In previous decades, licensed games were frequent tp find and were based on virtually any form of media, but have mostly fallen by the wayside in recent years. Something to remember about these licensed games was that most were not very good to the point that it was noteworthy when a licensed game was good. One excellent licensed game was Batman Returns on the SNES, based on the film of the same name. The game was a beat em up, and for some reason, that genre was a good fit for many licensed games.
Batman Returns was a beat em up in the Final Fight style and at first glace seems to be nothing out of the ordinary. Looking deeper however, leads you to see how the game actually adapts the film very well. It is not just that the game is faithful to the movie, but that the game actually helps recreate scenes depicted in the movie while still making sense as a beat em up. Furthermore, the combat felt satisfying at the same time and not just phoned in. Konami developed this game, and it stood head and shoulders above its Genesis and Sega CD counterparts.
A lot of work was put into the SNES version. so it clearly was not a rush job. What is especially noteworthy however, is how each version of the game was different. The Nintendo versions were straight beat em ups while the Sega versions tried new things that didn’t flow right.. The original NES version was more akin to the NES port of the original TMNT arcade game, being a brawler that was held back by the system limitations. In turn though, this made the SNES version stand out more for its brilliant visuals that matched the movies, a soundtrack that stood above others and a perfect atmosphere for gaming bliss.
Batman games had a hard time for years, but this was a classic. I highly recommend checking out this game, because it holds up well today.