No Soul Reaver remake? Try DarkSiders 2
Back in the day I used to love playing Soul Reaver on the PSX. At the time it was the first game I remember that has proper voice acting in it. It’s hard to believe but at the time this was something quite revolutionarly. Having the lead characters voiced by professionals gave the game such depth that it made it very difficult to put the game down. Looking back on this game with fond memories I wanted to play something of similar elk so one of my friends recommended DarkSiders 2 as a game I might be interested in.
I did some reading up on the first DarkSiders game so then I understood the background to the sequel before diving in. I purchased my copy on steam with all the DLC and away I went, diving straight into the game.
The game begins with the lead character of the game and our unexpected hero – Death who is also one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, arriving at some unknown ruin on a quest to discover how he can save his brother, War from Damnation. In the previous game War had been imprisoned by Charred Council and charged with the destruction of humanity. In this instalment of DarkSiders this focuses on the leader of the four Horsemen, Death setting out to prove his brothers innocence by any means necessary.
The land of creators where the majority of game takes place
The game takes Death to many different place but what stands out for me are the same qualities that got me hooked into the Legacy of Kain series. Again this is another game that has done a great job of casting exceptional voice characters that can bring the best out in the characters. Death is played by Michael Wincott who emulates a typical John Hurt type of voice. This really does suit Death very well, he is well spoken but not afraid to be sarcastic towards his peers. This really helps with the characterization and makes him a more likeable character. During the first couple of hours of game I originally perceived him as arrogant, but as time went by he was demonstrating touches of empathy and willingness to help out those around him…. if there was a benefit to him.
The battle system in DarkSiders 2 is really what the Legacy of Kain battle system should have been; a fast paced none-relenting action packing kill-a-thon system. Using combinations between your primary and secondary weapons means how long you could string combo’s together for, additionally there are characters you purchase new moves from to add too your arsenal so then you can take this to a even higher level.
The level design is also another nod to the Soul Reaver universe of Nosgoth. There are parts in DarkSiders 2 that you’ll think give you an erree reminder of games from our past. The level design ranges from the simplistic puzzles during the beginning areas of the game requiring you to get the water flowing so then you can access new areas to the more difficult later levels requiring you to use portals to activate switches and get you to the hard to reach areas.
I must admit I thoroughly enjoyed everything about Darksiders 2 and the best thing was the great amount nostalgia it brought back to me. Well done Vigil Games!
Darksiders 2 can be purchased on the Steam Store
