Gotham Knights takes place after the death of Bruce Wayne as Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood, and Robin defend Gotham City from the mysterious Court of Owls alongside classic Batman villains.
Many fans awaiting the game have been concerned that Gotham Knights will face delays. While this remains a possibility, there is a good reason that the upcoming title could be protected from delays despite the uncertainty of the last year.
Dodging Delays
There are legitimate reasons to be concerned about a delay to Gotham Knights. Over the last year. many games have been delayed, including other games published by Warner Brothers. Hogwarts Legacy, a new game in development at Avalanche Studio, was set to be among 2021’s most anticipated titles, but was recently delayed another year as the pandemic takes its long-term toll on development studios which already had to rush to adapt last year.
Hogwarts Legacy is far from the only hotly anticipated game to already face delays recently. Returnal, Outriders, Halo Infinite, and The Lord of the Rings: Gollum have all already seen their release windows pushed back, making fears that Gotham Knights may be further away than fans were hoping understandable.
However, there is one reason to think that Gotham Knights may still be slated for a 2021 release. With both Hogwarts Legacy and Gotham Knights owned by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, it seems strange that the publisher would announce the delay of the Wizarding World RPG and not Gotham Knights at the same time. This makes it seem likely that Gotham Knights may be prioritized to ensure a triple-A release for Warner Bros this year.
Gotham Knights also appears to be further along in development than some other delayed titles, with gameplay videos like Gotham Knights' Mr. Freeze boss fight showing the game in a playable state, at least for certain segments. Far more gameplay has been revealed for Gotham Knights than Hogwarts Legacy, which has only released one trailer so far, making it hard to tell how far through in development the Harry Potter game was when it got delayed.
A Gotham Knights Delay Would Have a Big Impact
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment may also have particular reasons to want Gotham Knights to remain on schedule. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is set to release in 2022, also published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment but developed by Rocksteady and set in the studio’s Arkhamverse continuity.
If the two games are released too close to each other, Gotham Knights risks losing out. Fans are more likely to be drawn to the Arkham IP, and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League promises four-player co-op and a unique role reversal as Harley Quinn and the team hunt down Superman that could invite some unwelcome comparisons for Gotham Knights. At the same time, those comparisons are already inevitable as both games are DC-based brawlers with co-op functionality. Pushing them out even closer together means less time for fans to move from one to the next.
All of this gives Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment incentive to push forward with Gotham Knights’ original release window, but if the last year has taught anything to development studios, publishers, and players alike, it’s to expect the unexpected. It remains possible that Gotham Knights will simply need more time as limiting factors cause delays, but fans should not be more worried based on other recent video game delays.
Gotham Knights is currently scheduled to release on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X in 2021.