One power, though, which allows Death to split into two separate entities leashed to a central point, quickly became irritating a mistake would force a reset of the characters, and I would end up having to do work two, three times.The leveling and loot systems adapted from games like Diablo worked well in Darksiders 2. Each of the main dungeons does a great job training the player with the newest tool and using that tool in clever, entertaining ways. The dungeons and puzzles, too, have been meticulously designed. Aside from a few weird difficulty spikes on my Normal playthrough, the combat had a good feel throughout. The stick-and-move combat stays fun, and the sheer number of combos available allow depth for those who want it. Darksiders' lineage in combat is definitely that of God of War, Devil May Cry, and other tightly-balanced hack-and-slashers. The combat has been called things like " God of War Lite," and it's easy to see why. If Darksiders is going to shine anywhere, though, it's in the mechanics. Kyd captures the feeling of a world's last sunset the end of life and beginning of death. While the fantasy tunes could be mistaken for the Skyrim soundtrack, the ethereal synth music that accompanies the dungeon delving is some of the best served up this year. The soundtrack, composed by Jesper Kyd ( Assassin's Creed II), ranges from classic fantasy music to some great synth work. The music often complements that world very well. Here, everything feels like a part of the post-apocalyptic universe the Darksiders games are assembling. More often than ever, parts of games are being farmed out to other studios and the disconnect is noticeable in the final product. Everything on two legs is built like a bunch of giant, meaty tree-trunks with huge shoulder pads that stand as an accent.Įven having said that, though, it's impossible not to admire how much art there is and how well it all fits together. I think it too closely resembles World of Warcraft and the 1990s X-Men comics Joe Madureira is famous for. Though he's not creative director this time around, his influence is still clear. I should be honest here I'm not a fan of the art. Death, during War's imprisonment, aims to save his wronged brother.ĭarksiders 2, like its predecessor, works off designs by comic artist Joe Madureira. War, having been sent to Earth under false pretenses to initiate the apocalypse, was imprisoned for a century. It sports high production values across the board with a unified art direction, strong level design, and solid combat.Īnd yet, why am I so bored?While Darksiders was about the Horseman of the Apocalypse named War, Darksiders 2 is the story of Death and takes place before the first. It's a new IP from a struggling publisher, THQ. It's a first from a new developer, Vigil Games. There's a lot that's remarkable about the Darksiders series.