Play Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker Online

Summary

The Game Boy Color version of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (known in Europe as Batman of the Future: Return of the Joker) drops you into a classic side‑scrolling beat ’em up that feels right at home alongside Streets of Rage, Final Fight and Double Dragon. You control Terry McGinnis, the new Batman, as he battles the Jokerz gang and a resurrected Joker, using a modest moveset of punches, kicks, uppercuts and a handful of gadgets like the Dark Knight Staff and Nun Chucks. The title’s level design offers multiple paths and interspersed cutscenes that flesh out the plot, while the sprite animation earned a nod for its fluidity. Critics were split: some praised the branching routes and story snippets, but many pointed out the repetitive combat, limited attack variety, simple graphics and sound, short length, easy difficulty and the absence of a two‑player mode. The game was first shown at E3 2000 and hit shelves on November 15 2000.

Storyline

Set in the mid‑21st century, Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker follows Terry McGinnis as the new Batman dealing with a revived Joker and his gang, the Jokerz. The story kicks off when the Air & Space research lab is seized, a memory board is stolen, and Bruce Wayne suspects the Jokerz are behind a series of high‑tech heists.

The Joker’s plan escalates when he hijacks Wayne Enterprises, takes Bruce hostage, and disables the building’s security. Terry battles Woof the Hyena‑Man, then heads to an abandoned Arkham Asylum where he confronts the Joker and a ghoul before learning that Bruce has been knocked out. Barbara Gordon reveals a dark past: the Joker once turned Tim Drake into “Joker Junior,” and Tim now works as a communications engineer.

Terry discovers the Joker’s true scheme at the Jolly Jack Candy Factory: the villain has seized a US defense satellite and mind‑controlled Tim using a DNA‑based microchip. After a showdown in the factory’s basement against Chucko and the Dee Dee sisters, Batman defeats the Joker, stops the satellite, and frees Tim, while the world only hears rumors of Batman and the Joker vanishing.