Arkham Shadow's boldest choice is his character POV Twist

Major story spoilers for
Batman: Arkham Shadow
first.

Batman: Arkham Shadownot unlike all Arkham the play before it has its main plot or theme intimately connected with the subtitle. The idea of ​​one's shadow in relation to one's ego or id is strongly valued when interacting with Dr. Jonathan Crane and Harleen Quinzel and this theme runs parallel to the story and its portrayal of the characters until the credits roll, sometimes subtly and sometimes brazenly. Many characters have sides that they hide, for example, and how someone presents themselves isn't always a particularly true shade of who they really are, leading to conflicted characters.

In Harvey Dent's case, it surfaces as a traumatic and ominous form of dissociative identity disorder of which he is seemingly unaware. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne has always maintained an interesting balance between his life as a billionaire philanthropist and caped crusader. There is an endlessly fascinating argument that Batman is no less sick than the enemies he puts behind bars, and Batman: Arkham ShadowThe story is instantly gripping as players go behind the bars of Blackgate Prison – not only as Batman, but also as a low-level criminal who is technically a completely different character.

Batman: Arkham Shadow is a game of many masks and faces

For all intents and purposes, Bruce Wayne is a completely different character when he ditches the cowl and Batsuit and dons blonde hair, a mustache and a forearm tattoo to become Irving “Matches” Malone. Although it is initially difficult to accept this assumption as believable, Batman: Arkham Shadow makes a great decision to open cold with Malone's POV.

Here, it's highly unlikely that anyone would have assumed that it was Bruce in disguise, even if they examined his face in the bathroom mirror of the dilapidated flat, not unlike no one in Blackgate would have made the same assumption. However, the most convincing aspect of Malone's disguise is his voice – Roger Craig Smith deserves all the credit for his performance. Batman: Arkham Shadow.

Likewise, Batman is a whole character unto himself, though his angrier voice is still only occasionally a slight modulation of his normal voice.

If Bruce left Malone's voice the moment he was out of earshot of anyone, let alone talking to Dr. Leslie Thompkins, then one might assume that Malone was nothing more than a cheap disguise trying to get answers. colorful Blackgate prisoners. But as he uses Malone's voice as he takes notes as he escapes through the cell window and walks underneath the prison towards the Batcave, it's clear that he inhabits the disguise with full commitment.

Similarly, Dr. Thompkins knows full well that Bruce is both Batman and Malone, and she immediately and strictly forbids him from using his Malone or Batman voice when they are alone together. This scene is a perfect illustration of Bruce dissociating and becoming the character he needs to be at that moment. In fact, with Bruce's hatred of crime so palpable, he'd probably have to resort to a disguise so entrenched and elaborate to actually stomach playing the part of the prisoner.

Batman: Arkham Shadow's Malone keeps the pace of the story steady and impressive

The fact that Camouflaj made the bold decision to let players inhabit Malone's shoes almost as much as Batman's cannot be overstated. Until release, the whole Batman: Arkham Shadow it was deliberately marketed as if players were fighting gargoyles and throwing batarangs exclusively, and yet half the game is dedicated to slow character development and combat easter eggs where players pocket sand to stun enemies instead of smacking them. mantle on them.

Bruce has playable sequences where he is not in the Batsuit Batman: Arkham OriginsLaunch and DLC Cold, Cold Heart and also the opening Batman: Arkham Citybut Shadow takes this gameplay to an unprecedented level, going so far as to portray him as another character that players can easily separate from Bruce. Shadow it also gives Malone plenty of fight sequences, which is necessary because otherwise the pacing could be disastrously disjointed.

Players may not have access to Batman's arsenal of gadgets or be able to navigate as dynamically when dressed as Malone, but as Malone they get a perspective that the Arkhamverse hasn't offered before, and that's a treat. alone.

It's also helpful that there's a Batcave under the Blackgate that players actually enter, as it creates immersive, fluid transitions between the Batman and Malone sequences that the story jumps back and forth into, especially with the display for the Batsuit and Malone's disguise, which players actively they communicate. to exchange for. Because of this revelation, Police Commissioner Jim Gordon's first line of dialogue is profound: “For a second I thought you were a rat.”

Shrike's suicide even looked like it was a murder by Batman's own hand, suggesting that those lines are indiscriminately blurred. Gordon doesn't say that he thought Batman was the Rat because of his appearance, but it's a cute nod to the fact that Bruce plays the part of a criminal and it's not always that easy to tell the difference. Almost every character in Batman: Arkham Shadow there's nuance, even if they're inevitably destined to become imperfect wells in the Arkhamverse, and it underscores why the series and its treatment of character development are exceptional.