On a Pale Horse He Rides – Darksiders II Preview Event

[tab:Preview]You’ll see Death using elements of his Reaper form to open doors and bash open chests. You’ll also see it emerge briefly in battle when combos get high and when Death executes an enemy. All of this directly relates to his personality. Adams also told me that another large difference is how character interactions will play out with Death. War was a quiet, stoic character. Death is far more verbal, sporting a wry sense of humor.

There’s more to Darksiders 2 than just a new protagonist, though. The progression system has been completely overhauled, putting the game inbetween adventure and action-RPG. Death can equip different types of scythes, which have different benefits. He can also pick up loot in three different categories that are designed to support one of three play styles. Necromancer armor pieces enhance stats related to spell casting, Slayer loot improves direct combat and Wanderer pieces support agility and speed. Each of the types look different, adding to the customization.

Additionally, the game sports two different core skill trees: Harbinger, for physical combat and Necromancer, for spells and abilities. We got a look at two Necromancer tree abilties during the demo. Exhume raises skeletons from the dead to attack and harass your enemies. Murder summons a group of crows to deal direct damage to opponents. We were told that the Harbinger skills might, for example, speed up the use of heavy weaponry, giving combat-oriented builds more options in battle. You can see how your loot and skills factor into your damage now, with action-RPG style hit numbers popping up over the heads of enemies. Each enemy now also carries a life bar, so you can see how close you are to ending the fight.

One of the comments I heard most often before playing Darksiders is that many people are surprised at how long it is. Be forewarned, Darksiders 2’s main story is about the same length as the first game, but that’s not all. Darksiders 2 includes hours of side quests. Adams indicated that Vigil is looking to be smart about implementing side quests such that they are aligned with the main story and backtracking is minimalized. However, he also expressed an interest to give people a reason to come back to areas in the game. He promised that players would be rewarded with new content for engaging in side quests that draw you back. You’ll see new areas of a location upon your return.

The game is looking beautiful, even in its pre-alpha state. While we didn’t get a chance to get our hands on it, the animations are gorgeously fluid, the detail we’re already seeing on Death’s clothing and equipment is significant and the little touches like pieces of his Reaper form peeking through are very evocative of his personality. The one thing we haven’t seen yet is Despair, Death’s horse. Adams told me that, unlike in the first game, you’ll have access to your horse from the beginning. In addition to using Despair to speed travel through the environments, there will be areas of the game specifically geared toward horseback combat (similar to the battles with the Ash Crawler and the Stygian).

For an early look, Darksiders 2 is already on track to deliver everything we loved about Darksiders with smart advancements and an exciting new protagonist. We’ll know for sure when the game arrives this summer.
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