Game Insider - Best of 2018 Best of 2018 | Page 68

DARKSIDERS III
PS4 OX PC
Platform: PS4, XBOX ONE, PC Genre: Action Adventure ESRB: Mature Publisher: THQ Nordiq Developer: Gunfire Games
Fury is a thoroughly enjoyable protagonist, cutting through heaven and hell like a knife,
always oozing confidence and violent potential.
Over the last couple of hours I
have spent with Darksiders III,
I’ve been very torn on what
direction I wanted to take this
review. I have had a very wide
variety of emotions playing this
third entry as a huge fan of the
series. I’ve gone from
disappointment to anger and
finally acceptance.
Disappointment that developer
Gunfire Games has failed to do
anything new, instead of just
borrowing from masterpieces
such as Dark Souls and
Bloodborne, that of which it has
no hope of replicating. Anger and
frustration due to the games
dreadful navigation system and
downright cheesy difficulty
spikes. Finally, acceptance that
this is not the sequel that I had
hoped for.
What Gunfire Games has given
us is a Darksiders attempt at
replicating the Dark Souls formula
– This third entry drops the large
scope of its predecessor, which
featured horseback riding and
complex puzzle-platforming, in
favor of a much more focused
and difficult combat system. It is
an interesting side step, and one
that I think eventually shines. It is
only when Darksiders III pulls
from it’s origins that the game
starts to shine and feels like a
Darksiders experience.
The game stars Fury, one of
the four Horsemen of the
Apocalypse, tasked to hunt down
personifications of the seven
deadly sins. Her promised reward
is leadership of the Horsemen.
The third game takes place after
the apocalypse that Fury’s brother
War is accused of starting
prematurely has occurred, which
in turn looses the seven deadly
sins upon the earth in physical
forms. Fury is given the task of
hunting down each sin and
restoring them to their ethereal
state by defeating each.
Darksiders stories are always
well told with excellent voice
acting. Fury is a thoroughly
enjoyable protagonist, cutting
through heaven and hell like a
knife, always oozing confidence
and violent potential. The banter
between her and her watcher
companion was quite
entertaining as you traverse your
way to the next sin on your list.
This is actually the games only
positives in the opening hours as
the presentation really carries the
game. Like the original
Darksiders, Fury is a horseman
without a horse, many other
features seen in Darksiders 2,
such as loot and customizable
armor, have been removed.
Instead you spend the early
hours of the game running
through large, boxy
environments, trying to get a feel
for the surprisingly very difficult
combat. Fury’s weapon of choice
is a long, serrated whip which she
uses to crowd control her
enemies. She can’t block enemy
attacks, and most opponents can
kill you very quickly. Combat is
mainly an exercise of perfectly
timed dodging, while looking for
countering opportunities.
Gone is the regenerating
health from previous games in
the series or the numerous ways
to heal from gear and other
abilities. This time around you
have Nephilim’s Respite which
Fury activates to heal, these
function exactly like Estus flasks
from Dark Souls.
When you die you lose all
carried souls and must fight your
way back to the area of your
death to reclaim them, and yes
you must fight your way back as
all enemies respawn upon your
death. The world is highly
interconnected, with lots of
different pathways that gradually
unlock as you progress.
The opening hours left a lot to
be desired, and then what I was
hoping for happened. The game
made a turn for the better and
started to come to life; I unlocked
my second hollow and the game
began to feel like the Darksiders I
know and love.
Hollows are Darksiders central
combat mechanics, and they
completely saved the game for
me. These four abilities allow Fury
to evolve into different forms,
which gifts her with new weapons
and abilities. Hollows also provide
new ways of traversal and puzzle
solving and ways to interact with
the world. The fire hollow allows
Fury to engulf herself in flames
adding to her damage and
damaging anyone that gets to
close, while also providing a
boost to her jump, it also allows
you to walk through lava
untouched. The force hollow
allows you to run around under
water and magnetize to certain
walls.
The game does suffer from
technical difficulties as the frame
rate tends to dip quite a bit
during intense combat, the game
also suffered several hard crashes,
as well as long load times. These
are issues that Gunfire Games are
aware of and hopefully iron out
quickly.
Darksiders III is the sequel that
fans have been waiting for, but
this is also it’s strength and it’s
weakness. It feels like the
previous two titles with much
better combat and some fantastic
encounters. On the other hand
it’s trying too many things at
once and comes off as having an
identity crisis and never steps out
of the shadows of juggernauts as
its own beast.
7.5