It was disclosed by Gotham Knights‘ creative director Patrick Redding to Screen Rant that before settling on its four primary protagonists, Warner Bros. Games, Montréal examined various Batman family heroes. As a result, the four DC heroes in Gotham Knights are Nightwing, Batgirl, Robin, and Red Hood.
Everyone in the story has a different connection to Bruce Wayne and processes his death in their manner.
The Bat Family is Batman’s inner circle of friends and allies in DC Comics. This includes Batman’s prominent allies like Robin and heroes in Gotham and beyond who know him or have some other relationship with the Dark Knight. Many members of the Bat Family are “legacy heroes” or have been given the Bat Mantle by previous family members.
The most well-known case is Robin, whose identity has been held by Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake, and Damian Wayne, among others; however, in addition to Barbara Gordon of the Gotham Knights, there have been multiple characters who have assumed the identity of Batgirl; the most notable of these is Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown. Jason Todd’s appropriation of the Red Hood persona from the criminal underworld, where the Joker presumably utilized it before his horrifying transformation at ACE Chemicals, is also a legacy in its own right.
Patrick Redding, the game’s creative director, spoke with Screen Rant about the development team at WB Games Montréal’s process for selecting the game’s playable characters. During the conversation, Redding discussed the team’s rapid decision that none of the heroes will become the next Batman and the influences for the Knights’ default looks. When questioned by a reporter why Gotham Knights settled on Dick, Barbara, Tim, and Jason as a quartet, Redding said
Although Redding didn’t name names, it’s safe to assume that the team contemplated including well-known Batman allies who were left out of Gotham Knights. There are Easter eggs and references to characters from the Bat Family, although it’s unclear whether these will lead somewhere.
