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Batman: Dark Tomorrow is an action-adventure video game developed by HotGen and published by Kemco for the Nintendo GameCube. It is based on the DC Comics' character Batman and his iteration from the DC Universe source material.
Initially announced in 2001 as a GameCube exclusive, Batman: Dark Tomorrow was envisioned as being an open-ended, faithful, and realistic approach to the Batman franchise. However, as development progressed, the game was scaled back and slated for release on multiple consoles. The game was a critical failure upon release, being criticized for its poor controls and camera.
Gameplay[]
Batman: Dark Tomorrow is a linear, stealth-based action game in which players control Batman as he fights crime. Batman is equipped with several of his tools, such as Batarangs, smoke bombs, and grappling hooks. Levels each have certain objectives that players must achieve in order to proceed, while criminals and enemies will attempt to stop your progress. While enemies can be knocked unconscious, they cannot be killed (due to Batman's "no killing" code); this requires the player to handcuff the criminal in order to keep them from attacking.
Plot[]
While Batman is trying to stop a gang war between Scarface and the Ventriloquist and Black Mask being waged on Gotham City's streets, Commissioner James Gordon has been kidnapped, and is being held hostage at an overrun Arkham Asylum. Racing through the city's sewers in order to enter the Asylum undetected, Batman has to fight through a gauntlet of enemies ranging from Poison Ivy to Mr. Freeze before finally encountering the man holding Gordon, the Joker.
Batman soon discovers that Gordon's kidnapping was in fact orchestrated by Ra's al Ghul as a distraction from his latest plan to take over the world. Batman travels to the villain's stronghold in the Himalayas in order to stop him. The game's ending features a branching storyline: in order to get the most complete ending, Batman must disarm a signal device before facing off against Ra's. However, the player is never given any indication that the device even exists, making the small objective easily missable. Failing to disarm the device will result in Ra's killing Batman and succeeding in taking over the world.
Reception[]
Batman: Dark Tomorrow gained infamy for receiving negative reviews on both platforms according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. Primary criticism of the game was directed at its control scheme, repetitive missions, and its camera, which was described as frustrating. Game Informer gave the GameCube version 0.75 out of 10 for gameplay that is "incomprehensible and littered with bugs". IGN was severely disappointed with the same console version, saying that "The Dark Knight gets his wings clipped in his latest adventure."
Although the gameplay was widely criticized, Peterson and Terada's story, as well as the in-game cinematics, were praised. IGN noted, "Positive marks earned here for sticking to the DC-based Batman license and faithfully bringing it to life. The cut-scenes are arguably the best part of the game." The ending, however, was met with criticism as there is no in-game direction to the "good ending". The game was featured in Triple Jump’s ‘Worst Games Ever’ YouTube series.
External links[]
- Batman: Dark Tomorrow at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Batman: Dark Tomorrow at GameFAQs
| Batman series | |
|---|---|
| Movie license games | Batman • Batman Returns • Batman Forever • Catwoman (2004) • Batman Begins |
| DC Animated Universe games | Batman: The Animated Series • The Adventures of Batman & Robin • Batman Beyond Chaos in Gotham • Batman: Vengeance • Rise of Sin Tzu |
| Lego Batman series | Lego Batman: The Videogame • 2: DC Super Heroes • 3: Beyond Gotham |
| Batman: Arkham series | Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition • Batman: Arkham Origins • Arkham Origins Blackgate • Arkham Trilogy |
| Other games | Batman: Return of the Joker • Catwoman (GBC) • Batman: Dark Tomorrow • Batman: The Brave and the Bold • Injustice: Gods Among Us • The Telltale Series • The Enemy Within |