Why the Joker Season in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League Falls Flat

The buzz surrounding Rocksteady’s ‘Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’ felt like the thrill of reuniting with a long-lost friend, especially for die-hard fans eager to dive back into the Arkhamverse with a fresh perspective.

man in black suit jacket — Photo by Ryunosuke Kikuno on Unsplash

But as we have learned, reunions are not always happy times. Unfortunately, the Joker season of the game hasn’t done anything to revitalize the title. Shall we cut through the confusion?

The Joker season promised us a continuation of a story that, to put it kindly, left everyone on the edge of their seats from the very beginning. But what we saw instead was a blank so huge that it could as well have been the black emptiness of space. A mound of grinding, a plot continuation that was, well, nonexistent, and a gap in material. This time around, Rocksteady, a studio renowned for its masterful storytelling, appeared to have fallen short.

The first hiccup came with the unlocking mechanism for our beloved Joker.

In stark contrast to other games that seamlessly introduce new characters, we were required to grind our way to Season Rank 35 just to glimpse the clown prince of crime, which transformed an exciting journey into a tedious chore that stripped away the thrill of discovery.

The launch’s lack of new objectives hit hard, making the already daunting grind feel even more disheartening, as players are stuck facing the same Incursions under different labels, and even the much-anticipated Brainiac boss fight turned out to be a recycled Green Lantern encounter, lacking any creativity or surprise.

Joker sitting on stairs — Photo by Daniel Lincoln on Unsplash

Perhaps the most perplexing aspect of this season is the Joker’s story content, which left players scratching their heads about missed opportunities and expectations.

Only two instances of what was labeled as ‘story content’ were provided: a brief rescue cutscene and a motion comic at the start, leaving fans disappointed due to the absence of meaningful interactions between the Joker and Harley or any substantial Joker-centric missions.

Even after he’s unlocked, Joker’s role doesn’t elevate the game; despite a strong character design, he doesn’t bring anything fresh to the table, and the ongoing repetitiveness of missions, despite his involvement, only underscores the broader issue of content scarcity, leaving players to wonder what could have been with the addition of new enemies.

The community’s response has been swift and unforgiving.

The consensus is clear: this was not the rebirth that the game desperately needed, with critiques ranging from claims of a cynical cash grab to lamentations over the squandered potential of a team like Rocksteady, highlighting the irony of introducing the anarchistic Joker into such a monotonous and uninspired game environment.

Rocksteady’s decision to mask the Joker behind a grind alongside the dearth of new content at the season’s launch illustrates a troubling direction for ‘Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League,’ which is as disappointing as it is disheartening.

The Joker season was meant to revitalize a game plagued by issues from the beginning; instead, it became a case study in missed opportunities and a stark lesson in mismanagement of a live service game, revealing that mere promises of future updates won’t bridge the gap between expectations and reality.

Ultimately, the Joker season serves as a sobering reminder of the challenges facing the gaming industry today, where the fundamental elements that make gaming captivating—engaging narratives, innovative gameplay, and genuine surprises—are overshadowed by the rush to monetize beloved IPs and the allure of live service models. As players, we hope this moment acts as a wake-up call for the industry at large, prompting us to wait and wonder what might have been.