Obviously, there will be some spoilers below, but as difficult as it may be for the final episode of the season, I’ve tried my best regardless. So consider this your SPOILER WARNING.
Episode 4 ‘Guardian of Gotham’ concluded with Bruce Wayne putting an end to Harvey Dent’s sociopathic antics once and for all, at least for now. But that barely put a ‘dent’ into the works of the Children of Arkham (I couldn’t resist the cheap pun) and Batman’s attention must now be focused solely on Lady Arkham aka Vicki Vale’s reign of terror upon the Gotham citizens. Leading up to these events, Batman/Bruce Wayne has been on a frantic rollercoaster ride of emotional ups and downs, a ride that even The Joker would have been proud of, and that’s putting it mildly. But never fear, because in this epic finale ‘City of Light’, the Bats has well and truly got this Mojo back!
Everything that we would want from this debut season conclusion is here, the smug Oswald Cobblepot is about to get his comeuppance after dethroning Bruce from Wayne Enterprises and Bruce is about to regain is Wayne Enterprise empire. Though the shocking revelations into the Wayne family name is more about Bruce accepting what has happened being out of his control, and now it’s time for him to move forward in that regard, while doing what’s right for the people of Gotham. Which to be honest couldn’t be any more true to the values of Bruce Wayne.
However, before Batman gets close to Lady Arkham, she really pushes Bruce to the limits, more then he could possibly ever have imagined. Yet, by cleverly balancing the decisions of Bruce and Batman, in my efforts to bring down the Children of Arkham, it gave me real satisfaction, which such satisfaction is often a rarity in even the most well told stories, whether it be in the TV, movie or video game medium. But over the many Telltale Games adaptations over the years, they have really mastered the art of story-telling, so that should come as little surprise.
Before City of Light comes to its epic conclusion, it tackles some very sensitive subject matters. With everything that’s gone throughout each episode, Telltale has done a superb job in pushing your buttons as Bruce Wayne and Batman, tempting you more so in being far more ruthless then some might expect from the Caped Crusader. Yet as episode 5 reaches its end, you really dig deeper into the dark and disturbing psyche of Vicki Vale and how she became Lady Arkham, so much so that it has you question both sides of her motives.
Episode 5 ‘City of Light’ gathers just about all the emotions you experienced from this entire debut season, and bundles it into my chaotic, emotional, brutal and epic finale. We’ve experienced multiple incarnations of Batman over the years and perhaps in this one very episode or debut season, none has made you feel more heroic, more like the Batman then what Telltale has achieved here.
Following this season would be a tall order for some, but considering the fact that Telltale have barely scratched the surface on what the DC Universe has to offer, they have a huge advantage in their favour going forward. It’s certainly no joke when it comes to the exciting prospect on where Telltale Games will take us next in this deep and expansive universe of crazed lunatics.
You can read our review of Episode One ‘Realms of Shadow’ here.
You can read our review of Episode Two ‘Children of Arkham’ here.
You can read our review of Episode Three ‘New World Order’ here.
You can read our review of Episode Four ‘Guardian of Gotham’ here.