LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is the most fun I’ve had playing a video game this year. I’ve made my way through the various LEGO Batman games ever since Traveler’s Tales put out the original one in 2008, but Legacy of the Dark Knight really takes things to the next level (no pun intended).

The game is a beautiful love letter to the Dark Knight’s various movies, with a story that fuses plot elements from the films of Tim Burton, Joel Schumacher, Christopher Nolan and Matt Reeves. There are also cool nods to Batman: The Animated Series, Batman: Arkham Asylum and comics like Batgirl: Year One. You can tell this was a game made with love by Batman fans for Batman fans, and it’s packed full of cute references, fun surprises and clever Easter eggs. Here are some of my personal favorites.
 

  • When you’re in Nanda Parbat you will run into a few yaks and the game lets you pet them. Go ahead and pet the yaks as many times as you want. There is nothing stopping you.
  • The combat system from the Arkham games is back! The perching, the sneak attacks and the combos! The silent takedowns were always my favorite, and it’s fun to smash the bad guys into LEGO studs.
  • This game gives us an open world Gotham City and it’s absolutely breathtaking. I’ve literally spent hours exploring the various alleys, scaling buildings and stopping various crimes.
  • Pay attention to the Bat-Signal throughout the game. It changes depending on what chapter you’re in. For example, Chapter Two is heavily inspired by the Tim Burton movies, so the Bat-Signal looks like it did in those films.
  • If Batman sits on a throne in the game, the character will sometimes say, “The hierarchy of power in Gotham is about to change.” Now there’s a quote that will Rock your world.
  • I saw a poster for the Flips in the Iceberg Lounge. The Flips were a teeny bopper surfer band that the Teen Titans helped way back in 1965’s Showcase #59. Now that’s a deep cut!
  • While exploring Gotham, I found a junkyard called Salvage Maroni, a clever reference to one of the city’s longtime mob bosses.
  • There is a mission in Chapter One that requires Batman to dance his heart out. You can do the iconic Batusi. Folks, this might be the greatest Batman game ever created.
  • Pay close attention to the underwater section in Carmine Falcone’s hideout and you’ll find the pineapple home of a familiar cartoon sponge and the tiki home of his grumpy squid neighbor.
  • Remember the scene in Batman Returns when Michelle Pfeiffer used her whip to knock the heads off the department store mannequins? The game lets you recreate that moment when you play as Catwoman in Chapter Two.
  • By the way, when you’re in the elevator at Shreck’s Department Store, an elevator music version of the Batman theme plays.
  • There’s a creepy animal animatronic in Arctic World. When Batman sees it, he remarks that he wouldn’t want to work the night shift there. If you don’t understand that reference, ask your kids.
  • You can buy Lucius Fox’s bed from Bat-Mite’s store (don’t ask me how he got that), and the description for it reads, “Get busy living or get busy sleeping.” This is a playful reference to one of actor Morgan Freeman’s other iconic roles.
  • There’s a mission at the Flugelheim Museum (as seen in Tim Burton’s Batman), and throughout the level there are boomboxes playing Prince’s “Partyman.” You get a bonus if you destroy all the boomboxes, but then “Partyman” will stop playing, so you need to ask yourself how badly you want the bonus.
  • The Flugelheim has a few iconic Batman covers on display in Lego form, except Batman is subbed out for the Grey Ghost.
  • The Court of Owls is always watching. As you explore the open world Gotham City, you’ll find hidden Owl and Talon statues, graffiti referencing the Court and flyers with cryptic messages.
  • There’s a mission in Chapter Three that recreates Two-Face’s circus attack from Batman Forever, but this time Dick’s parents survive. Bruce adopts him anyway, which is kind of wild.
  • Pay attention to the flyers and billboards for Gotham’s various plays. Some of my favorites are Phantasm of the Opera and Mary Louise Dahl as Baby Doll in Love Me.
  • The opening cutscene for Chapter Four is a shot for shot remake of the Batman: The Animated Series intro sequence, only with Robin added. The Shirley Walker score is used, and every single detail you can imagine is recreated.
  • While exploring Gotham, I found Loeb & Sale’s Comic Store, which was named after Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, the creative team behind Batman: The Long Halloween. Their display window has LEGO versions of iconic Batman comics and one of DC’s old logos.
  • If you’re playing on the PlayStation 5, when you unlock Batgirl, you’ll earn a trophy called, “Let’s see what Batgirl can do.” This was the iconic line Barbara Gordon said after suiting up in the Batman: The Animated Series episode, “Shadow of the Bat, Part One.”
  • While searching for the Joker in Chapter Five, you run into a decoy Joker who looks exactly like Cesar Romero, complete with the mustache.
  • Batman does the famous Akira Slide during a Chapter Five cutscene. Nice.
  • This video game isn’t just a tribute to Batman’s legacy in films and comics, but video games as well. There’s a mission in Chapter Five that recreates the opening sequence of Batman: Arkham Asylum.
  • Speaking of the legacy of Batman video games, one of the unlockable costumes is the purple 8-bit Batsuit from the 1990 NES Batman game.
  • In Chapter Six, Bane can be heard addressing the citizens of Gotham City, and he expresses extra disdain for “Todd from Smoothie Shack.” This is a reference to a gag from the first season of the Harley Quinn animated series. I love how specific this was. You can tell the developers are true fans.
  • And finally, one of my favorite surprises of the game, there’s a billboard advertising Gotham Radio After Hours with Conroy, the voice of Gotham’s night. This is a tribute to the late Kevin Conroy. Words can’t express his impact on Batman’s legacy, and I love that he has a presence in this LEGO version of Gotham City.

And this is just what I’ve discovered so far. I still have bonuses to unlock, areas of the city to explore and more surprises to find. LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is a treasure trove of Easter eggs, and something tells me I’ve only scratched the surface.


LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is now available for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC. Look for it this September on Nintendo Switch 2.

Joshua Lapin-Bertone writes about TV, movies and comics for DC.com, is a regular contributor to the Couch Club and writes our monthly Batman column, "Gotham Gazette." Follow him on Bluesky at @joshualapinbertone and on X at @TBUJosh.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Joshua Lapin-Bertone and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.