Legacy of the Dark Knight is already doing Zack Snyder dirty

Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is shooting up my anticipated games list. Outside of 007 First Light, it takes a lot to reach those heights, but TT Games’ new Batman adventure is sending all the right signals. The long-running Lego-focused studio knows the Caped Crusader well, and I know it deeply respects the character’s legacy. But why do I feel like my favorite version, from Zack Snyder‘s divisive DC Extended Universe, is already getting sidelined?

I’m on the ground at Gamescom right now, and outside of my coverage you’ll see on Pocket Tactics soon, I need to carve out time to play Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight.  That Opening Night Live trailer is all I can think about right now. As I stand mingling with other journalists during JBL’s rooftop mixer, a TV screen tucked in the corner flickers, and there he is: Robert Pattinson’s Batman. My eyebrows raise, and as soon as that Arkham-influenced combat lands, I know there is a potential banger here already.

However, the trailer’s dedication to Christopher Nolan and Matt Reeves’ take on the hero raises my concerns. Sure, TT Games promises the new Batman game will span his entire multimedia history, letting us know there will be some deep cuts along the way. With Danny Elfman’s theme cascading over the footage, it’s safe to assume that Tim Burton and Michael Keaton’s Batman is set to appear. After all, we already have a spin of the iconic “let’s get nuts” scene, briefly depicted. What I need, though, is some Ben Affleck goodness.

Zack Snyder’s DC Comics stint is both hated and loved by many. I’m on the latter side, finding his deeply grandiose and mythologized outlook on these heroes fascinating. I could go on about Henry Cavill’s Superman for days, but Affleck’s grizzled, Frank Miller-coded Batman is unlike any other version we’ve seen on the big screen. He’s a bulldozing brawler, seasoned by decades of brutal nights in Gotham City. He’s lost Dick Grayson at the hands of The Joker and Harley Quinn, and in the future, he’ll lead a rag-tag band of heroes and villains to reverse Darkseid’s reign over Earth.

The warehouse fight in Dawn of Justice still gives me chills, taking me back to the midnight IMAX showing in March 2016. If TT Games is showing the guts to bring Pattinson’s notably grim universe to the realms of Lego on Nintendo Switch 2, surely Snyder’s world isn’t off the table.

The lack of any direct mention or reference doesn’t fill me with confidence, though. Since James Gunn and Peter Safran’s ascension to the co-CEO seats of DC Studios, Snyder’s material is talked about in hushed tones, as if it’s a bad memory no one wants to remember. For some people, that much is true.

Zack Snyder and Ben Affleck’s time in the DC Universe deserves some attention. I’m all for mocking some of the self-serious narrative beats and controversial decisions. The Lego Batman Movie got to the punch first in that regard. I’ll happily see a rendition of the extremely hated Martha scene in Lego.

But I also want the best of Affleck’s Batman, whether it is his battle against Superman, teaming up with the Justice League, or battling Parademons for the fate of the universe. All of that screams fun set pieces, and if there’s one thing Lego games need, it’s fun.

What do you think about Batman’s next Lego outing? Join the Pocket Tactics Discord server and let us know your thoughts.