WB Games' recently secured a patent on its groundbreaking Nemesis System. There are reasons to be disappointed by this beyond the dangerous trend it might start in game design; after all, WB was stingy about using the system before they locked it down. So far, the Nemesis System has only been used in two games: 2014's Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and its sequel, 2017's Shadow of War. However, WB has failed to include it other titles it publishes, including the franchise it was originally created for: Batman.
Shadow of Mordor actually began its life as a pitch for a Batman game by developer Monolith Productions. Specifically, it was meant to be a tie-in for the final film in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, The Dark Knight Rises. The studio, which was looking to branch out from the F.E.A.R. series, had to get Christopher Nolan's approval in order to make the game. In spite of having no guarantee that Nolan would sign off on an adaptation, Monolith worked on its pitch for 18 months.
Like The Dark Knight before it, The Dark Knight Rises didn't have an adaptation outside of mobile gaming. Nolan never granted Monolith his seal of approval for reasons that the people who worked on the game can only speculate on. One possibility is that the lukewarm reception to the Batman Begins game, published by EA, soured him on the medium entirely.
Left adrift by Nolan's indifference, Monolith's attempt to pivot to an original Batman game was made redundant by the success of Rocksteady's Batman: Arkham Asylum and its impending sequel, Arkham City. The developer moved on to other projects, but didn't come out of the process empty handed.
Monolith reused assets from their scrapped Batman game in what became Shadow of Mordor. Reputedly, Shadow of Mordor was so tied to the Batman pitch that, at one point a Batman model, with a sword was used a stand-in for main character Talion. The game's open world Middle-earth setting was created using the engine modified to create an open world Gotham City.
Another key asset carried over from Monolith's Batman project is what evolved into the Nemesis System. The technology that randomized the appearance of orcs and changed their reactions if they defeated you in battle, came from the way criminals were randomly generated in their Batman pitch. Presumably, they would have been member's of Bane's army that Batman fought as he retook Gotham.
It's easy to see how well the Nemesis System could work in a Batman game. While boss fights were a highlight of the Arkham series, there's not much that differentiates one fight with Gotham's roving henchmen from another. Employing the Nemesis System in a Batman game would create rivalries between the Dark Knight (or his proteges) and otherwise faceless enemies. In fact, the Nemesis System was rumored to be a part of the what was eventually announced as the next Batman game, Gotham Knights.
The Nemesis System would be an especially good fit for Gotham Knights because the Court of Owls are among the game's antagonists. Particularly difficult Talons could rise up the ranks of the Court and develop rivalries with specific heroes after defeating them. Because they are functionally immortal, they could back from defeat, even at the hands of the gun toting Red Hood.
The personalities of the different Bat-Family members could also affect how the rivalries work. How Nightwing reacts to defeat is different than how Batgirl does. Having four different reactions to persistent enemies, on top of supervillains like Mr. Freeze, could add some flavor to every battle in the game -- more so if WB Montreal adds fan favorite characters like Damian Wayne and Batwoman to the game as DLC.
The Nemesis System would also be a good fit for a Batman game because it would be a good nod to the source material. Prisons (and asylums) in the DC Universe have a revolving door. Defeated criminals escaping from incarceration and seeking revenge on the Bat-Family is one comic book trope that has never really been replicated in a game.
Now that WB Games owns the Nemesis System, gamers can only hope that they'll use it more often in games outside of Middle-earth. It would be a good fit in a number of franchises under their umbrella, from Mad Max to a single player Mortal Kombat game. However, since it was literally made for a Batman game, it would be a perfect addition to one of his future video game adventures.