Who is the Arkham Knight?

"Always defending the weak and the helpless. That's what I like about you. You're predictable. And that's why we're gonna win. We know your move before you do. We know how you think!"

- The Arkham Knight

As any comic book fan knows, a great Batman story needs a great villain. Admittedly, the Dark Knight isn’t an easy hero to stand against, but Rocksteady Studios has made some wise picks in their game series. For Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, the team turned to the Joker to drive the events, but for the upcoming finale, they’re headed in a completely new direction.

As it turns out, ‘Batman: Arkham Knight’ isn’t just a reference to Batman’s pseudonym – it’s the name of a new villain created specifically for Rocksteady’s final chapter in their Arkham saga. The studio is keeping coy for now, but it’s clear - Bruce Wayne’s new foe will pose a challenge that the Joker never could.

An antithetical version of Batman is all we can say about the Arkham Knight. He wears a militaristic Batsuit and an Arkham symbol on his chest and seems to have an unknown connection with the Dark Knight.

The only information Oracle manages to give Batman is that his code name is the only thing intelligence sources can agree on and that he works with a Venezuelan black ops team. He is fanatically dedicated to besting and killing Batman for unknown reasons, displaying keen observation and insight into the Dark Knight's tactics. To this end he has allied with Scarecrow, intending to use a wave of Fear Gas to destroy not just Batman but Gotham as well, invading the city with his own private army of operatives and drones.

In the ‘ACE Chemical Infiltration’ trailer the Arkham Knight uses these and an attack chopper to provide protection while Scarecrow finishes perfecting his new toxin. He abandons it temporarily to face off with the Batman, instructing his men to aim at the less armored sections of Batsy’s suit, while the latter is attempting to rescue trapped workers. As Batman attempts to leave with the last worker, the A Knight forces a showdown between his chopper and the new Batmobile.

The Arkham Knight has also set up check points around Gotham City (according to details released in the Edge Magazine) making the ground a dangerous place for Batman to cross. The Caped Crusader will have to clear out these nests, presumably as part of a side-mission.

The game is set to release on Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 on June 23 worldwide. And as per the new reports, it will eat about 50GB of your hard disk. There are a dozen or two fan theories stating that the Arkham Knight is the Joker himself, some even say he could be versions of Robin - Jason Todd (who became Red Hood), Tim Drake (the existing Robin of franchisee is an unlikely A Knight since he has been the biggest ally to Batman so far) or even Damian Wayne (son of Batman).

We can keeping guessing until the finale to the best Batman game franchise releases.