Batman
Arcade
This is a game that I missed out on as a kid. I went to a lot of different pizza restaurants, bowling alleys, and arcades back when this game would have been popular. Never once saw it anywhere. And believe me, I would have pounced on this game if I'd seen it out in the wild. I was a huge Batman fan growing up.
I finally heard about this game here in 2026. I don't know how it slipped off my radar for 35 years, but it did. As soon as I heard about this game, I knew I had to play it. And that is what brings us here.
Before we go any further, I just want to point out that this is now my 18th review of a Batman game. It is probably one of my most reviewed franchises ever. I wonder if I'll ever run out of Batman games to play?
Story:
This game does a fairly good job at following the plot of the 1989 Batman movie. You progress through a series of levels, each representing action scenes from the film. The first level is the city streets, then there's a Batmobile level, then Axis Chemicals, where you knock Jack Napier into the toxic waste, then the museum, where you rescue Vicki Vale, etc. It all ends atop the bell tower, where the Joker is knocked off the edge to his doom.
There's short cutscenes that push the plot along. The soundtrack does a very good job at bringing the feel of the movie to life. Of all the Batman games based off the first movie I've played, this is one of the most authentic to the movie.
Gameplay:
As much as I hate to say it, the gameplay is the weakest thing about this game. The controls are stiff and sluggish. Your attacks are unpredictable. Enemies hit you before you have a chance to react. It starts out easy enough, but it gets tough super quick. Within the first few levels, gameplay devolves into simple trial and error. Play a level a few times, fail, then get the hang of it and push forward.
Action takes place from a side-scrolling perspective. The basic idea is that you start on the left side of the screen, and you must make it to the end on the right side of the screen. Along the way you punch enemies and jump from ledge to ledge. You can pick up projectile weapons like batarangs and gas bombs. Toss them ahead of you to take out enemies as they appear on the edge of the screen. Like I said, they can hit you before you have the chance to react. So going on the offensive is the way to go.
There are similarities to a few other games, such as Shinobi or Rolling Thunder. You can jump up and down between ledges (ala Rolling Thunder) to avoid or attack enemies above and below. When armed with projectiles, you switch to melee attacks against your enemies when you attack them up close, ala Shinobi.
Most stages offer multiple different paths to get through them. My strategy mainly consisted of trying to bum rush my way to the end of them. But like I said earlier, the game gets tough quick. You have to remember where enemies are and learn from your mistakes. Trial and error will get you through this entire game in less than thirty minutes. It's not a long game at all. But it will take your quarters.
In addition to the side-scrolling levels, there are some driving and flying levels as well. I don't know if these are bonus levels or what. If they are regular levels, I never died during any of them. They are super easy. I thought they were a nice, fun diversion from the side-scrolling action. Gave the game some variety. And you can't have a Batman game based on the '89 film without giving the Batmobile an appearance.
Graphics:
This is a good looking game. It really captures the look and feel of the Michael Keaton film. The characters are well designed and well animated. Everyone is recognizable to their movie counterpart (although Bob is questionable). The backgrounds and level settings look really good, too.
Graphically, the Batmobile and Batwing stages steal the show. I can only imagine how awestruck I would have been as a kid, walking into an arcade and seeing this on the big screen. They truly look great.
Sound:
The game looks the part and it sounds the part. I love the chiptune rendition of the music from the movie. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think I've played a Keaton-era Batman game that actually uses the music from the game? Regardless, it sounds awesome. There are definitely some songs from this game going on my gaming music playlist.
The rest of the audio is fairly forgettable, although I do appreciate the voice clips they insert into the game. They sound tinny and horrible, but in a charming way that makes me smile. I just wish they'd found a way to put "never rub another man's rhubarb!" into the game.
Overall:
I really, really wanted to like this game. It looks the part, it sounds the part. It definitely captures the spirit of the '89 film in a way that no other game I've played has. If I was grading on effort, this game would get an A.
Unfortunately, it's just kind of a drag to play. It really pains me to say that, too. Because it looks and sounds so great. But what good is a game if it isn't any fun? Well, maybe I'm going too far. It is fun. It is playable. The controls are a little jank, but you get used to them soon enough. It's a perfectly serviceable game. What is frustrating is that it could have been so much better.
This game earns the mark of "slightly above average" for me. And to be honest with you, it's lucky to get even that. It wants to be Rolling Thunder or Shinobi, but with a Batman skin. And if it had been that, this would have been an amazing game. But it falls short in the gameplay area for me. Too jank, too luck based. Too much trial and error. And it's super short. If it wasn't called Batman, I wouldn't have given this game a second thought. So it should take this C+ and run before I change my mind.
THE GRADE:
C+
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