14 DAY TRIAL // What we know:
Darksiders II is the sequel to the original hack and slash title made by Vigil Games, set to appear later this year for the PC, PlayStation3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii U.
The original Darksiders impressed through its interesting story, allowing players to take control of War, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Its gameplay, however, disappointed a bit, as it borrowed plenty of elements from other, more popular franchises, including God of War, The Legend of Zelda or even Portal.
With the second game, however, the team at Vigil wants to firmly establish Darksiders as a full-fledged franchise.
The title takes place at the same time as the original, although players will now control Death, who needs to clear the name of War, his brother. In order to do so, he needs to venture forth into the Nether Realms, located between Heaven and Hell, which are filled with all sorts of mystical beings that can help or impede his quest.
Throughout his travels he will come face to face with all sorts of enemies and prove that he is as powerful as his brother, if not more so. He’ll collect all sorts of weapons while improving his abilities throughout the narrative.
While War dealt with heavy weapons and delivered powerful attacks, Death is a much more acrobatic fighter, with smaller weapons that deal more damage. Some of them, like Death’s famous scythe, can even be joined together to produce a deadlier result.
Why it matters: Darksiders 1, despite “borrowing” quite a lot of gameplay mechanics from other game franchises, was a pretty enjoyable experience. With the promise of more new content and less rehashing, its sequel is looking to be an even more impressive experience.
We already got a hands-off demonstration of the hack and slash game at Gamescom 2011 and were very impressed with what Vigil managed to showcase at that time. Hopefully, when Darksiders II is actually released, the studio will deliver a great experience.