I love almost all the ideas you posted, Slipping Halo. I particularly like the idea of having a fully accessible Gotham City you can roam, and definitely using the animated series voices.
The only thing I would definitely not want is an obligation to find and retrieve tokens, comic books or any other items that would only occur in a video game. I want a fully immersive experience, where you feel like you're actually the Batman all the way through.
All the things you could gain through collecting tokens, I know you could earn those through other means more in keeping with the regular routine of the Batman.
Here are my suggestions for the essential Batman video game (please at least attempt to read the whole thing, at least eventually):
As I said, I also want a fully functional Gotham City. There would be buildings you can enter, but only certain ones, because the Batman does everything for a reason and therefore would not choose to go into random apartments or places of business, and certainly not in full view of the public. I want the there to be a Reputation system that encourages you to stay out of civilians' sight. If you need to run through a crowd during a crime in progress or any other necessary appearances, you wouldn't be punished, but in general, being seen close-up by uninvolved parties lowers your Legend rating. The system should take into account what's actually going on when deciding whether to punish you or reward you. I want there to be a healthy balance of stealth and theatricality. I want a lighting/shadow engine at least on par with the 'Splinter Cell' games. Much of the game would be based on those game mechanics in fact, but not all. The primary inspirations for the format of this game would be...
'Splinter Cell': stealth, gadgetry and quick access to pertinent information.
'True Crime: Streets of L.A.': the huge, sprawling environment, instant alerts of random street crimes while driving and the ability to leave the perps handcuffed.
'Spider-Man 2': upward mobility (climbing and jump lines) and access to all elevations of the city, from the tallest building to street level.
One thing I would insist be a part of this ultimate Batman game is detective work. Several games already on the market are based on this, but I haven't played any of them, so I can't cite them as inspirations. I'll explain in further detail how this would play out in the game, but I don't have all the details worked out in my head. Just raw concepts. Maybe you guys could help with fleshing out the game mechanics of it, and I don't mean programming, although I'm absolutely devoid of that type of knowledge.
Your base of operations is the Batcave, obviously. Training in the cave's advanced gymnasium/simulator is what will take the place of tokens with regard to rewards as well as increase your effectiveness as a fighter. Id be firm on this one thing: all of the Batman's moves would be available from the very beginning. I never liked the idea of a fully-grown Batman having to relearn moves just because a video game player takes the reins. He knows all his stuff, but we could still be required to build up to full strength by having to practice these moves. The focus of all the game's reward/punishment aspects should be to drive the player to his full potential as the Batman. It's what the Batman would have wanted, right? You are encouraged to master your arsenal of fighting moves as well as every other tactic available to the Batman. The use of gadgets and equipment is also something you'd be rewarded for mastering. Everything is available, but not at full strength. I mean, for the sake of matching it up with the reality of the Batman's world, we could start the story at a point where he's been injured or otherwise out of action for an extended period. This would require him to sharpen all of his skills as well as hone his reputation to its fullest power. In 'Batman Begins,' Ducard told Bruce Wayne that "the training is nothing; the will is everything!" That ain't true. Not for the Batman. His will is tied up with his training, and it's his will that will force you to do a reasonable amount (and I do mean reasonable) of training before you can live it up on the town after sundown.
I don't want the game to be overly difficult. For the most part, common street thugs, regardless of their individual fighting skills or melee weapons, would not be a huge challenge. If you do the bare minimum training for the moves you're using, then you're going to win in close quarters. For gang-ups, you have to train specifically for that before taking down multiple opponents simultaneously. In complicated arenas with environmental obstacles, bare minimum training won't always insure you'll beat the small fry, but there will be ways around that as well.
I know the perfect way to encourage vehemently proper training:
1) The Batman will mentally monologue at great length about the importance of staying at the top of his game if you've gone too long without training and you haven't (re)mastered any or all of your moves. The more you master, the less he gets on your (his) case about it.
2) If you fail in battle against anyone, much less a normal man (meaning something less powerful than Killer Croc or a master fighter of the Batman's caliber, and you haven't completed the training program for the moves you were using (and maybe the moves designated as the next progression up from those moves), the computer will force you to complete the training session before you can leave the cave again.
Training sessions in the Batcave would not be very lengthy at all, and they should be relatively entertaining (Alfred and/or Robin will heckle or cheer you on, depending on how you're doing, to keep the player amused). I realize all this sounds like an extreme amount of emphasis on training to the point that the game wouldn't be any fun, but it really would be less of a pain in the ass than it sounds. Also, once you've mastered the moves and keep a good success rate (which means never being overtaken by a singular average criminal and rarely ever getting overtaken by multiple foes), you don't have to retrain for the specific moves you've mastered. If you do lose a fight, it's back to the cave with you! Not right away (unless you get knocked out), but before the next evening. Training would be done during the day, because you never go out as the Batman during that time. Certain moves aren't good enough for certain classes of enemies, so if you go into a fight unprepared or if you know you'll be going up against someone that the programming knows is too much for your level of expertise, Bruce won't leave you alone until you do what you gotta do. Again, this isn't going to be a huge pain in the ass, but you must put yourself through at least a distant facsimile of what the Batman put himself through to get where he is.
Your equipment:
Batsuit. The Batman wears a fireproof uniform with Kevlar panels to protect against indirect gunshots, stab wounds and blunt trauma. You have a certain amount of protection against most attacks, but don't push your luck. Most gunshots will put you down for the count, and plenty of other types of dangers are ones you can't walk away from. The Batsuit, as well as pretty much everything else in this game, is based on the comics lore, with perhaps the exception of the cape's gliding capabilities.
Cowl. The cowl is protective and as bulletproof as the Kevlar in the body suit. It includes:
Starlite lenses which can provide night vision and thermal vision (turns on and off). These protect the Batman from flashbang grenades and other bright flashes that you or someone else causes as a diversion or stopping tactic.
Directional microphones (turns on and off) that amplify sounds such as speech, machinery noise (like a car getting ready to take off or a bomb ticking), sounds of a struggle occurring, etc. In general, these amplify the noise coming from straight ahead most of all, so turning will change the focus of the amplification.
Radio provides a number of functions. It's your link to your allies such as Alfred and Robin, and it can act like a phone when you need to call Commissioner Gordon. It also acts as a police scanner (turns on and off) so you can hear crime alerts when you're not in the car. It also plays audio information received by bugs planted by the Batman or an ally.
Cape is fireproof and mostly bulletproof. By blocking with the cape, you can avoid major damage from most semi-automatic fire and shotguns fired from a distance, although you'll still feel pain (there will be a pain factor, tied in with a realistic damage system for the Batman).
The cape also acts as a glider, a la 'Batman Begins.' It would probably function the same way the game based on that movie did, rather than how it was used in the movie itself.
The cape can act as a way of extending your reach in a fight, as the tips of the cape scallops contain small lead weights. You could use these to knock a handgun out of the hand of a close by enemy as well as inflict damage to the enemy himself. Perhaps this could automatically come into play when you're confronted with an enemy that is just out of punching range but within the range of a swung cape (a couple extra feet). That seems like the simplest way to make it work.
Scallops on the gloves allow the Batman to block sword attacks and some other melee weapon attacks. The hardened gauntlets also block punches, kicks and even single gunshots at close range if timed properly (although you'd have to be pretty damn confident to even try this, since the cape may not protect against so close a shot and it has to be exact timing for the gauntlet to deflect the bullet).
Utility belt contains several gadgets, weapons and items:
Bat-Grapnel is a hand-held device that fires a sophisticated grappling hook attached to a tough steel cable. It is used for climbing, rappelling, swinging and zip-line descent. Grapnel line can be released in mid-climb, mid-descent, mid-swing, but must be retrieved to reuse. Can grasp any sturdy substance. Descent and ascent speed can be modified during use. Belt capacity = 2 max.
Batarangs are good for disarming enemies, knock-outs (making a person unconscious in one strike), killing light bulbs, activating switches from a distance and other long-term tasks that require or can permit a strong blow from a hard object. Sometimes they can just cause a diversion through the noise they make on impact. Batarangs can return to the Batman's hand if thrown in an open enough space and can be retrieved if found on the ground or lodged in surfaces. Belt capacity = 10 max.
Bat-shuriken are sharp, tiny throwing stars that perform many of the same functions Batarangs do but not all and to lesser degrees most of the time. They can still disarm and shatter light bulbs, but may not activate distant switches with equal success as the Batarangs. They cause pain in almost all enemies they strike (which lessens the enemy's effectiveness and often forces them to pause), but will likely not knock them out unless they are already beaten up pretty badly. They cause noisy diversions if thrown close enough to an enemy. They can be retrieved, but are much more likely to get lost than Batarangs. Belt capacity = 20-25 max.
Bat-bolas are weights (2 or 3 usually) connected by cords that are thrown in order to trip or otherwise incapacitate a target. On striking a target (usually the legs), the weights will cause the cords to wrap themselves about it, tripping the target. A traditional bola is not a friendly weapon. It often damages the target by breaking bones and causing other blunt trauma, but the Batman's are specially designed to cause minimal damage. Belt capacity = 5.
Smoke pellets create a thick fog through which enemies without thermal vision cannot see and which acts as cover. The Batman himself will need more times than not his thermal vision while moving through the smoke. This smoke is harmless, but may cause decreased effectiveness in characters other than the Batman due to the mild coughing in addition to the virtual blindness. They can be used as diversions as well. Belt capacity = 10-15 max.
Tear gas pellets release gas that causes uncontrollable coughing and eye watering (and sometimes vomiting) in anyone who gets caught in it. The Batman's lenses protect him from the eye irritant, but he needs to put on a gas mask if he spends more than 15 or so seconds in an area filled with tear gas. He can hold his breath for over two minutes, but it's also a skin irritant that will reduce the Batman's abilities severely due to pain, so he needs the specially-fitted miniature gas mask to cover his exposed lower face. Belt capacity = 5-10 max.
Gas mask folds down small enough to be carried in utility belt and can be quickly retrieved and placed on the Batman's face when needed. It protects against every kind of gas that could be used by and against you including tear gas, air-born toxins, etc. The gas mask also doubles as a rebreather, for underwater use. Belt capacity = 2; In situations where an enemy is also wearing a gas mask, is immune to gas (like Poison Ivy, I think), or is really good at holding their breath and is fast enough to get a real fight going before the gas' non-respiratory effects get them down (I'm thinking Killer Croc here), they might be able to knock or pull you mask off. In case you lose it, you have another one. Not very likely, but a possibility, and that's what being the Batman is all about.
Flash-bang grenades are small canisters containing phosphorous that cause a loud noise and blinding flash of light when thrown. The Batman is mostly protected from the effects of this device (everything might be a lot brighter, decreasing your visual accuracy for several moments, but you can still see enough to do your job) by his cowl's lenses. Flash-bangs can temporarily incapacitate those looking in the grenades direction when it goes off, but some enemies may blindly swing their arms or melee weapons or blindly fire weapons in anticipation of attack. Thus, it might be a good idea to keep moving while the effects of a flashbang stun your foes and especially to protect (block or shove to the ground) or extract (physically prompt or carry out) any hostages or bystanders. A good set-up for a Batarang disarm or blitz attack. Belt capacity = 5 max.
Plastic explosives can be attached to doors or other objects that you might want to destroy. Remotely detonated. Remember, the Batman doesn't kill, so be damn sure you don't put anyone in mortal dangerous when you use this item. Belt capacity: 5-7 units max.
Bat cuffs in their current incarnation are very durable versions of plastic FlexiCuffs which require nothing short of bolt-cutters or the Batman's own diamond-reinforced rope-cutter to break. The Batman can use these on anyone he wishes to restrain (he can cuff someone to an object like a street lamp, etc. by putting the prisoner's hands on either side of the object and then cuffing them; this would be done automatically in response to the player's commands) after which he can leave the perp where they lay or transport them somewhere else (you can also have them walk on their own power where you tell them to, and if they're smart, they'll do it). Belt capacity = 20-30 max.
Bat-line is a multi-filament nylon cord with very high tensile strength. You can cut it with your rope cutter, so therefore you can use it continuously in several pieces of various lengths to tie up captured crooks. Helpful if you run out of Bat-cuffs (before returning to the Batmobile to restock) but takes longer to bind prisoners. Can be used to hang perps from poles, etc., and to dangle from a height during interrogations. You can attach the Bat-line to a Batarang and use it as a makeshift grappling hook if you've lost your Bat-grapnels or don't wish to use them now (it won't retract or fire automatically the way the grapnel works, but you've got more line and batarangs than grapnels). Belt capacity = unlimited.
Binoculars are self-explanatory, right? They're tiny but mighty and include an integral compass. Belt capacity = 1 max.
Portable GPS system gives you access to a full map of Gotham City. From here, you can check up on tracking devices, plan your travel route and search locations. The Batman already knows every square foot of Gotham City my heart. Through the pause menu, you can access his contemporary memory and you'll get a map almost as complete as the GPS can give you, but the difference is that you can only determine certain things from the Batman's "mental map." The mental map can tell you where you are in the city, the names of every street and landmark, the various gang territories (this is actually something you probably wouldn't see on the GPS, so it's good to check both), and the last known locations of several characters (namely your allies and characters you deal with during game play, as permanent residences and known hangouts for every character is listed in the Bat computer). The GPS is the link between your mental map and the Bat computer. It can mark an address you pick out of the database, it can tell you the exact distance between two points, the quickest route by car between two points (you might decide it's easier to go by car or to go on foot over rooftops or through back alleys), the distance and estimated time of a multi-point route, and other similar advanced functions. It also gives information about the z-axis, telling you how high up you are, how high a tracker is (telling you what floor its on as well, since the GPS knows the layout of all the building in Gotham). It can tell you how fast a tracker is moving in any direction as well. It's an awesome device.
To be continued...
