Darksiders – The MMOMFG Review

Darksiders

Beckoned to Earth too soon to carry out the call of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, War is thrown into the grips of a struggle between Heaven and Hell. Damned by immortal judgment, War is stripped of his powers and granted his last chance to redeem himself by seeking out the true conspirators for the destruction of Earth and its civilization. Will you guide War to discover the cause of Earth’s Holy War, or will you fail, damning the souls of millions and join the angels and demons in an eternal struggle?

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What’s Good

WAR! What is it good for? A lot actually – Darksiders is a total package. It does not pretend to set the industry standard in gameplay, controls, graphics or story, but it takes each part of the game and makes it its own. The gameplay is fast and action packed and although many claim a rip off of God of War, with Darksiders’ complex system of customization and fight options, you’ll feel it delivers the goods. Despite its basic concept of being a bash-em-up brawler, there are plenty of differences per map or zone that lead you wanting to continue the fight.

This is not my beautiful life, or Earth – Earth is a green land full of trees, incredible landscapes and oceans of blue flowing waves. Cut to Darksiders’ Earth and you’ll see the art inspiration of Joe Madureira shining through. Earth is gritty, desolate and destroyed. The land is a wasteland of fire, brimstone, and demons. The characters are big, unforgiving, and beautiful. Within the first fifteen minutes of the game, you are immersed in a setting that is surprisingly bright despite its sullen atmosphere. Joe Madureira is a genius and his artistic elements bring every aspect of an epic struggle between Heaven and Hell out in perfect harmony. The angels do not portray the typical glorious, holy demeanor shown in general imagery. Madureira has managed to make both the Light and Dark sides in Darksiders easily acceptable as your enemy by keeping both equally fearful.

Customization is your friend – Being a gamer who enjoys the complexity of games that offer customization and character progression, Darksiders does not fail to impress. If you’re expecting a hack and slash where you just mash the Square or A button, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the combinations, fight tactics, and unlockables found through collecting souls by killing demons and angels. Sound familiar? Well, as mentioned before, Darksiders doesn’t reinvent the genre, but it does help deliver a solid title that provides close to eight hours of gameplay if you don’t dilly-dally trying to unlock all abilities.

The Puzzle Man Can – Reading numerous reviews and posts about the game feeling like a combination of Zelda and God of War, I have to agree in ways, but the game’s dungeon crawling takes on a life of its own. I never felt the puzzles were too challenging, but it required an element of thought process that typical hack-and-slashers don’t demand. It was a pleasant site seeing immense landscapes of scenery that demand keen eyesight and an additional once over to ensure you notice that subtle glowing sword or shimmer that leads you to the next puzzle piece. War is a mixture of Link, Kratos, and Sherlock Holmes all in one, minus the hat, pipe and wit.

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What’s Bad

I thought this game was supposed to be easy – Playing on Normal difficulty, I noticed that nearly the entire game was extremely easy, until I came across a few random enemies that were literally 500 times harder than everything else. You’ll get frustrated as hell trying to kill flaming demons and indestructible mini-bosses. No matter how fast you are, it seems you will always get hit. Upon updating your character’s skills and powers, you’ll notice the game begins to get easy enough, however.

Too many graphics, not enough power – While playing the Playstation 3 version of Darksiders, I only faced a few graphical slowdowns. However, watching a friend play the Xbox 360 version, I witnessed noticeable amounts of screen tearing and graphical difficulties. This isn’t game breaking, but it is enough to warrant a word of warning to those who haven’t tried the game yet.

Sure I’ve got all these attacks, but I’m lazy – With 30 plus attacks available through purchase with souls, you find your favorites and don’t differentiate. I typically will go with whatever the fastest killing move is and will use it generally on every pull. It is helpful that some attacks are AoE (Area of Effect) that can hit numerous targets, but with the ability to finish off targets singularly, there isn’t much reason to take the time to target numerous mobs.

I’ve got to start back here? – I know I’ve been claiming that Darksiders is fairly easy, but there were moments I’d die and it makes you start back at the last waypoint. It was so frustrating that at times I turned the game off for a few hours because I was sick of clearing a whole level to die on a mini-boss or right near the end of the stage. Frustration set in fast and I have to admit the lack of mid-level checkpoints was a real pain in the tookus.

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Worth Remember

Darksiders’ graphics and art style are cutting edge. The combat is fantastic and leaves a ton of room for customization. Boss fights are EPIC and the game flows the way you would want it to if you were trapped in a Holy War. Leveling up weapons, gaining better abilities, and progressing through a fun story with great voice acting was an excellent gameplay experience.

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Worth Forgetting

At times, hacking and slashing became monotonous with some levels requiring limited puzzle-solving. Darksiders’ final experience was a mixture of fun and frustration. A handful of framerate issues plagued gameplay at times, but there was not enough problems to ruin the final impression of the title. A lack of multiplayer leaves a little room for disappointment; however, the Darksiders franchise should have a long, gorgeous future.

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THQ has delivered a new IP that borrows from the tried and true hack-and-slash genre that smacks of God of War and similar styled games, but comes into its own personality and shines as a top, early 2010 title. Reviews have been positive with good reason and MMOMFG feels Darksiders is definitely worthy of a purchase. Expect great thing from THQ in the next few years including a nearly guaranteed box-office hit and numerous sequels. Time to mash the Square button a few thousand more times as I try to take on the game’s next level of difficulty! Go check it out for yourself!

**MMOMFG reviewed Darksiders on the Playstation 3 console

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