Batman Arkham Knight has a few chinks in its heavily plated armour but is still a mightily impressive superhero game.

With Rocksteady back in Gotham City to round off the Arkham series in style, this Caped Crusader adventure raises the bar for future comic book fantasies.

What makes this game so good is how empowering and exhilarating it is.

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Empowering because of the blurred lines between character and player. It's third-person action but it's engrossing enough that you'll feel like you're really Bruce Wayne in the gadget-laden suit, and it’s a safe bet that within the first 10 minutes you'll put your best gruff voice on to declare "I'm Batman."

From the first rev of the Batmobile's engine and the first kick in the opening fight, Arkham Knight gets its (bat)claws in early and doesn't let go.

And exhilarating primarily because of that aforementioned car and combat.

The driveable Batmobile is a great addition for this final Arkham game.

The developers haven’t held back, creating an outrageous vehicle that’s massive and also incredibly fast and nimble.

There's a case for saying the Batmobile is slightly overused during the game but it's hard to complain when careering down the streets of Gotham in this ludicrous car, tearing around corners and then seamlessly leaping out to take on a bunch of bad guys is such a tremendous thrill-ride.

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The fighting is the slickest it's been in any of the Arkham games, being even smoother, more stylish and more free-flowing than before.

Brawling with groups of enemies is immensely fun, aided by new combat moves and takedowns that allow our hero to knock out thugs in ever more pleasingly brutal and powerful ways.

The Bat can also launch attacks from afar - with gliding off a rooftop or ledge, smashing through a window and taking out several foes before they've realised what's happening being just as spectacular and satisfying as it sounds.

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There are other interesting elements to the gameplay such as puzzle-solving and detective work, but it's definitely Batman's cool ride and combat skills that stand out the most.

Narrative-wise, the game is pretty strong with its complex story featuring numerous twists and two main antagonists in the form of the menacing Scarecrow and the newly created villain appropriately called the Arkham Knight.

Their plan to wreak havoc on Gotham and destroy Batman forever pulls in a large cast of his classic allies and adversaries who are brought to life by some stellar performance such as from Kevin Conroy as the Dark Knight, John Noble as scarecrow and Breaking Bad's Jonathan Banks as police commissioner Gordon.

Building up to a climactic, explosive conclusion, the plotline unfolds in a vast, fully explorable open-world setting that looks every bit as gorgeously dark and seedy as you could imagine.

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For me, the flow of the story is broken at times by sharp shifts in tone and pace from dark to light and back again, mainly caused by the side quests.

For instance, the game starts with the player incinerating the Joker (don't worry, he's still in the game, sort of) and also facing a violent and scary attack on a diner. These are dark themes to introduce the game - but soon after them I encountered the Riddler and got involved in a daft race against the clock in the Batmobile around an obstacle-filled race track like something out of MarioKart.

The various parts of the game don't always sit comfortably side by side or make much sense.

Something else that doesn't quite fit for me is the Batmobile's battle mode which transforms it into a military vehicle firing guns and missiles at enemy tanks, choppers and so on. This kind of warfare seems to conflict with Batman's usual style - additionally, the battles themselves are lacklustre in terms of fun, and I much prefer it when he fights with his fists and feet.

Not every page of this comic book adventure is perfect then but many of them are and overall this is an excellent superhero game.

I've got to say I also Arkham Knight for being purely single-player, with no annoying multiplayer elements getting in the way and being forced on players.

Go get it otherwise you’ll be Robin yourself of the chance to play one of the games of the year so far.

8.5 out of 10

Out now on PS4, Xbox One and PC

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