With Batman: Arkham City, the second game in the Batman: Arkham Trilogy, Rocksteady finally allowed players to freely soar above the streets of Gotham, providing the full Batman experience that we didn't quite get with its predecessor. The Switch port provides the biggest positive shock of the package with much better performance than we anticipated for such a big, busy open world.

City's Gotham affords wannabe bats the space and time to observe and prep from range, picking enemies off from the shadows and patrolling rooftops with a scowl on their faces. This is the Batman simulator we'd only dared dream of and a step up from the smaller scale of Asylum in terms of how it allows you to fully embrace the fantasy of laying the smackdown on an entire city full of goons.

Greatly expanded side activities that bring a huge roster of Gotham's finest villains into play, upgraded Riddler challenges, improved and refined combat and, of course, some of the best acting and writing in video games, ensured that City was a winner and with all previously released DLC in the mix here, this is a game that'll give you countless hours of premium grade bat-action on its own.

If we had to pick holes in City, or just explain why Asylum is still our overall favourite of the three, going so big made it a little harder to get as gripped by the narrative. There are almost too many distractions at times, and it can all feel a little disjointed and diluted as a result. A minor issue in the grand scheme of things, but this one takes second place in the story stakes for us, although it does have much-improved combat and traversal so it all balances out nicely in the end.

To criticise a slight dilution of the narrative here is to ignore all the positives that a more open-world setting brings. To perch atop a parapet and consider your options, to take the time to allow the night rain to drip down your mask as you prepare for battle, this is such a crucial part of the Batman power fantasy and City fully delivered on it. Swooping around above these streets never grows old and, with best-in-class combat and a who's who of Gotham's finest to take on, this is still one of the best action games out there and the standout game in terms of performance in this somewhat compromised Switch collection.

Arkham City can still stand shoulder to shoulder with any modern AAA open-world game, and even though you've got to contend with some unfortunate stutters from time to time, and it doesn't look nearly as good here as it does on other platforms, this is still the full-fat experience running rather well all things considered. If you've yet to experience this one it's another must-play.