Summary
No longer is theBatman: Arkhamseries centered solely on Batman, asSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguehas shifted that focus onto some of DC’s most iconic supervillains. Now, players can see the world through the eyes of Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and King Shark, with plenty more villains coming via post-launch updates. And even though that shift has been pretty controversial,Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leagueis held up by Rocksteady’s love for DC Comics.
It is no secret that Rocksteady has become one of the premiere superhero studios thanks toits critically acclaimedBatman: Arkhamseries. That franchise showed a love for DC Comics and told a fantastic story that players will not soon forget. While the story ofSuicide Squad: Kill the JusticeLeaguemay not be as beloved as its predecessors, the writing of the characters still shines through it all. Because even when the game gets bogged down with some live-service mechanics, each of the titular characters feels like a worthy adaptation.
Fromthe minuteSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguebegins, players know that the team is in good hands. Amanda Waller brings them all into a room, puts the bomb injector on a table, and watches as chaos ensues. The four of them fight it out, each selfishly trying to inject the others with a bomb. And once they have all been recruited to Task Force X, the characters only get crazier from there.
Every single one of the Task Force X members feels like a worthy adaptation of the character. Harley Quinn often acts on impulse and spends much of her time analyzing others; Deadshot seems calm and collected while also constantly trying to plan out the team’s next moves. Captain Boomerang is only in it for himself and could not care less about those around him, and King Shark has a veryGuardians of the GalaxyDrax-like persona. Couple those personalities with some stellar voice acting, and they’re a complete DC package.
While the story may not be whatArkhamfans were looking for, each of the characters are still a lot of fun to follow. Throughout the adventure, they are constantly bickering, throwing out quips, and trying to make sense of the wild world that Amanda Waller has thrown them into. This leads to some pretty funny scenarios, including a scene wherethey electrocute the Penguin, their interactions with Lex Luthor, and practically any time they come face-to-face with one of the members of the Justice League.
The Suicide Squad is not the only set of lovingly crafted characters.Suicide Squad’s Amanda Walleris as cold and calculating as ever, Colonel Rick Flag continues to be a loyal soldier, and newcomers like Hack are fun additions to the roster. Additionally, returning characters like the Penguin maintain the fantastic characterization from theBatman: Arkhamseries. Even Lex Luthor seems to follow in the footsteps of other adaptations to great success.
The Justice League themselves also seem to be propped up by some strong writing and voice acting. This iteration of the team is brainwashed by Brainiac, so these heroes are quite different from what fans may have expected. That evil turn letsthe likes of Kevin Conroyreally run wild with his version of Batman, because up until now,Batman: Arkham’s version was never a straight-up villain. Even though some fans may have liked to see good versions of these characters again, the dialogue is top-notch.
The highlight ofSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leagueis definitely the characters that players get to control, with the NPCs coming in at a close second. Without those strong adaptations, players would not have fallen in love withBatman: Arkhamlike they did. Rocksteady seems to be continuing that faithfulness here, which once again proves just how much it loves the DC universe. With even more characters coming soon, there should be no shortage of hilarious dialogue on the horizon.
