r/games
Game Title: BATMAN: DARK REIGN
Platforms:
PC (October 5, 2017)
PlayStation 4 (October 5, 2017)
Xbox One (October 5, 2017)
Trailers:
Batman: Dark Reign – Official Reveal Trailer
Batman: Dark Reign – Official Gameplay Trailer
Batman: Dark Reign – Official Launch Trailer
Developer: DC Games
Review Aggregates:
OpenCritic: 94% – 95% Recommend
Metacritic: 93 / 100 – 115 Reviews
Some Reviews:
GameSpot – Peter Brown – 10 / 10
Batman: Dark Reign is not just the best superhero game ever made, it's one of the greatest video games, period. The Nemesis System revolutionizes open-world gameplay, creating a living, breathing Gotham where every encounter matters. Combined with flawless combat, detective gameplay that actually makes you feel like the World's Greatest Detective, and a story that rivals the best Batman tales ever told, this is a masterpiece.
IGN – Dan Stapleton – 10 / 10
Dark Reign raises the bar so impossibly high that it's hard to imagine how any superhero genre game will top it. The Nemesis System creates emergent storytelling that feels personal and memorable, while the core gameplay loop of investigation, stealth, and combat has been refined to perfection.
Polygon – Chris Plante – 10 / 10
Batman: Dark Reign is a technical and creative triumph. DC Games has crafted the definitive Batman experience, one that respects the character's 78-year history while pushing the medium forward in thrilling new ways. The Nemesis System alone would be enough to recommend this game, but when combined with everything else Dark Reign offers, it becomes something truly special.
Giant Bomb – Jeff Gerstmann – 5 / 5
I went into Dark Reign skeptical that the Nemesis System would live up to the hype. I was wrong. Dead wrong. It fundamentally changes how you interact with open-world games, creating dynamic rivalries and memorable villains out of randomly generated thugs. Combine that with the tightest combat, gorgeous visuals, and a world that feels genuinely oppressive, and you have a game that will be talked about for years.
Eurogamer – Wesley Yin-Poole – Essential
Batman: Dark Reign is, quite simply, essential.
Game Informer – Andrew Reiner – 10 / 10
Dark Reign is a staggering achievement. The open-world design is impeccable, the story is gripping, and the Nemesis System creates emergent narratives that rival anything a writer could script. I've put over 80 hours into this game and still find myself discovering new interactions, new enemies, and new reasons to patrol Gotham's streets. This is the Batman game we've been waiting for.
GamesRadar+ – David Roberts – 5 / 5
Batman: Dark Reign doesn't just set a new standard for superhero games—it sets a new standard for open-world action games, period. The combat is brutal and satisfying, the detective work is genuinely engaging, and the Nemesis System is a game changer for the gaming industry entirely.
Kotaku – Kirk Hamilton – Unscored
I keep coming back to Dark Reign even after finishing the main story, and that's the highest praise I can give. The Nemesis System creates endless replayability, and the core gameplay loop never gets old. Whether you're a Batman fan or just love great games, this is a must-play.
Forbes – Paul Tassi – Unscored
Batman: Dark Reign is a masterclass in game design. Every system feeds into the next, creating a cohesive experience that feels greater than the sum of its parts. The Nemesis System is the star, but don't overlook the incredible attention to detail in every aspect of this game. This is what happens when talented developers are given the time and resources to realize their vision.
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It was the first week of October, and I sat in the living room of my home, watching the DC event.
The event was called DC FanDome.
This year had been small, relatively speaking. Held over a single day, it was more of a proof of concept than a full-blown spectacle. About 10,000 fans were attending in person, with hundreds of thousands joining over the internet to watch the main panel.
Constantine and The Penguin, the first two TV series to be made under the DCU, would be revealed with full trailers.
The entire cast of Justice League was there as well, beginning the press tour for the movie. The marketing blitz had begun, and the cast would start their international press tour at the beginning of next month.
I wasn't there, of course. I was too busy with The Usual Suspects and also with completing the Dune script. I was on my break from DC, after all.But I would be available in November and December for dates when they needed me for the movie's marketing.
The event so far had been great. I was also getting live updates on my phone about how much bigger they thought next year could be.
Next year was going to be bigger and better. DC FanDome would expand into a full three-day event. We'd move to a larger venue. The goal was to accommodate more than 30,000 people. The event would be a celebration of the DCU and DC Comics panels and more. And it was planned to get bigger and bigger as the years went on.
Also, next year would have big announcements like Justice League 2 and the final movies for Chapter 2 of the DCU. Chapter 2 of the DCU was something I was very excited about, something that I planned to use to take this franchise to new heights.
On-screen, Dave was taking questions with the cast of The Penguin. Colin Farrell was explaining how the series would build on the character after the events of Batman Pt. 3 Cobblepot's rise through the now completely changed underworld of Gotham.
To my side, Graves was checking something on her phone. She then spoke up.
"It's time for the Citron meeting."
"Oh, right," I said, muting the live stream.
Graves handed me the phone, the man already on the call.
The man was Jason Citron, the founder of the Discord app.
Yes, I was trying to buy it outright and bring it under Chrysos.
Discord hadn't even come to mind until recently. It had been released late in this world only one year and three months ago and was already making a huge impact on the gaming community.
It was worth about $120 million now, and the founders were looking for investors.
It was the perfect time to take it off their hands and, hopefully, make it as popular as it would become in my old world. Games like Fortnite were on the horizon, and the gaming industry was going to explode. So yeah, I wanted it.
I brought the phone to my ear. "Hello."
"Mr. Adler," Jason Citron said. "I heard that you were interested in Discord. And it's funny…I thought I heard your people say you wanted to buy us out."
"Jason, can I call you Jason?"
"Yeah, Mr. Adler—"
"Call me Daniel." I paused. "How many active users are you at now?"
"About twenty-three million. Growing fast."
"The numbers are great, and one of the many reasons I want to buy you outright."
Silence on the other end.
"I..." Jason cleared his throat. "We weren't really looking to sell. We just closed our Series A."
"Look, Jason, I see a lot of potential in what you have here. So much so that I'm willing to pay four times what it's worth now."
"Four hundred and eighty million," I said. "I buy out you, your co-founder, and all your VC backers. You stay on as CEO with full operational control. I don't touch product decisions—that's your domain."
Jason was silent. Probably in shock.
"Four hundred and eighty million," Jason repeated slowly.
"Your Series A valued you at one-twenty. I'm offering four times that. Your VCs will be thrilled they triple their money in four months. You and your co-founder walk away with generational wealth and still get to build the company you want to build."
"This is..." Jason trailed off.
"Just take some time to think about this."
"You've thought a lot about this."
"I don't make half-billion-dollar calls without thinking about them," I said. "Look, I'm not going to pressure you. But I'd like to meet face-to-face. This week, if possible. You're in San Francisco?"
"Yeah."
"I can fly up Thursday. We'll have dinner, talk through the details. If you're not interested after that, no hard feelings."
There was a long pause.
"Thursday works," Jason said finally.
"Good," I said. "My assistant will send over the details."
"See you Thursday," he said.
The call ended, and I handed the phone back to Graves.
"Yeah, he's fucking selling," I said.
Graves raised an eyebrow. "You offered him four-eighty."
"I was prepared to go to six hundred if he pushed back," I said. "He didn't."
"Lucia won't be happy with this."
"She's never happy," I said. "But then the money starts coming in, and she's over the moon."
Graves laughed.
I turned back to the TV and unmuted it. The Justice League panel had begun, and Henry was speaking. It sounded like the topic was... me.
On-screen, Henry was mid-sentence. "—Daniel and I, we were discussing Warhammer the other day—"
There was a huge cheer from the crowd.
Henry smiled. "And I asked him, 'Why won't you be at this event?' And he says, 'Oh, you know, I have this meeting with Robert Downey Jr.'"
More laughter.
"'And then I have to meet Tom Cruise for this other thing'," Henry continued, mimicking my voice.
"'You know how it is…'"
More laughter from the crowd.
Henry grinned. "The man is on another plane of existence in Hollywood right now. So that's why he's not here."
More cheers and laughter.
I smiled as well. And then I remembered I did have to meet Tom Cruise for dinner tonight.
The event continued. It would end with Henry revealing the teaser for Man of Tomorrow.
Man of Tomorrow was a very important movie. It was the first film of Chapter 2 and basically set up a lot of plot points through to the end of what I considered my full involvement with the DCU which would conclude with Justice League 3 and maybe the Supergirl movie as well, which was planned for after the Darkseid saga ended. That was the plan for now, anyway it could change.
Man of Tomorrow would set up World's Finest, Justice League 2, and the third Superman movie which was very important since it was going to be an adaptation of The Death of Superman. And that would lead into the Darkseid storyline.
So yes, Man of Tomorrow was very important.
As the panel was winding down and the teaser reveal was being set up, Graves spoke up. "It's done. Everything is set up."
I looked at her.
"For the thing," she clarified.
"Ohh, the thing," I said.
The thing was what we had been calling the plan for me proposing to Margot, which was going to happen during our vacation next week.
Margot would finish her filming by the end of this week, and it had been a long one. We hadn't seen much of each other this month because of it, and the vacation was something both of us were looking forward to.
"So, you ready?" Graves asked.
"I was born ready," I said.
"Don't think about it too much," Graves said.
"I'm not. It's just me popping the question."
"She could say no."
"Fuck off," I replied.
She laughed.
On-screen, Henry announced the teaser, and it began to play.
"Here we go," I said.
=========
[Soft Superman OST]
[FADE IN:]
[The Fortress of Solitude]
[SUPERMAN walks alongside LOIS LANE through a corridor of ice and crystal]
[She's taking it all in—awed, wonder on her face]
SUPERMAN (excited, grinning): "There's something I want to show you."
[He leads her to a massive door—ancient Kryptonian symbols etched into the surface]
[It opens with a hiss of escaping air]
[They enter]
[It's a room with a narrow strip of floor—the rest is a dark void, a massive chasm dropping into blackness]
[Lois stops in her tracks when she sees something move in the darkness below]
[The music is full of wonder, but it stops abruptly]
[Writhing tentacles of darkness emerge from the pit—pulsing, alive]
[It looks Lovecraftian—alien, but beautiful in a horrifying way]
LOIS (backing up slightly): "What... what is that?"
SUPERMAN: "A Sun-Eater. Found it drifting near Jupiter."
[a pause]
LOIS (incredulous): "It... eats suns?"
SUPERMAN: "Yeah."
[He walks to a nearby console, completely casual]
[Presses a button]
[A small artificial sun materializes in a containment field—a glowing orb of light and heat]
[The Sun-Eater's tentacles reach toward it, almost gently]
[It begins absorbing the light]
SUPERMAN: "I've been feeding it."
[Lois stares at him like he's insane]
[SMASH CUT TO BLACK]
[QUICK CUT MONTAGE BEGINS]
[Epic orchestral music KICKS IN]
[Superman flying over Metropolis, saving people from a building raging with fire]
[Superman flies near LexCorp Tower—Lex Luthor watches from his office window, a scowl on his face]
[A craft screaming through the atmosphere, burning as it enters Earth's orbit]
[Close-up of the craft's surface—the HOUSE OF EL symbol visible]
[Deep space—a MASSIVE skull-shaped ship approaching Earth]
[Dark corridor inside the ship—a silhouette walks forward, green energy pulsing around the figure]
[Back to the Fortress scene]
LOIS: "You're keeping something that eats stars as a pet?"
SUPERMAN (slight smile): "He's a baby, Lois. I couldn't just leave it alone."
[The Sun-Eater makes a sound—almost like purring. Deeply unsettling]
[Lois shakes her head, unable to believe this]
MAN OF TOMORROW
MAY 2018
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Chapter 300 next !! A big one....