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Batmanis among the most recognizable comic book characters in the world. As such, it’s no surprise he has featured in a litany of games dating back to the ’80s. There have been games based on Batman movies, TV shows, and comics. Plus, game developers have come up with a healthy number of original Dark Knight adventures, too.
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Most of the titles have been action-adventure or beat-em-ups. There have also been a few racing and vehicular combat ones. The thing that links them all is that they feature the iconic caped crusader. Here is his full history in the video game realm.
1986
Jon Ritman and Bernie Drummond
1988
Special FX Software
Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Apple 2, MS-DOS, ZX Spectrum
Batmanfirst appeared in the gaming world back in the mid-to-late ’80s. The original game, simply titled Batman, is anisometric puzzlerwhere the titular character goes around collecting parts for his Batcraft to save Robin. It’s a simple concept, but it was well-received at the time.
There was no sequel to this game. Instead, new developers created a new type of Batman gaming experience. This one is a 2Daction-adventure beat-em-upwhere Batman moves across different screens, punching, kicking, and throwing Batarangs at henchmen. Each screen was supposed to look like a panel of a comic book.
1989
Ocean Software
Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, MSX, ZX Spectrum
1990
Atari Games, Data East, Midway Games, Namco
Arcade
Tim Burton’s Batman moviesplayed a large role in the character’s rise in mainstream pop culture. The first one was released in 1989.
As a result,several Batman games based on the movie came out from ‘89 to ‘90. Most of them came from Sunsoft, whocreated many different games for different systems. Each one served as its own take on the movie. They vary heavily in how accurate they are to the 1989 film.
Arguably the most famous of them wasBatman: The Video Gamefor the Nintendo Entertainment System. It’s aplatformer with some beat-‘em-up elementsthat sees the titular character make his way through the streets of Gotham.
1991
1992
Sunsoft
Sega Genesis
Like with their titles based on the1989 Batman movie, Sunsoft releasedseveral distinct versions of their Return Of The Joker game.
The one on the NES is aplatformer that has some run-and-gun elements.The gun in question is attached to Batman’s arm, and he blows away everything in sight with it as he makes it through each level to reach The Joker.
The GameBoy version is a bit different, as it’s more ofa pure platformer.Sega Genesis users essentially got a remake of the NES one with updated visuals and a slightly different title.
1993
Denton Designs
Amiga
Tim Burton’s second Batman movie, Batman Returns,was released in 1992. Along with it came a bunch ofgames based on that particular movie.
Once again, it wasn’t just one title released on multiple systems. Instead, various developers made their own versions of the game and released them on specific systems. The result is a collection of Batman Returns games that vary in gameplay and quality.
Even the genres differed, as some developers madeplatformers, while others went forbeat-em-ups.The MS-DOS one is the most distinct, as it’s astraight-up adventure game.
1994
1995
The Adventures of Batman And Robin Cartoon Maker
The Adventures of Batman And Robin Activity Center
1996
Knowledge Adventure
PC
Batman: The Animated Series is among the most popular pieces of Batman mediaever, so it’s unsurprising thatpeople made games about the series.The first came in 1993 and was developed by Konami for the Game Boy. It isa nice side-scrolling adventure.
Then as was commonly the case for Batman games at this time,several versions of the same game were released.The said game isThe Adventures Of Batman And Robin, which landed on several different systems.
The SNES and Game Gear versions areaction platformers. In contrast, the game on the Sega Genesis is arun-and-gun adventure. However, the most different is the Sega CD version, which isa vehicular combat title.
Two more games based on the animated series came out for PC calledThe Adventures of Batman And Robin Cartoon MakerandThe Adventures of Batman And Robin Activity Center.As the titles suggest,they’re learning games.
Probe Entertainment And Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Probe Entertainment And Iguana Entertainment
Arcade, Saturn, MS-DOS, PlayStation
1995 saw the release of another Batman movie. This time it wasBatman Forever.Along with it came a couple of games.
This time there weren’t a bunch of versions of one game. Instead, the standard adaptation is abeat-em-upthat is on multiple systems. In it, you can play as either Batman or Robin as you go through levels beating up every goon in your way. The visuals are similar to early Mortal Kombat, meaning the playable characters are digitized actors.
Batman Forever: The Arcade Gameis also abeat-‘em-upbased on the movie. However, this one looks and plays differently. The overall concept is similar, though.
1998
2000
Kemco
Nintendo 64, PlayStation, GameBoy Color
Even the most controversial Batman movies got game adaptations back in the ’90s. This is evidenced by the factJoel Schumacher’s despised Batman & Robin flick got a game of the same name. It’s asandbox-style action-adventuretitle where you roam around Gotham City and complete missions.
It wasn’t the only Batman movie-based game to release around this time. In 2000, aside-scrolling beat-em-upbased onBatman Beyond: Return Of The Jokercame out for a few different systems.
2001
2003
Ubisoft Montreal
PlayStation 2, GameBoy Advance, GameCube, Xbox
The New Batman Adventureswas an animated series from the late ’90s that served as inspiration for a few video games.
The first of them to release was calledBatman Chaos In Gotham. It’s ahandheld beat-em-uptitle where you have to apprehend the criminals that have escaped from Arkham Asylum.
Batman: Gotham City Raceris very different since it’sa racing game. In it, you compete in different street races through, you guessed it, Gotham City.
The next game based on theNew Batman Adventuresseries is anaction-adventure titlenamedBatman: Vengeance. In this one, the titular character investigates the death of The Joker. It was thefirst Batman game on the sixth generation of consoles.
Batman: Rise Of Sin Tzucame out several years after the other ones. This game sees the Bat Family face off against a warlord known as Sin Tzu. It’s abeat-em-uptitle that allows cooperative play.
2004
HotGen
Plug And Play TV Game
One of the most disliked Batman games ever came out in 2003, and it was namedBatman: Dark Tomorrow. It’s astealth action gamethat pits Batman against Ra’s al Ghul. Technological issues and poor controls meant it wasn’t well-received upon release.
A year later, a more unusual Batman game hit the market. It’s aPlug And Play TV game, meaning you have a Batman controller that you may plug into your television. It’san action gamebased on The Batman television series.
PC, Mac
The Learning Company releasedtwo different Batman learning gamesin 2003.
Both of them feature Batman and Robin taking on classic Batman rogues. To get the better of them, you have to complete various activities that mostly task you with solving puzzles. The two games aren’t significantly different.
