Why you shouldn't trust the Gotham Knights release date leak

Warner Bros. next superhero beat ‘em up game, Gotham Knights has players excited, after a photo, that was allegedly taken inside an Irish video game store and shows the game listed for release next month, appeared online.

The image, which was first shared by the Twitter account Hogwarts Legacy News, shows what looks to be a promotional copy of Gotham Knights on a shelf, plastered with a sticker that reads “Coming Soon!” next to a date of April 24.

The image has been shared across gaming forums and Reddit, with some fans excitedly believing Gotham Knights will release next month - others, however, are doubting the validity of the listed date.

Speculation of an imminent release was further fueled when an app titled “Gotham Knights playtest” briefly appeared on Steam over the weekend of March 5. As spotted by PCGamesN, SteamDB has recorded the details of the playtest and lists the game as requiring 82.4GB of storage space.

Although there are no additional details on why the playtest was briefly listed - whether it was intended for internal development purposes or is a sign that a public beta will launch soon - it does fuel further speculation that a firm release date may be just around the corner.

So far, we know Gotham Knights is planned for release later this year, after it was delayed from its original 2021 launch window. WarnerMedia’s CEO, Jason Kilar, reiterated that 2022 release schedule earlier in the year in a series of Tweets, alleviating fans’ concerns that they’d be left waiting for much longer. 

Under development at WarnerBros. Montreal, the studio behind Batman: Arkham Origins, Gotham Knights will mix up the DC superhero formula. Although set in Gotham City, Batman won’t be making an appearance. Instead, you’ll play as Nightwing, Batgirl, Robin, and Red Hood, who must replace the Caped Crusader after his untimely death.

Analysis: will Gotham Knights release this April?

Players who are eager to get their hands on the upcoming DC game might want to believe Gotham Knights will have a surprise release next month, but we won’t be holding our breath.

It’s uncommon for retailers to receive information about upcoming video game releases before those details have been made public. That’s largely to prevent accidental leaks like this one from happening. It’s unclear why a video game store in Ireland would have any update on the game’s intended release date, or why Warner Bros. would launch the massive title without several weeks of marketing to drum up interest.

It’s also worth noting that April 24 is a Sunday, which would be an unusual day of the week for a massive, triple-A video game to release. Most major titles launch on a weekday.

It’s more likely that this retailer has mistakenly displayed Gotham Knights with an inaccurate release date, possibly confusing the game with another or mixing up its schedules. For now, we’d ignore the photo and be thankful that the game’s Steam playtest appears to confirm the game's development is still on track.

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