Injustice: Gods Among Us: Batman beats Superman on April 16

NetherRealm Studios’ upcoming DC Comics fighter Injustice: Gods Among Us now has a release date and a special, limited Battle Edition variant.

Who would win in a fight between Batman and Superman?

That simple question has become almost a zen koan for comic book fans over the past twenty years. When Frank Miller depicted an elderly Batman beating the Kryptonian stuffing out of Superman in 1986′s The Dark Knight Returns, the idea of pitting DC’s biggest heros against one other took on new importance, and while we’ll likely never get a definitive decision from DC editorial on which way this fight might go, the next best thing arrives on April 16.

Specificially, we’re referring to Injustice: Gods Among Us, an upcoming fighting game release for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 created by the same people behind the most recent Mortal Kombat sequel (which lacks a defining numeral, so let’s just refer to it as “the best MK in two decades”). Based on everything we’ve seen Injustice should feature gameplay and content that’s quite similar to that seen in Mortal Kombat, only with a bit less gore as befitting DC Comics’ occasional dedication to presenting its superheroes as relatively family-friendly.

Alongside that newly revealed April 16 release date for Injustice, publisher Warner Bros. Interactive has also issued details on the game’s limited “Battle Edition” release. Despite its forgettable name, the Battle Edition contains a number of neat extras for DC Comics fans, including a special Injustice: Gods Among Us comic book, a digital download of the Justice League: Doom animated movie, three new in-game skins for Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman based on their recent “New 52″ comic book incarnations, a fight stick decorated with exclusive Injustice artwork, and a statue depicting a battle between Batman and Wonder Woman (who, thankfully, has a full complement of limbs). You can see the statue at right and more of the package in the header image above.

As you’d expect, the Battle Edition of Injustice features a premium price tag along with its premium bonus swag. The whole package hits retail on April 16 and will set you back an even $150. That’s $90 more than the standard retail price point attached to Injustice (and $50 more than the game’s Collector’s Edition), so you’re going to have to decide if those extras are worth the sizable addtional investment. We’re pleasantly surprised to see the Battle Edition contain so many useful, interesting items (instead of the standard, useless tchotchkes that will be forever ignored on a dusty shelf), but aren’t convinced that those outside of hardcore DC comic book fans should drop the extra cash. After all, Netflix subscribers can currently stream Justice League: Doom from the online service, we’d expect those extra skins to come available to all players at some point in the future via DLC, and the comic book can be downloaded directly from DC for only 99 cents per issue.

Then again, that’s a pretty solid deal for a fight stick. We also think that Batman-versus-Wonder Woman statue is pretty neat. If you do shell out the extra cash for the Battle Edition be sure to put it in a place of prominence in your home. Maybe on the mantle or next to your bed. Geek culture is the new black, right?