio attempted to bring Arkham to handheld consoles. To do this, they made certain changes to account for the less powerful systems, the main one being the switch to a 2.5D perspective.
The result isn't perfect. Combat and stealth feel shallow compared to the main Arkham games. Whereas, the environments are very repetitive and uninteresting. At least the game recounts the first meeting between Batman and Catwoman. An argument could be made that Underworld and Lockdown were more interesting games than Blackgate, but the fact the latter can still be played today gives it the edge.
9 Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League
Messy Successor With Passable But Repetitive Combat And A Weak Story
Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League
- Released
- February 2, 2024
- Developer(s)
- Rocksteady Studios
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Action, Adventure, Open-World
- How Long To Beat
- 10 Hours
While not the worst Arkham game in a vacuum, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is the most disappointing and polarizing. Rocksteady's long-awaited return to this beloved universe steadily turned sour as more and more news regarding the project came out, particularly its game-as-a-service model and a combat system revolving around guns and loot. In the months before its launch, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League was surrounded by controversy and negative press, to the point of being dismissed as a failure before ever hitting store shelves. Rather than being one of 2024's most highly-anticipated releases, it became an early contender for one of the year's most frustrating drops.
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Does that mean the game has nothing to offer? Well, no. Visually, Kill the Justice League looks fantastic, particularly during its cutscenes. If nothing else, the graphics are of proper current-generation quality. The gameplay is the definition of a mixed bag. The minute-to-minute action is fast-paced, frantic, and has some weight to it; consequently, it can be fun for a couple of hours. Each member of the Suicide Squad has unique movement abilities that are fairly enjoyable to utilize. Unfortunately, the gunplay reduces the characters' uniqueness during combat, so they don't shine as individuals as much as they should. The story is fine too, although it does fall short of Rocksteady's high standards.
8 Batman: Arkham Trilogy
Sounds Great On Paper, But Arkham Asylum And City Are The Only Ones That Work Well
Batman: Arkham Trilogy
- Released
- October 13, 2023
- Developer(s)
- Rocksteady Studios, Iron Galaxy
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
- How Long To Beat
- 39 Hours
Batman: Arkham Trilogy for the Switch is in a strange place that makes it simultaneously a decent option but also difficult to recommend. As the title suggests, this package comes with Arkham Asylum, Arkham City, and Arkham Knight. While these projects are fairly old, the option to play them on the go using the Switch is enticing. Along with all the vanilla content that adds up to more than 30 hours for just the main stories, the trilogy also comes with the DLC, most of which are pretty darn good.
Now, the main sticking point is performance. The Switch was never going to compete with the PC or even PS4/XBO versions, but Arkham Asylum and Arkham City are generally playable on Nintendo's system, and the latter runs surprisingly well. Conversely, Arkham Knight is a mess, to the point of barely being worth consideration when deciding whether to buy this compilation. This trilogy feels incomplete thanks to its poorly optimized finale.
7 Batman: Return To Arkham
A Decent Compilation Undermined By A Few Unnecessary Changes
Batman: Return to Arkham
- Released
- October 18, 2016
- Developer(s)
- Rocksteady Studios, Virtuos
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
- How Long To Beat
- 28 Hours
Once a popular game is around long enough, it's bound to get remastered in some form, and that's what happened to the first two Arkham titles in this collection. They aren't the most inspiring remasters, though.
All Return To Arkham does is give both Asylum and City slight visual upgrades. It didn't improve the frame rate of the two games, so the gameplay is largely unchanged. Still, it's nice to have them both on newer consoles to ensure they are as accessible as possible; furthermore, this compilation is backward-compatible with the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Plus, Return to Arkham is a fine package for people who never played the originals.
Still, it is hard not to be disappointed with Return to Arkham since it does not feel like an appropriate "definitive" edition for two of the greatest games of all time. Also, why was Arkham Origins left out? That game gets way too little love.
6 Batman: Arkham VR
Become The Bat (For A Very Short Time)
Batman: Arkham VR
- Released
- October 11, 2016
- Developer(s)
- Rocksteady Studios
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- How Long To Beat
- 2 Hours
The chance to feel what it's like to be Batman is enticing and that's close to what Arkham VR offers. Although, it's mostly the detective side of the Dark Knight's crusade that players get to experience. They have to solve compelling puzzles to find out what happened to Nightwing and Robin.
It's an engaging and imaginative game that makes good use of the PlayStation VR. Nevertheless, Arkham VR doesn't match the scale and depth of the bigger entries in the series, and it does come across as a tech demo. Nevertheless, die-hard fans of the Caped Crusader should check out this spin-off.
5 Batman: Arkham Origins
Underappreciated Gem With A Cool Christmas Setting And A Couple Of Great Boss Fights
Batman: Arkham Origins
- Released
- October 25, 2013
- Developer(s)
- WB Games Montreal
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Wii U, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
- How Long To Beat
- 13 Hours
This prequel could've easily been a disaster. Rocksteady wasn't the developer, and Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill weren't on the voice cast. Yet, all of their replacements did great, especially WB Games Montréal, who proved they could make a solid Arkham game.
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The only downside to Origins is its lack of invention. Besides some shock gloves, it doesn't do anything that its predecessors didn't. The map is just Arkham City's open-world with a Christmas coat of paint, although the setting is still quite visually pleasing. Ultimately, more Arkham is always a good thing, especially when it delivers a compelling story with fun boss battles like Origins does.
Batman: Arkham Origins received a Mr. Freeze-themed expansion called Cold, Cold Heart.
4 Batman: Arkham Shadow
The Most Immersive Batman Game
Batman: Arkham Shadow
- Released
- October 21, 2024
- Developer(s)
- Camouflaj
- Platform(s)
- Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest 3S
- Genre(s)
- Action, Virtual Reality
For the most part, 2024 will likely not be remembered as a great year for the Arkham series due to Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. The long-awaited return to this universe proved to be extremely divisive, to the point of almost earning ridicule. The project was not a success by any stretch of the imagination, and there is a very good chance that this game will be the last time many people interact with this franchise in terms of a new story.
However, 2024 produced another Arkham outing that is far more in tune with Rocksteady's original trilogy (and Origins). Arkham Shadow seems like it should have been a bigger deal; after all, it has all the hallmarks associated with the series at its best. The story is well-written, lengthy, stuffed with memorable characters, and has an air of mystery that works beautifully. The voice acting is also flawless. The combat revolves around group management, blocks, combos, and tools, with the encounters feeling like a smoothly choreographed symphony of punches, smoke bombs, and leaps. The stealth sections are present and accounted for, and they are just as satisfying as in the older games.
Batman: Arkham Shadow Review
Batman: Arkham Shadow successfully translates the Arkham experience to the VR space with hard-hitting combat and an engrossing atmosphere.
Arkham Shadow is a fantastic game that marks a return to form for the series. If someone can play it, they should. Unfortunately, "can" is the operative word, as the 2024 release is a Meta Quest 3 and 3S VR exclusive. Automatically, this greatly narrows the game's potential player base, limiting its reach to a relatively small ecosystem compared to the franchise's other major releases. There are likely die-hard fans who have wanted a new game for nearly a decade who cannot play Arkham Shadow, and that is a shame.
Now, to be clear, VR needs these types of projects to expand and thrive, so the above is not meant to be a criticism. Camouflaj did a great job of translating the Arkham formula into virtual reality, creating a game that is good by all standards.