Warner Bros. have released a new gameplay trailer for Gotham Knights, featuring Nightwing (Dick Grayson) and Red Hood (Jason Todd). Also one for the pre-order Batcycle.

While this is our first time commenting on it here, we have been keeping a quiet eye on it for some time.

It has always looked slick but this trailer is interesting in the details it highlights and how they relate to the gaming industry.

We would confidently say that Marvel beats the pants off DC at the movies and box office takings support that view.

While we haven't played anywhere near all of their games over the past couple of decades, our experience and impression of their popularity would put DC ahead.

Whether or not you agree with that, our interest here is the near future and that means Gotham Knights v Marvel's Midnight Suns.

Microtransactions

You might be aware that the NFT (non-fungible token) market has crashed.

Microtransactions - which includes NFTs - have long been a prickly issue in gaming and it's possible that we're presently seeing a strong reaction against them, fuelled by immensely successful and conspicuously microtransaction free Elden Ring.

Last year it was revealed that Midnight Suns will include cosmetic microtransactions.

Today it was revealed in their FAQ that Gotham Knights will have none.

Gotham Knights was preceded by another major upcoming Warner Bros., Hogwarts Legacy, to join the microtransaction-free club following Elden Ring's launch.

Characters

At least for our tastes which are certainly not shared by everyone, Midnight Suns has a superior character roster with considerably more spectacular and varied abilities.

Gotham Knights offers four lesser known and relatively mundane characters in Nightwing and Red Hood - both former Robins, Robin (current) and Batgirl.

DC's Batman: Arkham games were very popular so it's understandable that they'd seek to continue in that vein.

But in terms of recent exposure in other entertainment media there's just Nightwing and Red Hood from Netflix's DC Titans.

While Midnight Suns probably hasn't released their full character list yet we know it to include major ones like Doctor Strange, Iron Man, Wolverine and Blade.

On the other hand, Gotham Knights isn't just a video game now.

Earlier this year Warner Bros. announced a new television series going by the same name.

If the two are related - which seems likely - and the series is also good, then that could tip this factor in DC's favour.

EDIT - Curiously the two are very different takes, including different characters, on a similar idea.

Gameplay

Gotham Knights is an action roleplaying game.

Midnight Suns is a turn based tactical roleplaying game with some card elements.

We always regarded Midnight Suns as taking the riskier road here.

Is there a market for card tactical roleplaying games?

Yes, but it isn't massive.

Midnight Suns might be able to trade on the Marvel name to attract lots of players, and if the game is enjoyable, have a popularising effect on card tactical RPGs.

Gotham Knights always had a ready market for action RPG players and with Elden Ring's recent success, hunger for this kind of game may now be even stronger.

User Interface

The UI in this Gotham Knights gameplay video is minimal and they make a point of it also being customisable.

Customisable UI is fairly standard in games but Elden's Ring's extraordinarily minimal UI has been popular with players and also extremely contentious with some developers.

We don't think Gotham Knights have copied Elden Ring but highlighting this feature at this time might be astute marketing rather than coincidence.

Tactical RPGs like Midnight Suns are necessarily more UI heavy, so DC is probably also ahead on this front.

Non-Lethal Combat

No Elden Ring for this one. That game is quite lethal. Even if most things spring right back to life the moment you sit down for a break.

But one feature we love about Cyperpunk 2077 is optional non-lethality and we were slightly excited to see it highlighted in this Gotham Knights demo.

Midnight Suns features characters like Blade and Wolverine whose weapons of choice are quite sharp.

Judging by the continuing popularity of utterly lethal computer games we would be in the minority for loving this particular feature.

Though even putting aside our niche love for the non-lethal, we think the signs point to DC coming out comfortably ahead in superhero gaming this year.

Gotham Knights releases on PC, Xbox and Playstation on October 25.

[ Main Image: Gotham Knights gameplay. Credit: Warner Bros. via YouTube. ]

References

Gotham Knights. FAQ. Warner Bros. Games.

IMDb.com. Gotham Knights. (viewed May 11, 2022)

Marvel's Midnight Suns [@midnightsuns] (September 2, 2021). Hey folks, regarding our battle card system, there are no loot boxes in Marvel's MidnightSuns  or related microtransactions to get more cards (i.e. Gamma Coils). Twitter.

Warner Bros. Games (May 10, 2022). Gotham Knights - Official Nightwing and Red Hood Gameplay Demo. YouTube.

Warner Bros. Games (May 10, 2022). Gotham Knights - 233 Kustom Batcycle Pre-Order Trailer YouTube. YouTube.

Wikipedia. Gotham Knights (video game). (viewed May 11, 2022)

Wood, Chandler [@FinchStrife] (March 18, 2022). We've seen this question coming up and want to set the record straight. Twitter.