Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s main and post-launch campaign throughlines have finally been completed with Season 4’s Episode 8, which was released on January 14. A lot has happened inSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s four post-launch seasons with Task Force X recruiting new members and defeating a dozen Brainiacs and, at the same time, not much has occurred to directly impact or throw a wrench in the game’s overarching story, at least between when the base game and post-launch content’s stories conclude.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s performance and reception will undoubtedly have a profound effect on what DC games are produced in the future, and it’s already been made perfectly plain that Batman in particular is DC’s uncontested key to success. The Arkhamverse is a beloved franchise with more than a decade and a half’s worth of lore sustaining it, which is likely the only reason whySuicide Squaddidn’t bury it alive. That said, future Arkhamverse games are basically guaranteed at this point with titles as authentic and brilliant asBatman: Arkham Shadowupholding the series’ resume, anda possible Batman-led sequel having to followSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s narrative will be daunting.
Batman: Arkham Shadowelecting to belong in the Arkhamverse’s prequel era was clever for a couple of reasons: one, there is a ton of unwritten and untold history to unravel in the years precedingBatman: Arkham Asylum; and two, it allowed itself to be as far away as possible from the narrative baggage that Rocksteady andSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leaguehave dumped into the Arkhamverse’s lap.
To be fair,Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s story might not have even received the amount of disdain that it did if it wasn’t a part of the Arkhamverse. However, the choices it makes that affect the Arkhamverse are tough to accept afterthe events ofBatman: Arkham Knightwere so defiantly decisive.
Indeed, having Bruce Wayne re-enter the public as Batman to join the Justice League squanders the weight of his choice to sacrifice the Batman persona altogether inKnight. Rocksteady’sSuicide Squadarguably fumbled this huge cliffhanger and many other important character developments, and thebiggest story beats to emerge fromKill the Justice Leagueare as follows:
It’s possible that a future Arkhamverse game choosing to perpetuate the multiverse premise could be well-executed as multiverses aren’t inherently a lazy idea, but multiverses overall can quickly become trite when they purposefully exploit a lack of accountability due to their impermanence. Either way, Batman’s contingencies failed to prevent him from being cloned or Brainiac from wreaking havoc on Metropolis and that would absolutely need to be explored if a sequel followsSuicide Squad.
It’s assumed that Gotham City was unaffected by Brainiac’s invasion, and therefore stories there wouldn’t need to concern themselves with the events ofKill the Justice Leagueunless NPCs or henchmen allude to them in passing.
Otherwise,Batman’s story in the Arkhamversecould continue with little to do with the Justice League orKill the Justice League’s events if it wished, and following Camouflaj’s lead in this endeavor would probably be Rocksteady or any other developer’s best plan of action. Moreover, an actual Justice League game would be able to salvage whatSuicide Squadlaid foundations for, though it would be almost impossible to wash a bitter taste out of players’ mouths with the Arkhamverse’s Wonder Woman having died for nothing.
