This review contains spoilers from the previous three episodes of TellTale’s Batman.
Guardian of Gotham delivers the best episode in the TellTale Batman series so far. With a terrifying new Joker, high stakes, and some genuinely touching moments, Guardians of Gotham serves as a fantastic prelude to the upcoming finale.
Batman: The TellTale Series: Episode 4: Guardian of Gotham
Developer: TellTale Games
Price: $24.99 for a Season Pass
Platforms: PS3, PS4 (reviewed), Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC, Mac, Android, iOS
While I found TellTale’s previous episode of Batman, New World Order, to be underwhelming, I was shocked at how well Guardian of Gotham turned things around. This latest episode brings a lot to the table for the finale, and the inevitable second season, while still serving as its own fantastic singular story.
Guardian of Gotham pulled out all the stops in terms of establishing lore by introducing an unsettling new version of the Joker, revealing new information about the Children of Arkham, and finally unveiling the fully unstable Two-Face. It’s fantastic to see so many pieces of this world’s lore coming together, while still introducing newly adapted pieces of established Batman lore.
“The charismatic and scarily friendly Joker that TellTale has made is one of the most memorable of recent memory.”
To address the most exciting part of Guardian of Gotham, the Joker is fantastic. The Joker has been portrayed as a psychopath, a genius, an anarchist, and almost everything else under the sun. TellTale takes a fantastic new approach by introducing the Joker as an uncomfortably friendly figure that attempts to befriend a recently incarcerated Bruce Wayne. It’s very eerie to have the Joker, currently known as John Doe, save you from other inmates, while talking about your blooming friendship. While he obviously shows off his more psychopathic ways later in the episode, the charismatic and scarily friendly Joker that TellTale has made is one of the most memorable of recent memory.
Outside of the Joker, Guardian of Gotham had plenty of highlights. Seeing Harvey go completely off the handle with his brutish new militia was fantastic, and as of this episode, he still has an entirely intact face in my main playthrough. These lasting consequences continue to impress, though I can’t help but hope that he’ll lose half his face in the final episode, if only because I’m a stickler for canon.
The most moving part of the episode involves talking to a child after investigating Vicki Vale, the newly revealed-to-be Lady Arkham, and her childhood home. After witnessing something traumatizing, the child is hiding in a cupboard in the house. As Batman, you get to choose how you speak to the child, and how you get information from him. Are you direct and to-the-point, treating the child as the adult this event will turn him into, or will you be kind and gentle, understanding of the child’s situation? I took the latter route, and was rewarded with a genuinely heart-warming talk between Batman and the kid. These are the little moments that I’ve always loved in Batman comics, so being able to show off Batman’s sympathetic side in-game felt genuinely good.
This episode also brought back the ability to confront an enemy as either Batman or Bruce Wayne, bringing back the idea that this is more Bruce Wayne’s story than Batman’s. While the persona of Batman has been consistently well done, it’s even more fascinating to see Bruce continue to change Gotham in his own way, or more accurately, in your own way.
The usual video and audio issues are present, but that’s to be expected at this point. Again, the issues are minor, but still able to take you out of the plot here and there. The music is still on point, with a heavier focus on Dark Knight-style tracks.
The Final Word
Guardian of Gotham is the best episode of TellTale’s Batman yet. A fascinating new Joker, a truly insane Two-Face, and an incredibly moving sequence all come together to feel like a medley of the best aspects of Batman. I can’t wait to see how this series wraps-up in the next episode, which, if this episode is any indication, will be absolutely fantastic.
-MonsterVine Review Score: 4.5 out of 5 – Great
