With Gotham Knights, developer WB Games Montréal is aiming to create an open world Gotham more robust than those seen in previous Batman games. In recent years, Batman: Arkham City, Knight, and Origins have all set the player loose as the Caped Crusader in Gotham - or at least a portion of it. WB Games Montréal was itself responsible for the snow-capped Gotham of Origins, but all three of those conveniently made it so that the streets were mostly free of civilians, leaving the Bat almost entirely alone with super villains and their thugs. Gotham Knights, however, will take place over the course of many nights, where a more immersive city will invite players to explore.
While Arkham Asylum and the city of Gotham were beautifully crafted, one of the Batman: Arkham trilogy's biggest problems for player immersion was a lack of NPCs. Asylum's setting made it a non-issue, but its two sequels and the prequel developed by WB Games Montréal all jumped through narrative hoops to make sure the citizens of Gotham were out of harm's way. The narrative justifications were believable, and it helps that each game took place in a single night, but Gotham is supposed to be a bustling - if not dangerous - metropolis, and Gotham Knights has apparently taken steps to ensure the game world feels as though it's lived in.
On May 26, a handful of Gotham Knights' evolving open world, and elaborated on a few elements that players can expect when the game launches in October. Responding directly to a question, Redding confirmed that "civilians, weather, traffic, crimes, npc [sic] interaction, [and] enterable buildings" are all present in "Gotham City to some degree."
Gotham's Nightlife Will Be Seen In Gotham Knights
Although civilian NPCs are a notable addition to the digital city streets, Redding also made it clear that the city will not be uniformly inhabited. Different areas of the city will have distinct demographics, and NPC density will be subject to the type of buildings and attractions therein. Sections of Gotham where industrial buildings are concentrated likely won't have many civilians wandering around, but places where late night entertainment can be found will have people out and about. Gothamites can be found using public transport stations or working a night shift, and some will even comment on the vigilantism from Gotham Knights' multiple playable characters.
As of the Bat Family emerge from the Belfry to patrol Gotham, the city's weather will change on a nightly basis. Redding alludes to the weather having a distinct "Gotham vibe," so players might expect plenty of rain and fog. Players will frequently have the chance to take shelter from the elements in a variety of interior play spaces, most of which will be the site of illicit activities. Each night, people all over Gotham are perpetrating or falling victim to various crimes, some of which are poised for the player's intervention. Gotham Knights will, of course, also feature larger operations of organized crime during its story and more involved side quests, some of which Redding teases will have consequences for failure.
Source: Gotham Knights/Twitter/Discord
