Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League finally shows off gameplay

Rocksteady has shown off 15 minutes of new gameplay for its follow-up to the Batman: Arkham series

It's been eight years since Rocksteady released Batman: Arkham Knight, and we've barely seen anything of its next game. But the time for showing only cinematics is over, thanks to an extended look at Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League at the PlayStation State of Play. 

Kill the Justice League is exactly what it sounds like. In up to four-player co-op, you take on the role of King Shark, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and Harley Quinn in a bid to take down heroes like Batman, Superman, and The Flash, who have been corrupted by Brainiac. 

Set five years after the end of Arkham Knight, the mission shown sees the Squad taking on a corrupted version of The Flash in an attempt to rescue Lex Luthor. Each of the antiheroes has their own movement and combat abilities, and there's a focus on third-person shooting over melee combat this time around. Combat is built around chaining together kills to keep up the momentum. 

Harley is the most acrobatic, moving like Spider-Man with a graceful grapple mechanic. Deadshot uses a jetpack to speed around and hover before landing a shot with one of his many firearms. King Shark is a brute who excels at melee, but can also do crowd control with his gatling gun. Captain Boomerang is all about getting in and out quickly with a Speedforce Gauntlet. 

It's clearly designed to be played in co-op, but bots will fill in any empty slots if you want to go it alone. Playing solo, you can freely switch between the characters as you want. 

The squad is assisted by characters like The Penguin and a range of original characters who will help them with their loadouts. You can also get villain-themed gear sets that let you imbue yourself with the abilities of other DC villains, such as Bane. 

Rather than the gritty and dark alleyways of Gotham, the action takes place in Metropolis. 

The game will also feature the late actor Kevin Conroy's final performance as the character of Batman, following the actor's death earlier this year. 

There's more than a little whiff of Amazon's The Boys to what we've seen so far, with plenty of swearing and hyperviolence. Adam West Batman, this ain't. 

At one point in the trailer, it looks like it's all over for the Squad, until Wonder Woman turns up and saves the day. Check out the trailer toward the end of the showcase above. 

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League launches on May 26 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S, and PC.