Batman


 * This article is about the Fighter. For other uses, see Bat (Disambiguation).

Batman is a Fighter from the DC Universe in MultiVersus.

Origin
Following the success of Superman comic books in the late-30s, the editors of DC Comics (then known as National Comics Publications) requested more superheroes to their titles. Writers Bob Kane and Bill Finger came up with the idea of a "Bat-Man" after the former drew a rough sketch of the character described as looking like "[...] Superman with kind of ...reddish tights [...] boots ...no gloves, no gauntlets ...with a small domino mask, [...] [and] two stiff wings." With Finger adding several touch ups to the character, such as getting rid of the costume's red highlights, the wings, and giving him a cowl. Batman's aristocratic personality, along with his detective skills, were inspired by characters from their era, such as The Scarlet Pimpernel, Zorro (with 1920's The Mask of Zorro cited as a major influence), Dick Tracy, and Sherlock Holmes, amongst others.

Batman (real name: Bruce Wayne) is one of the three most popular superheroes from the DC universe, alongside Superman and Wonder Woman. While Batman has had various reincarnations and reinterpretations across DC 's history, his most well-known backstory revolves around Bruce becoming a superhero in order to avenge his parents after witnessing them getting robbed and shot to death while he was still 8 years old and enforce justice upon Gotham City.

According to the main lead writer for MultiVersus, Batman's portrayal in the game is an original interpretation that combines both his New and Prime Earth incarnations.

Official Biography
"The World’s Greatest Detective. He is the night. He is Batman."

The Caped Crusader and defender of Gotham City known only as Batman was born the night that a young Bruce Wayne saw his parents gunned down in front of him. Since that day, he has pledged to battle crime and protect the people of Gotham City. Despite having no superpowers or extraordinary abilities, his dedication, willpower, and intelligence have helped him stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the universe’s greatest heroes. His arsenal of cutting-edge gadgets funded by his family fortune doesn’t hurt, either.

Default Variant
Batman's default look doesn't seem to have a specific basis, instead, being simply an amalgamation based on most classical depictions of the character.

Gameplay
Batman is a bruiser-type character who specializes in mix-ups and spacing to throw his opponents off-balance. Many of Batman's normal attacks apply Weakened, a stackable debuff that causes opponents to take increased damage from all sources. This, combined with his amazing juggling potential and high mobility, makes Batman a deadly foe capable of quickly racking-up damage, especially if paired with certain Perks, such as Hit 'Em While They're Down and Snowball Effect. In addition, Batman is capable of gliding, giving him fantastic recovery.

The Batarang, his neutral attack, is the bread-and-butter of his gameplay. The projectile is fast, can be aimed, has high priority, and can be easily incorporated in Batman's combos, as well as to keep his opponent constantly on the edge. Another one of Batman's most important tools is his Side Special, Bat-Grapple, which can be used offensively, to quickly close the gap between Batman and his target, as well defensively, such as recovering.

Batman's Smoke Bomb plays a pivotal role in his kit. It provides temporal invisibility to him and his ally, which grants brief invulnerability and makes projectiles miss, in addition to make the dodge meter recharge faster. Unique to Batman is that, while invisible, he gains Hasten, which increases his movement speed, and also grants him a buff which makes his next attack apply 3 stacks of Weakened. Lastly, enemies inside his smoke bomb are slowed.

To offset Batman's powerful and versatile kit, he's among the lightest characters in the game, despite being classified as a Bruiser. In addition, his Bat-Grapple attack can be dodged by his opponents with proper timing, allowing them to retaliate. In addition, none of Batman's attacks are imbued with armor, which further contributes for his vulnerability. Lastly, opponents with disjointed hitboxes, such as Finn and Wonder Woman, can easily outrange Batman's melee attacks.

Overall, Batman is a potent fighter that can be essentially played as an Assassin, especially given his high damage potential. His kit is loaded with utility through his many gadgets, and, while he is not very cooldown dependent, his few cooldowns (namely Batarang and Smoke Bomb) should be used carefully and thoughtfully. His juggling potential through his Side Attack, Up Attack and Up Special is among the best in the game, and can easily capitallize against opponents with poor air mobility (such as the Iron Giant and Reindog).

In 2v2, Batman finds the best in allies that already have high damage output, to exploit his ability to apply Weakness. He excels with characters that can apply other types of debuff to further increase the percentage rack-up, such as Superman, Harley Quinn, and Taz. He can also be paired with projectile specialists, such as Tom & Jerry and Velma, to provide cover fire and circumvent Batman's more vulnerable aspects. Wonder Woman is also a powerful partner as she can provide much needed armor to Batman.

Trivia

 * MultiVersus marks Kevin Conroy's penultimate performance as Batman before his passing on November 10th, 2022, with his actual last performance being in the upcoming Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League video game.
 * Oddly enough, in the initial reveal trailer for the game Batman was listed as an Assassin, despite being classified as a Bruiser both on the website and in-game.
 * This makes Batman the first Fighter to have had his archetype changed.
 * Batman, Harley Quinn, The Man in Black, Morty, and Rick are, currently, the only Fighters in the game who can swear if the player has toggled the "Mature Language" option on in the Settings menu.

External

 * Batman on Wikipedia.
 * Batman (Bruce Wayne) and Bruce Wayne (New Earth) on DC Database.