Last week, GameStop essentially let a really big cat out of the bag for Batman: Arkham Knight, announcing an exclusive Red Hood story pack for the game. For those who are unaware, there will be an exclusive Red Hood Story Pack for gamers who pre-order the game at GameStop. This feature is an addition to the standard pre-order bonus downloadable content story pack for Harley Quinn. I was very happy to hear that Red Hood would be included in the game because Red Hood and the story of Jason Todd are perfect for the Batman: Arkham franchise.
Initially, I was a little disappointed to hear that Harley Quinn was the pre-order bonus playable character for the game. It sounded like she would have a story mission to supplement the game–similar to Catwoman in Batman: Arkham City. I like Quinn as a character, but I was not as interested in playing as her for this installment. Quinn was already a major character in previous games, and I wanted to see other characters incorporated into the story gameplay. For me, Red Hood is just what the doctor ordered.
In the comics, the modern iteration of Red Hood was the resurrected Jason Todd, who previously wore the mantle of Robin as Batman’s sidekick. In the seminal 1980s story “A Death in the Family,” Joker murdered Jason Todd. This death haunted Batman for many years before Todd’s eventual return from the dead. After coming back to life, Todd adopted the mantle of Red Hood. Ironically, Red Hood was Joker’s alter-ego before he fell into a vat of chemicals and became The Joker. A major theme of this game is what happens to a man’s loved ones when he goes to war. So the question is, what role does Red Hood play in the game? Based on the promotional image released by GameStop, this version of the Red Hood is Jason Todd. In the comics, Red Hood is a more ruthless and brutal vigilante whose philosophy of crime-fighting is extremely different from Batman’s. The two clash over these ideals.
Since the news of Red Hood as a character in the game is now official, I now believe Red Hood can be eliminated as a potential suspect for the Arkham Knight antagonist. Obviously, the presence of Red Hood as a playable character in a story DLC means there is no way he can also be the Arkham Knight. Then again, I could be completely off about that, and this could just be another red herring to throw fans off.
Before fans freak out about another exclusive pre-order bonus character, I am fairly certain this character will be available later for other gamers. Red Hood is simply just a free pre-order bonus character for GameStop only. Batman: Arkham Knight will be available in 2015 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows PC.
If arkham knight is going to stay true to the comics it might have to be rated M