Suicide Squad game delayed to 2023, here's 3 Batman games you can play now

Warner Bros. and developer Rocksteady Games have confirmed that Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has been delayed to 2023.

The action-adventure video game that stars Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang and King Shark was originally set to release later this year but will now not launch until Spring 2023. The game will be set in Metropolis and will see the Suicide Squad attempting to stop Brainiac and the brainwashed Justice League members, including Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and more.

The last game to arrive from Rocksteady was Batman: Arkham Knight in June 2015, meaning it will almost be eight years since the studio has released a new video game. It did, however, release the Batman: Arkham VR title for PSVR in October 2016. A brilliant 2-hour experience if I do say so myself.

A report (via Bloomberg) that Suicide Squad was to be delayed to 2023 surfaced in February, so this was expected. Another Batman spinoff video game, Gotham Knights, starring Batgirl, Robin, Nightwing and Red Hood is still set to launch in October later this year. So, thankfully, we won't have to wait that long to dive back into Gotham. 

"We've made the difficult decision to delay Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League to Spring 2023," wrote Rocksteady Games creative director and co-founder Sefton Hill (via Twitter). 

"I know a delay is frustrating but that time is going into making the best game we can. I look forward to bringing the chaos to Metropolis together. Thanks for your patience."

The good news is that there are already plenty of fantastic Batman games out there to play in the meantime, so here are a few suggestions to keep you busy:

Batman: The Telltale Series 

Telltale Games might be most known for its Wolf Among Us and The Walking Dead episodic adventures but its Batman outing still deserves some praise. Split into five two-hour or so episodes (there's also a second season for those that are keen), Batman: The Telltale Series puts you in the shoes of both Bruce Wayne and Batman, with every decision being vital to how the story plays out. For anyone that enjoyed Robert Pattinson in The Batman and how the detective element was integral to the narrative, this is the closest comparison in video game form.  

Lego DC Super-Villains 

While not a Batman game outright, the Caped Crusader does play a big part in Lego DC Super-Villains. Who doesn't like playing as the bad guy now and then, anyway? With a stellar voice cast – including Mark Hamill as the Joker and Tara Strong as Harley (who will reprise the role in Suicide Squad) – the action-adventure lets you explore a 'bricktastic' open world Gotham and Metropolis as literally hundreds of DC villains. If you've played a Lego game before, you'll be familiar with the mechanics. Fun for people from eight to 80.   

Batman: Arkham Trilogy 

Look, I couldn't pick one. These games are the crème de la crème of superhero games with the first game in the series, Batman: Arkham Asylum, one of my favourite games of all time. No joke. I put this game down as the reason why I fell in love with the mythology of the Bat.

All three action-adventure games are superb, featuring an overarching story that is a must-play for fans of the character, and just fans of video games in general. While we've already waited six years for Rocksteady's next game, I'd wait a decade to see what it will make. The studio has earned it with these blockbuster experiences. 

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League will now launch in Spring 2023 across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X / S and Microsoft Windows.

Warner Bros. and PlayStation also recently held a Hogwarts Legacy State of Play event that showcased 14-minutes of new PS5 gameplay for the upcoming Harry Potter video game.