The Darksiders franchise has been around for a couple of years now, giving us more insight into the four horsemen of the apocalypse and their struggle to clear their names. The first three games all featured a different protagonist, set in a gorgeous 3D world where you had to slash and puzzle your way to freedom. Darksiders: Genesis, is the fourth installment but it isn’t the fourth main game, it’s something completely different, as clearly demonstrated during the Gamescom 2019 presentation.
Is that you Diablo?
If you take a look at the screenshots or watch the trailer of the game, it’s easy to think this is the new Diablo game. Just like Diablo, this action-adventure is set in a top-down environment where you’ll face multiple enemies, including mini-bosses and bosses along your way. It’s easy to think this is a Diablo clone but in reality, it’s something totally different. Yes, the looks and the genre certainly are similar but everything else just screams Darksiders. The developers certainly know what fans of the franchise like, so they made sure Genesis has that typical Darksiders DNA. Fast-paced action, gorgeous cut-scenes, original character designs, and an intriguing storying featuring some of the Horsemen, it’s all here, transforming Genesis into a typical Darksiders game set in a new genre.
In Genesis, you’ll control War (Darksiders I) and Strife, two of the Four Horsemen. War and Strife are a lot different when it comes to looks and gameplay. War is a strong warrior who likes to destroy his enemies up close and personal. If you want to deliver extremely powerful damage with War’s sword, he’s your character of choice. Strife, on the other hand, is a more tactical character, using long-ranged weapons and his environment to conquer his enemies. During the presentation, it’s clear that both characters have their strengths and weaknesses but together, they form a rather impressive duo.
Co-op or singleplayer
Since there are two playable characters, this is the perfect co-op game, as demonstrated during the Gamescom presentation. We saw two members of the Genesis team taking down hundreds of enemies at once. In co-op, you can really help each other out by combining your close and long-ranged attacks precisely. What’s great about the co-op is the fact that you’re never stuck with one playable character, you can change between War and Strife anytime you want, giving you the needed variation during longer sessions. As far as I could tell, the co-op looked extremely intuitive and fast-paced, there’s a lot going on in Darksiders: Genesis but if you work together, you’ll manage to overcome all your challenges. Since the game is also releasing on Nintendo Switch, I’m pretty sure it’s one of those games that can easily result in some fun co-op gaming nights out in the open.
Not a fan of co-op? No worries? The developers also demonstrated the singleplayer. They demonstrated this during a boss fight to ensure us that it’s perfectly possible to clear everything on your own. In singleplayer, you can instantly switch between your characters as well. It’s about finding the right momentum to deliver your attacks. Since you have access to two playable characters, this also means you have two health bars. Strife and War don’t share health, so if one gets too weak, you can easily switch to the other to keep you in the game, making it fair for solo players. Besides that, we also witnessed some incredibly powerful special attacks that turned the battle in our favor almost instantly. Darksiders: Genesis clearly is all about having fun and that’s exactly what both the co-op and singleplayer modes demonstrated with great success.
Early conclusion:
Darksiders: Genesis will offer an impressive amount of content for its lower price point. Yes, it’s the same genre as Diablo but it has the Darksiders DNA written all over it. This is everything you love about the franchise, set in a different genre. It’s a fast-paced action-packed game where you’ll have to pleasure to control both War and Strife. It’s certainly a game worth looking out for!
