Darksiders II - To Buy Or Not To Buy

The sequel to the Metroid-vaniaesque slash and hack has changed the direction quite significantly since the last game. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term Metroid-vania it’s a game in which the basis of the gameplay is linear but requires exploration and backtracking to collect upgrades and attain items to advance in the games main arc. Another good example is the current Zelda stencil, travel to a dungeon, find an item and then beat the boss with the help of the item in order to continue.

In the first Darksiders you played as War, one of the four horseman of the apocalypse, who has been wrongly accused of beginning the apocalypse too soon on planet Earth. Most of the story takes place on the ruined and hell-struck planet after the apocalypse and War is trying to find out the truth. Hell seems to have won the battle on Earth as most of the enemies you fight are demons and other various hellspawn, and the the pallet is very dark and morbid. In Darksiders II you play as Death, another of the four horsemen, who is trying to correct what happened on Earth and atone for his brother’s sins.

The environments in Darksiders II differ greatly from the first, mixing the wasteland of post-apocalyptic Earth with more vibrant and, to be quite honest, beautiful vistas. You begin on a Nordic themed planet full of lush greens, snowy and volcanic zones each with their own nuances. This was a change for the better in my opinion, although some find the gothic and macabre elements strewn throughout the entirety of the first Darksiders enjoyable, it’s always nice to have a change.

The mechanics of the game consist of a two button fighting system and Prince of Persia style climbing (wall sliding and all) , one button operating your primary weapon and the other your secondary, delays in-between pressing do different combos and finishers. A change from the last game is the availability of a secondary weapon, there are spears, axes, maces, claws, shields and fist-blades each having their own advantages. In fact the method of acquisition of weaponry has changed dramatically since the first game; there is a loot system for armour and weaponry; random drops with different stats and bonuses which adds more depth into the game. You also level up and assign skill points into 2 different trees, a fighter or a mage/summoner kinda guy, another aspect to add more variance and replayability.

The fighting is still nice and smooth with great animations and integrating your abilities into the fray doesn’t feel like such a chore anymore, you can cast mid fight and still carry on with the button mashing that preceded. The spells, stats and skill trees are a nice addition but I feel that they’re just dead weight, there aren’t that many models for weaponry and armour (mostly just recolours, even for ‘unique’ items). I preferred it as a gritty Zelda rip-off, although I might get stick for that statement it’s just the way I feel; adding in all these stupid factors like levels and stats meant that when I wanted to enjoy the entirety of the game, collecting all the collectibles, doing all the side-missions, when I came to the final boss I killed him in less than a minute wailing on him with my awesome scythes. Up until I realised I’d done all there was to do I thought the game was an epic adventure, but then I awoke from this catatonic state to realise all that guff, like arena battles with waves and mazes was just to waste my time, it wasn’t in there so I could have fun, it was to trick me into thinking I’d achieved more than I actually had.

Although I did enjoy this foray back into the world of Darksiders, it was only due to the elements that were present in the last game. The new additions, such as loot and levelling, were unnecessary and didn't improve the experience I had. However the larger environments and side-quests were something that added more depth to the world. Not to sound like a back-and-forth but the side-quests, while present, were very few (about 3 in each of the 4 zones), and seemed like a last thought. In a market in which multiplayer games are ever dominant, due to their replayability and value for money, it doesn't seem right that a single player game like Darksiders II has the RRP of £39.99. I'd say wait for it to be on sale on steam or grab it second hand in-store, it's a fun game to play over a weekend, but it wont last much longer than that.