New details for the Batgirl: A Matter of Family DLC for Batman: Arkham Knight has emerged. The Batgirl-centric add-on for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One sees a young Barbara Gordon in pre- Arkham Asylum showdown with Joker and an animated-ish Harley Quinn.
Batgirl: A Matter of Family is developed by WB Games Montreal and not Rocksteady Studios, as previously covered . That means the studio had time to turn this into a more substation add-on than your typical expansion.
Design Producer Justin Vazquez calls Batgirl: A Matter of Family a “love letter” to Batman: Arkham Asylum , the game that started the entire franchise that now spans four-console and one handheld title.
In this adventure, Commissioner Gordon has been kidnapped by Joker and is being held in a new area called the Seagate Amusement Park. The location is actually an oil rig that was converted into a SeaWorld like amusement park. Now, it has Joker trimmings that Batgirl will have to maneuver through to rescue her father.
“We wanted to recreate the feeling of being trapped in a bizarre and unique open environment playing a game of cat and mouse with the Joker,” Vazquez told Entertainment Weekly .
Batgirl won’t just face Joker and his usual assortment of thugs that double as punching bags. There’s also a retro Harley Quinn to deal with. The female villain will reportedly wear the same red and black outfit she was introduced with in Batman: The Animated Series . The character has always sported a more “mature” variation of the costume in the Arkham series.
Batman: Arkham Knight owners will also get to learn some new moves since Batgirl isn’t as big of a physical force as the Caped Crusader. Instead, she’ll use her intellect and hacking abilities to “take down enemies, control objects, and solve puzzles.”
“Hacking is really what separates her from the other characters. It’s a gameplay mechanic with which the player can create situations for Batgirl to really shine,” Vazquez says. “Our intention was that Batgirl should be less powerful than Batman, but that Batgirl plus hacking could give her opportunities do things that not even Batman can pull off.”
The Batgirl DLC will be released on July 14 and is included as part of the Season Pass, which costs $39.99. Batgirl: A Matter of Family will also be sold separately for $6.99, but it won’t be available to purchase by itself until July 21.
The PC version of the DLC will not be released until Rocksteady and developer studio Iron Galaxy Studios get the game working and back for sale on Steam .
[Images via Entertainment Weekly , Batman: Arkham Knight ]