[E3 2012] The Rider Draws Near
In our second hands on with Darksiders 2 we see a story branching out as much as the gameplay.
Published: June 14, 2012
Back in March I had the chance to sit down a play a pretty sizable chunk of Vigil's upcoming Darksiders 2 and I came away hungry for more. As great as it looked then, I wasn't at all surprised when they announced the game was going to need a little more time in the oven and wouldn't be making its late June release date. After all, it's a huge game, much bigger than it's prequel before it. I was able to get some hands on time with it again at E3 this year and not only did I like how it has progressed since the build I played 3 months ago, it also illuminated some details of the story that have me dying to see more.
In case you missed my first hands on, or are new to the series in general, Darksiders takes the action adventuring and dungeon puzzling of the Zelda series, marries it to a combat system not unlike God of War, and wraps it all up in the vibrant, edgy artwork of comic veteran Joe Madureira. Yes, it's every bit as awesome as it sounds. The original deftly borrowed elements from successful, established franchises and wove them into something that felt fresh and absorbing, making it one of the true surprise hits of the generation. Darksiders 2 looks to up the ante considerably, taking the series to worlds beyond Earth, and adding in RPG style side quests, and fully fledged loot and skill tree systems to allow you to customize your character as you please.
But I already nerded out over all that in my last preview. This time I got to play the first 20 minutes or so of the game which gave me a perspective on the story that my last demo lacked. One of the things I loved about the original was that it threw the concept of “saving the world” right out the window. The game began with the Apocalypse and the extinction of mankind. Darksiders 2, features another interesting inversion of common entertainment tropes. With his brother War now being held prisoner by the Charred council for presumably kicking off the end times ahead of schedule, you take control of Death as he tries to free him by restoring The Balance. How will he do this you ask? Simple:
Death must find a way to bring the human race back to life.
Naturally, Death has no idea how to do that, having spent most of his time since the dawn of creation doing that whole Grim Reaper schtick. The game opens with him riding his horse, Despair, across a frozen plain to seek audience with The Crowfather in the hopes of finding a lead. The last time I played Darksiders 2 I was confined to a dungeon the whole time so this was my first glimpse of the world at large. I'm really pleased with Vigil's choice to leave Earth behind and set the game loose across a variety of new worlds. Seeing the Crowfather's castle looming enormous, getting bigger and bigger as I rode toward it gave me a sensation of wonder and excitement that I haven't felt while playing a game in a long time.
Once there, I was hacking, slashing and platforming in no time. Vigil seems to have tweaked the controls a bit, and for the better. Dodging feels more effective, and seems to be more well animated than in the last build. This is a big deal since Death can't block like War could in the last game. He's supposed to feel lithe and agile in combat, but last I played, dodging didn't feel like a reliable defensive option. Thankfully that's no longer the case. I felt nigh unhittable, dancing effortlessly around enemy attacks while sneaking in shots of my own. Platforming also felt more responsive this time out, which is important since there's much more of it than there was in Darksiders. Running along ice slicked walls and jumping from ledges to pillars felt natural and refined. It's been said before, but Death has more in common with your average Prince of Persia protagonist than his implacable brother War.
I cut my way through the Crowfather's minions, and scaled the walls of his fortress while he gibbered incoherently in the distance, always just out of reach. When I finally caught up to him, I was treated to a great cutscene that busted the story wide open. It seems Death and the Crowfather have a past, something to do with the race of beings the Four Horsemen were culled from. Apparently, the amulet around his neck is tied in some way to Death's origins, and it's energy has been driving the Crowfather to madness. Unwilling to assist Death in his quest unless he relieves him of the amulet, they clash in a rather unexpected kind of boss battle. I don't want to ruin anymore, but I think fans of the original game will definitely get a kick out of the Crowfather's style of combat. After he goes down, the amulet shatters, and a shard of it flies towards Death, lodging itself in his chest, and signaling the end of my demo.
My first session with the game left me wanting to play more, but this one left me wanting to know more. What's in that amulet exactly? How can the harbinger of death bring life to an extinct race? And perhaps the most interesting question: Is it possible that War truly is guilty of the crimes he is accused of? Whatever the answers, I am raring to find them out. While the narrative in Darksiders was fairly straight forward, it seems Darksiders 2 is looking to expand on it just as much as on the original's gameplay. Vigil still still has some framerate optimizing to do, but if they can get this baby humming like the first one, prepare for a real treat when Death rides this August.
In case you missed my first hands on, or are new to the series in general, Darksiders takes the action adventuring and dungeon puzzling of the Zelda series, marries it to a combat system not unlike God of War, and wraps it all up in the vibrant, edgy artwork of comic veteran Joe Madureira. Yes, it's every bit as awesome as it sounds. The original deftly borrowed elements from successful, established franchises and wove them into something that felt fresh and absorbing, making it one of the true surprise hits of the generation. Darksiders 2 looks to up the ante considerably, taking the series to worlds beyond Earth, and adding in RPG style side quests, and fully fledged loot and skill tree systems to allow you to customize your character as you please.
But I already nerded out over all that in my last preview. This time I got to play the first 20 minutes or so of the game which gave me a perspective on the story that my last demo lacked. One of the things I loved about the original was that it threw the concept of “saving the world” right out the window. The game began with the Apocalypse and the extinction of mankind. Darksiders 2, features another interesting inversion of common entertainment tropes. With his brother War now being held prisoner by the Charred council for presumably kicking off the end times ahead of schedule, you take control of Death as he tries to free him by restoring The Balance. How will he do this you ask? Simple:
Death must find a way to bring the human race back to life.
Naturally, Death has no idea how to do that, having spent most of his time since the dawn of creation doing that whole Grim Reaper schtick. The game opens with him riding his horse, Despair, across a frozen plain to seek audience with The Crowfather in the hopes of finding a lead. The last time I played Darksiders 2 I was confined to a dungeon the whole time so this was my first glimpse of the world at large. I'm really pleased with Vigil's choice to leave Earth behind and set the game loose across a variety of new worlds. Seeing the Crowfather's castle looming enormous, getting bigger and bigger as I rode toward it gave me a sensation of wonder and excitement that I haven't felt while playing a game in a long time.
Once there, I was hacking, slashing and platforming in no time. Vigil seems to have tweaked the controls a bit, and for the better. Dodging feels more effective, and seems to be more well animated than in the last build. This is a big deal since Death can't block like War could in the last game. He's supposed to feel lithe and agile in combat, but last I played, dodging didn't feel like a reliable defensive option. Thankfully that's no longer the case. I felt nigh unhittable, dancing effortlessly around enemy attacks while sneaking in shots of my own. Platforming also felt more responsive this time out, which is important since there's much more of it than there was in Darksiders. Running along ice slicked walls and jumping from ledges to pillars felt natural and refined. It's been said before, but Death has more in common with your average Prince of Persia protagonist than his implacable brother War.
I cut my way through the Crowfather's minions, and scaled the walls of his fortress while he gibbered incoherently in the distance, always just out of reach. When I finally caught up to him, I was treated to a great cutscene that busted the story wide open. It seems Death and the Crowfather have a past, something to do with the race of beings the Four Horsemen were culled from. Apparently, the amulet around his neck is tied in some way to Death's origins, and it's energy has been driving the Crowfather to madness. Unwilling to assist Death in his quest unless he relieves him of the amulet, they clash in a rather unexpected kind of boss battle. I don't want to ruin anymore, but I think fans of the original game will definitely get a kick out of the Crowfather's style of combat. After he goes down, the amulet shatters, and a shard of it flies towards Death, lodging itself in his chest, and signaling the end of my demo.
My first session with the game left me wanting to play more, but this one left me wanting to know more. What's in that amulet exactly? How can the harbinger of death bring life to an extinct race? And perhaps the most interesting question: Is it possible that War truly is guilty of the crimes he is accused of? Whatever the answers, I am raring to find them out. While the narrative in Darksiders was fairly straight forward, it seems Darksiders 2 is looking to expand on it just as much as on the original's gameplay. Vigil still still has some framerate optimizing to do, but if they can get this baby humming like the first one, prepare for a real treat when Death rides this August.
