Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate Deluxe Edition

My first instinct after a few hours with Blackgate was to check whether I had accidentally installed the Vita version on my PC, because the seams of its handheld origins are never far from the surface. This is a 2.5D side-scrolling spin-off built around the same Blackgate Prison that fans of Arkham Origins will recognise, but the translation from portable to PC is a bumpy one with some genuinely interesting ideas buried under layers of compromise. The core hook is more ambitious than it sounds. Rather than a straight left-to-right brawler, Blackgate borrows the Metroidvania skeleton: the prison is divided into three zones (Cell Block under Joker, the Industrial section controlled by Black Mask, and the Administration area run by Penguin), and you can tackle those bosses in any order. Finishing them in a different sequence changes the ending, and the Batman suits you unlock carry different attributes depending on your route. Detective Mode returns to sniff out hidden WayneTech crates and environmental clues, and gadgets like the Batarang, Batclaw, and Cape Stun are unlocked progressively as you explore. On paper, that is a solid Metroid-flavoured structure. In practice, the prison is a repetitive, drab environment and the backtracking to newly-unlocked doors feels more like padding than discovery. Combat is where the disappointment is sharpest. The Arkham freeflow system loses a lot of its rhythm when squashed into two dimensions. Counter timing still matters and the Cape Stun is technically there, but the most efficient strategy almost always collapses into mashing the basic attack and letting the animation sort itself out. Boss encounters against characters like Solomon Grundy, Deadshot, Bronze Tiger, and Catwoman are the clear high point: each one tests a different aspect of the game's toolset, with Deadshot in particular demanding you dodge sniper fire while moving between cover. Those fights show what the design could have been throughout. The predator stealth sections, by contrast, are the low point: the camera pulls back so far that tracking a tiny Batman against the scenery becomes genuinely tedious, and the limited movement options make the trademark tension of those moments evaporate. The motion comic cutscenes deserve a specific mention because they are legitimately good. Hand-drawn panels with sparse animation, strong voice work, and a noir atmosphere that sits well with the early-years Batman setting. The contrast when those scenes cut back to the in-engine 3D graphics is jarring every single time. The map, famously a sore point in the original handheld release, was reworked for the Deluxe Edition, but it still lacks clarity in a genre where spatial memory is everything. Who is this actually for? Arkham series completionists who want more story context around Origins, and players who specifically enjoy Metroidvania exploration and do not mind sluggish combat will get reasonable value from its five-to-seven hour runtime. Anyone expecting the fluid, kinetic feel of Asylum or City will find Blackgate a frustrating step sideways. The Mixed Steam rating at 43% positive from thousands of reviews is not wrong, but it is also not the whole story. There is a curio here for the right kind of patient player. Everyone else has better options in the catalogue.

Alex · Scout Team

Catch-all

Be the first to comment on Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate Deluxe Edition.