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Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League looks a lot like Marvel’s Avengers

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During the February 2023 PlayStation State of Play, Rocksteady Studios showed off an extended gameplay trailer of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. It highlighted the game’s co-op play, gear system, and live-service support, which are all reminiscent of Marvel’s Avengers.

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League - Official Co-Op Gameplay | PS5 Games

The game takes place five years after the events of Batman: Arkham Knight. Brainiac has brainwashed heroes such as The Flash, Superman, Green Lantern, and Batman to do his bidding. There’s a big focus on co-op multiplayer as Amanda Waller recruits four Suicide Squad members — Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and King Shark — to kill the Justice League.

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Developer Rocksteady gave a close look at how gameplay will work. Its largely a third-person shootwe that has a squad of four hopping around a city, shooting at enemies and purple orbs. It features six weapon classes, from shotguns to pistols. The gameplay clip emphasizes gunplay, but also fast traversal as the antiheroes leap across buildings and slam down on enemy swarms.

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Harley Quinn is the most acrobatic of the four characters, being able to grapple between buildings. Deadshot can hover with his jetpack, while King Shark is a tank character that can help soak up enemy damage. Captain Boomerang has his speed force gauntlet in conjunction with his boomerang that lets him go in and out of combat fast.

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Those who want to play Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League as a single-player experience will be able to do so, with bots filling in as the other three characters. The game will have a power level called gear score for each character. As characters get more powerful gear, the gear score increases. There is also a battle pass that will only contain cosmetics, as well as post-launch content such as new playable characters and missions. All of that already has fans drawing parallels to Marvel’s Avengers, another superhero team-up game with similar ideas. That game is currently in the process of sunsetting its support less than three years after its launch.

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

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George Yang
George Yang
George Yang is a freelance games writer for Digital Trends. He has written for places such as IGN, GameSpot, The Washington…
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s biggest villain is its own legacy
Harley Quinn lays down while speaking to Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's reveal trailer

Frank Miller set the standards for most modern Batman stories with The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One in the 1980s. That same legendary creator thoroughly disappointed with All-Star Batman & Robin in the 2000s due to subpar writing and odd character moments. The latter might have been less infamous if the Batman stories that came before from Miller weren't so influential, but that's not the universe we're living in. Modern comic book universes like DC and Marvel have a problem dealing with their own legacy. With so many decades of iconic characters and stories, it can be tough not to introduce new people to the universe but to live up to the high mark of older books. That makes it harder for great new stories to stand out and exacerbates criticism of newer works.

With Rocksteady Studios' Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, that problem has finally hit comic book video games. I've spent over eight hours with Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League so far in both single-player and multiplayer after receiving code the day after its early access launch. My time with the game has yielded mixed results. It's not an absolute disaster like Redfall of The Day Before, but it's disappointing in the context of Rocksteady's legacy.

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Which character should you pick in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League?
Deadshot, Harley Quinn, King Shark, and Captain Boomerang in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

Each playable member in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is its own distinct character. Beyond the obvious visual differences, there's a good amount of mechanical differences that make playing as Harley a unique experience compared to King Shark, for example. If you're playing alone or with friends, you probably will want to focus on just one member of the team to learn and go through the story with first. Since these "heroes" aren't all that common, especially in the world of video games, it isn't immediately obvious what type of character each one will play like. Between unique traversal methods and skill trees to ultimate attacks, here's a breakdown of which character you should pick.
Best character to play as in Suicide Squad

No one member of the squad is objectively the best, but rather, each one excels in different methods of combat. While you can switch between characters easily, it is best to know what role each one is best suited for and what to expect jumping into their shoes.
Harley Quinn
Harley is the easiest to understand if you're coming from the past Rocksteady Arkham games. She uses a grappling hook to traverse, which can be a little awkward to get a feel for at first, but she is your most well-rounded character. She uses pistols and SMGs in conjunction with melee attacks and explosives. If you want to play an aggressive, slightly spongy character, Harley is all about getting into the thick of combat. Her ability to regen health for kills pushes you to constantly be on the offensive.
Captain Boomerang
Using his teleporting boomerang to control the flow of battle, Captain Boomerang is perfect for flanking. You will want to play a mix of long and short-range with him, thanks to his use of both a sniper and shotgun. You will be rewarded for hit-and-run tactics here, making ample use of your boomerang's ability to get you out of danger before enemies know you were there. Once you get into the flow with him, you will turn the battlefield into your personal playground.
King Shark
King Shark is the most obvious when it comes to understanding his style. The big, bulky shark-man simply charges up massive jumps to get around, and his fishy skin can take a ton of abuse. You will be tanking hits as you either rush in to deal powerful melee attacks or shrugging off shots as you shred enemies with your heavy weapons and assault rifles. If you're not too confident about being able to dodge and zip around during a fight, go with the king.
Deadshot
Also, to be expected, Deadshot is a very easy character for people who cut their teeth on third-person shooters. He can use pistols, assault rifles, and snipers, so you are always prepared, and none of his abilities are terribly confusing or require a lot of thought to use. His jetpack makes him a perfect support character who can pelt enemies from above or afar without getting into danger. Just remember to watch that fuel gauge.

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Can you play Suicide Squad offline?
Captain boomerang and king shark high fiving.

There's no guarantee anymore that even a game that lets you play by yourself, like Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, won't still require you to be connected to the internet. This title, in particular, has been rather confusing in this regard thanks to a heavy push on live service elements and being such a co-op-focused game. However, you are at least free to play alone with bots if you don't want to team up with other people, but can you do so without being online? Here's the breakdown.
Can you play Suicide Squad offline?

The answer is a little complicated, but it is a clear no for right now. At launch, you cannot play Suicide Squad without having a connection to the internet, regardless of whether or not you're playing solo. If you lose internet connection while playing, you will be given an error message and booted out of the game.

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