Rocksteady

Batman: Arkham is, in a great many ways, a tremendous achievement in the gaming medium. When Rocksteady's first entry in the four-game-series launched in 2009, boasting a gorgeous combination of metroid-style exploration and classic third-person combat, it proved to be redefining, and rightly went on to launch a franchise of its own.

Today, Batman: Arkham is one of the most recognisable depictions of the Batman mythos, with the series having branched out into film, various merchandise, and even the comics themselves. It's a powerhouse of a brand, but with that in mind, where has it been for the last three years? Not a peep has been heard from Warner Bros. Montreal - the current custodians of the Arkham license - and Rocksteady are widely presumed to be working on a game centred around the Man of Steel himself, Superman.

The simple truth of the matter, however, is that Arkham isn't the darling it once was. Finding consensus amongst the series' fans, who regularly debate the quality of Arkham Origins and Arkham Knight, is nigh-impossible - with the final two instalments of the franchise having courted controversy for a whole host of different reasons. Once you consider the development troubles that have ostensibly blighted WB Games in the development of another Bat-title as well, one does have to ask the question: where did it all go wrong?

With open worlds, behind the scenes changes and a franchise gone AWOL, it's time to discuss how one of gaming's biggest franchises lost all of its momentum.

*SPOILERS FOR ARKHAM ASYLUM, ARKHAM CITY, ARKHAM ORIGINS AND ARKHAM KNIGHT FOLLOW*