Batman: Arkham Knight has been out for a week now and if you’re of the lucky people who have been playing it (sorry, PC folk….) it’s always nice to get a helping hand, especially given how big this game is. I’m sure there are people now who have finished the game up or are at varying degrees of getting through the story, and in my time with the game, I wish I would’ve been given a heads up very early with some of these helpful playing hints. (MINOR SPOILERS)

1) THERE ARE TWO DEVICES YOU CAN GET THAT AREN’T DETERMINED BY PLOT

At the tail end of the Riddler side-missions where you have to help Catwoman remove her collar, you’ll need to get the Remote Electrical Charge gun that you had in Batman: Arkham City. At any point that you visit the GCPD, you can get it by finding it in the evidence room and then simply punching through the glass to get it. A second device, the freeze grenade, is another tool you can find on your own. In the Panessa movie studio where the new Jokers are being held, there’s an easy to miss table at the far left of the cells that holds the grenade. While somewhat optional, these tools are VERY important because…

2) IN ORDER TO GET THE BEST ENDING, YOU NEED EVERYTHING

I haven’t made it through one ending of Batman: Arkham Knight yet, but there are different endings depending on how many side-quests and collectibles you obtain. If you want to get the best possible ending, you have to collect ALL 243 Riddler collectibles and complete 100% of the side-missions. There is a “bad-ending” so I’ve read if you don’t do enough side-quests as well as a “good-ending” if you do enough, though to what those requirements are, I’m not sure.

3) RIDDLER INFORMANTS SOMETIMES REQUIRE COUNTERING

This may be a no-brainer for some, but after both Arkham City and Origins where all I had to do was make sure the Riddler informant was the last to go down in a fight, I was surprised that they started putting up a fight in Arkham Knight. Make sure that when you get the prompt to “interrogate” that your hand is firmly on the controller, as you may need to teach a goon an extra lesson with a simple counter. Now more than the best three games in the series you’ll kick yourself if you screw up getting Riddle answers and trophy locations on your map.

4) UPGRADING THE BATMOBILE IS KEY TO SURVIVAL AND SIDE-MISSIONS

Love it or hate it (personally I love it), the Batmobile is a big part of Batman: Arkham Knight for both combat and puzzles so making sure it’s in top shape should be your number one priority when leveling up, right up there with your Batsuit. The bomb diffusing side-missions where you have to take on waves upon waves of drones are made easier by late upgrades like the double-dodge, and having your weapons at their peak is a plus too. This will help you a lot as well in the main game.

5) THE TURRET DESTROYING DISRUPTOR UPGRADE IS EXTREMELY HELPFUL

Gadget and tool upgrades have taken a back seat in my first playthrough as I’ve put a lot of points into the Batmobile and my personal safety, but one upgrade I wish I would’ve unlocked earlier is for the Disruptor gun. It’s one of the top-tier upgrades that when you shoot the larger turrets with your disruptor, it will blow up when it tries to shoot you. Having this made a pretty late in the game militia check point mission an utter joke, which was very much appreciated seeing how important they are to the games ending.