A lost project showed an elderly Batman who leads Damian
Sometimes the most interesting projects are those that never see the light. And in the case of the saga Batman: ArkhamFans have just discovered a piece of alternative history This could have completely changed the way we remember the dark gentleman. A new filtered conceptual art reveals the dress that Bruce Wayne, already older and tanned for the years, would have dressed in the canceled sequel to Arkham Knight.
The idea was risky but tremendously attractive: A tired Batman, broken inside and outside, but still willing to fight, this time not as an absolute protagonist, but as a mentor of his son, Damian Wayne. A turn that mixed the Rawness of Arkham With the futuristic essence of Batman beyond.
Batman Arkham, a legacy that seemed closed
Batman: Arkham Knight (2015) closed the Rockstedy trilogy with a strong ending: the apparent death of Bruce Wayne. Since then, the rumors about a return have never ceased. Warner Bros. Games Montreal, head of Arkham Originsthey were responsible for the exploration of that path, but The project ended up canceling to give priority to Gotham Knightswho did not fall in love with criticism or the public.
The sequel would have meant something radical: Damian as a new protagonist And a Bruce in the aged background brought his shoulders not only the weight of Gotham, but of his own inheritance. The conceptual suit designed by Jarad S. Marantzexperience with experience in projects such as Spider-Man: away from home y Predator: Assassin AssassinHe reflects exactly that idea: a hero supported almost by force by his armor.
Batsuit who kept a broken man
In the same words as Marantz: “It was a much older Batman, and the suit kept this beaten and broken hero. Batman is still my favorite superhero. I could work on him forever”.
The armor showed hard lines, reinforcements that seemed prosthesis, a mechanical air that recalled hidden fragility under the myth. It was no longer the dress of a warrior at best, but of a veteran who needed every technological piece to get up.
The artist himself confessed to feeling enthusiastic about creating a new design for the universe ArkhamAlthough the game finally has never gone from the concept phase.
A Batman Beyond Taste project
The most surprising is that this project seemed to drink directly from the essence of Batman beyondThe famous animated series that showed Bruce Wayne Elder Terry McGinnis training. Here the difference was clear: The heir would have been his biological son, Damian WayneThat would have opened a series of new dramatic and emotional tensions.
The weight of the father-child relationship, in a world like Gotham, has promised a much more personal story than the usual fight against crime. Damian is not exactly the most docile of the breasts and see like Bruce tired who tried to guide him would have been pure gold for fans.
A hole that tried to fill the suicide team
In a sense, Warner tried to cover that void Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice LeagueThat Forced Batman’s return just to finish it controversially at the hands of Harley Quinn. The result was a deluge of criticism that clarifies that the followers expected something else. And now seeing this conceptual art, the feeling of loss of opportunity is even greater.
The indelible imprint of Arkham
Despite the tall and low rear, it is undeniable that the saga Arkham He scored a before and after in superhero video games. Arkham Asylum (2009) Surprised by his claustrophobic atmosphere and the mastery with which he transferred Batman in the middle. Arkham City He has expanded that experience with an open world full of classic bad people like Hugo Strange, the penguin or two faces. Finally, Arkham Knight He put the pin with a gigantic Gotham and the introduction of the mysterious Arkham Knight, who ended up being Jason Todd.
The fact that there was a plan to continue that story with Damian on the front confirms that Warner has still seen the Franchising potential. But the course change for projects such as Gotham Knights He left us without that vision of a Bruce veteran, defeated but still indestructible in the spirit.
The What What if the fans final
Today we just have to look at those illustrations and ask what would happen if Warner had gone on. A game in which Damian Wayne collected the cloak and Bruce, transformed into a wounded mentor, offered the last lesson of his life, would have been a perfect closure and at the same time a new beginning.
We will not see that future, but at least we can imagine it thanks to this conceptual art. And perhaps, one day, Warner decides to save the idea and give players the opportunity to experience the story Gotham deserves.
