Batman Arkham Knight - How to Heal Yourself

Although a superhero by nature, the Dark Knight is not immune to death and this has never been more true than in Arkham Knight. Oversized brutes, lethal mini-gunners and a whole range of deadly encounters mean that keeping a close eye on your health is a top priority in the game.

It's easy to get lost in a fight, as you pound your way to a super high combo only to be electrocuted by a mistimed attack on the wrong foe. The game does it's best to guide you through these fights, offering helpful signals above the enemies head to warn you of oncoming dangers but it only takes a few wrong moves and you'll be greeted by the death screen taunts from Joker, Arkham Knight and others.

How to regenerate health

Some of you will be wondering about medicines and other consumables in the game, and I can confirm that none of these exist to top up your health. There are also no skills that will regenerate your health automatically or for performing impressive feats.

Instead, the only way to restore health and heal yourself is to complete the current fight without dying. Until you see the Predator summary that appears on the left of the screen after a fight; the one which outlines your skill during the fight and awards XP; only then will your health automatically restore to maximum.

Armour skills

Although you can't top up Batman's health, you can go into a fight with additional Waynetech upgrades (skills) to boost your survival. These come in the form of batsuit upgrades for armour protection against melee and bullet damage.

Armour upgrades are relatively cheap for the low level slots, costing only one Waynetech upgrade point for a 25% boost to armour protection. Upgrades offer a maximum 100% improvement to armour protection, which as you can imagine, really helps during large scale onslaughts or prolonged fights.

See the image above for the exact upgrade paths which are listed under the Batsuit section of the Waynetech upgrades screen.

No fall damage or crash damage

There's no fall damage in Arkham Knight - you can fly as high as you like then safely drop all the way to the ground. Batman just deploys his cape to make for a soft landing. Similarly, you can also glide straight into buildings and other obstructions - Batman will simply perch on the nearest object and take no damage whatsoever during the process.

The batmobile is almost indestructible outside of gunfights too. Crash into lampposts and other medium sized objects and they'll simply smash to pieces. Large obstructions like buildings will halt your movement but will never deteriorate the car or cause harm. I love the fact that the car is like this, it gives you more freedom to take part in those high speed chases without stumbling on annoying obstacles along the way.

Avoiding attacks

The best way to preserve health is to learn and understand the different types of enemies and attacks. Below are some tips that have helped me to survive so maybe they'll do the same for you too:

Note the coloured symbols above enemy heads during combat:

Blue means an attack is incoming and use counter (triangle on PS4) to counter attack.
A red symbol is for an enraged attack which you need to dodge quickly rather than counter (X on PS4)
Purple symbols mean that an enemy is electrified. Don't attack these enemies until the effect has worn off.
Yellow enemies are knife wielding foes. You need to use the right combination to dodge away and counter. Make a note of the onscreen instructions during these encounters.

Other general combat tips

Brutes cannot be killed with silent takedowns. You need to use the stun move followed by beat downs to inflict damage. Use the dual play option (if available) to call in your superhero friend to help with a double takedown.

Spam press X + Square to pick up melee weapons - these deal more damage thus ending the fight sooner.

Use detective mode (press up on D-Pad) to scout the area before an attack. Make note of enemies with weapons and use the Disruptor Gadget to knock out these weapons before you go in for an attack.

Always try and use the grapple if you find yourself in danger. This gives you some breathing space and time to assess the enemy and plan another attack. If you evade the attack using two grapple moves, then the enemy will usually lose your position and silent takedowns become an option again.

Remain out of sight for as long as possible. Sneak around using crouch and explore the underground grates to stay hidden from view. Then strike with silent attacks followed by fear takedowns for little or no resistance.