Breakdown
- Meta has revealed a new Arkham game coming to Meta Quest 3 - Batman Arkham Shadow
- It appears to be set within the normal Arkham games, prior to the events of Suicide Squad and Arkham Knight
- The teaser trailer heavily implies Ratcatcher is the main villain of the VR game
Rocksteady's Batman Arkham series offers some of the best superhero videogames, giving you the opportunity to play as the Caped Crusader through some intense fights against iconic DC supervillains. However, despite Suicide Squad seemingly ruining goodwill with the Arkham fanbase, the Dark Knight is coming back for another Arkham game - one that you might not be able to play.
Details are light on Batman Arkham Shadow right now. While it's unclear when in the timeline Shadow takes place, it will only be on one of the best VR headsets, that being the Quest 3. If you own a Quest 2, or a VR-Ready PC, or even a PSVR 2 headset, you're out of luck. This game is a Meta Quest 3 exclusive.
As announced via a Meta blog post, the game is being developed by Oculus Studios and Camouflaj, the latter being known for its Iron Man VR and Republique VR, the only information we have to go on is a small teaser trailer. There's no gameplay here, unfortunately, but it heavily implies that Ratcatcher will be the main villain of the game (hint: there's a lot of rats in the trailer and promotional art).
While Arkham Shadow's placement in the Arkham series isn't confirmed just yet, we also have some theories based on what we've seen. Firstly, Ratcatcher is referenced in Asylum and City, and while it appears he was thrown into Penguin's pool to be eaten by Tiny the shark, he apparently survives. However, in the Arkham Knight comics, Ratcatcher is tased to death by the Arkham Knight, so it's unlikely Shadow takes place after Knight (unless the comics are announced as non-canon).
However, in the promotional artwork for Arkham Shadow, the suit is less militarized and plated than Bruce's armor in Knight, but it looks vaguely familiar to the Origins' suit, so it could be set around the same time - likely when Ratcatcher started his criminal lifestyle and prior to his arrest and incarceration at Arkham Asylum.
Of course, these are all just theories right now. We'll have to wait for the Batman Arkham Shadow release date before we can find out when the game is set, with the Quest 3 exclusive launching later in 2024. However, we should see more information about the game during Summer Game Fest.