BE WARNED:
SPOILERS AHEAD
We learned a few weeks ago that Batman: Arkham Knight would mark the first game in the series to be rated Mature, and now, the ESRB has revealed why that is in their recently published Ratings Summary.
With blood, language, suggestive themes, and violence as content descriptors, the ESRB explains that you’ll have the ability to shoot other characters, while one scene includes someone being tortured on a bloody operating table:
This is an action-adventure game in which players primarily assume the role of Batman as he battles several villains spreading chaos across Gotham City. Players traverse a variety of locations around Gotham while battling thugs, examining crime scenes, and occasionally rescuing hostages. Players engage in melee-style combat using punches, kicks, and gadgets (e.g., batarangs, explosives). Enemies cry out in pain when struck, and some takedowns are highlighted by brief slow-motion effects and loud impact sounds. Some sequences allow players to use tank-like vehicles with machine gun turrets and rockets to shoot enemies; a vehicle’s wheels are also used to torture an enemy in one sequence.
Cut-scenes depict characters getting shot (on and off camera) while restrained or unarmed. Large bloodstains/pools of blood appear in crime scenes and in the aftermath of violent acts; one room depicts a person torturing a character on a bloody operating table. During the course of the game, players can shoot unarmed characters and a hostage. Neon signs in a red-light district read “live nude girls” and “XXX.” The words “b*tch,” “gobsh*te,” and “a*s” appear in the dialogue.
Do you think the ESRB rating might be pointing towards the ability to play as another character in Arkham Knight?
Batman Arkham Knight launches for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on June 2.
