Batman “Arkham” games could make you seize

Holy flashes, Batman! The Caped Crusader apparently doesn’t look out for people vulnerable to photosensitive seizures. The next game in the hugely popular Batman game franchise fails to meet photosensitive epilepsy image safety guidelines.

Batman: Arkham Origins will be released October 25 containing image sequences that could give you a seizure. If you are concerned about the risk of seizures, steer clear–or make sure to wear your blue Bat-lenses to block out seizure-provoking scenes. I tested official release trailers for the game and for Arkham Origins: Blackgate, a version just for handhelds, and found episodes of excessive flash in both violations. Of course, your results may vary, because with games it’s impossible to anticipate all potential screen sequences.

The previously released Batman: Arkham video games can trigger flash-induced seizures, too. With the same image sequence analysis tool I tested earlier Batman: Arkham games, Arkham Origins and Arkham Asylum, to see whether they fail as well. Indeed, they do. All three are portrayed not in old-fashioned comic book style, but in the style of today’s typical online adventure games.

Shown below are screen captures from the analysis tool as it assesses each of these titles. For those unfamiliar with the format of these test results, click on the screen to see it full-size. The upper left corner shows the specific video frame being analyzed. Underneath is a table showing the safety violations involving flash rate, red flash, and patterns. The bulk of the screen is a graph reflecting how video sequences from the game trailers measure up against international guidelines for preventing photosensitive seizures. Each second of video is composed of a sequence of 29 individual frames, and across the bottom of the screen the frames are shown in  sequence in the video.

Batman: Arkham Origins (2013)

Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate for DS3 and PS Vita (2013)

Batman Arkham City (2011)

Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009)