One of the things that often gets said about comic book superheroes is that after a while it can get repetitive to watch them fight the same old supervillains all over again. Even when they have fresh schemes, it’s hard to top certain stories of the past. Many writers try and come up with new villains that will really impact the character with mixed results at times. When DC Comics launched The New 52 and gave Scott Snyder the mainline Batman title, he did something very unexpected. He went full-tilt and not only created a new Batman threat, but it was one that had deep roots in Gotham City, had been there longer than he had, and was more than a match for him. This was the Court of Owls, who are about to make their video game debut in Gotham Knights.
In a special interview about the game, the development team spoke at length about the Court of Owls, and noted how the comics directly influenced the game in terms of who they are, how they operate, and how they are able to get the better of Batman in the title–who, if you recall, will die within the opening minutes of the game by their own admission. This was meant to help seal how he’s Batman, but he didn’t know everything about his own city.
“That they’ve been operating behind the scenes in the shadows, pulling strings, manipulating things, using their power and wealth in this fashion, and that they’re quite content to just not have Batman notice them. That’s a terrifying idea,” the dev team explained.
As you explore this version of Gotham City, you’re going to find all sorts of references to the Court within the infrastructure. The team created 400 years of history and tried to ask themselves–what would the Court want built for themselves as Gotham grew to help them further hold onto their empire? You’ll be able to see it for yourself soon enough.
The irony of course is that in the New 52 run, the Court was beaten by Batman, even if it nearly broke him mentally and physically to do it. Here, you’ll have to play as Nightwing, Red Hood, Batgirl, and Robin in order to avenge Batman and rid the city of the Courts influence.
That won’t be easy, especially since the Court of Owls has their mighty Talons to send against you, trained and virtually undead assassins that will be hard to beat. Not to mention the more classic Rogues Gallery that’ll show up as well.
Will you be able to take down the Court of Owls? You’ll find out this October when Gotham Knights is released.
Source: IGN
