Ever get tired of playing the hero all the time? Admit it, we all do. Villains are always more fun to play. In Darksiders Warmastered Edition you finally get to unleash your inner villain, well, your inner anti-hero. In this remastered version of Darksiders, you get to play as the strongest and most feared Horseman: WAR! Experience the entire apocalyptic battle between the Angels and Demons at 60 frames per second in full 1080p
Like many of you I was lucky enough to play this game on the PS3 and enjoyed every button mashing second of it. With all the remastered games coming out for our latest next gen consoles we once again find ourselves debating on playing a game we have already completed. Are updated graphics, a higher frame rate, and a price tag of $19.99 enough? Undoubtedly YES.
You quickly get dropped into a battle for Earth between three factions; Angels, Demons, and Man. You have been summoned to end the war but only you have shown up for battle. Here you get to see your full powers on display. No angel, demon, or man can stand up to you. All shout in joy at your mere presence but then you start to fall in pain and feel your strength and power leaving you. Why? Why are your powers leaving you? Why haven’t the other Horsemen joined the battle? This is where you strike a bargain with the Charred Counsel to find out why you were the only one called to battle.
At this moment you find my only complaint with Darksiders. You quickly see and hear that the audio is off with the characters lip movement. It is a slight delay but enough to really bother anyone with OCD. Even with the audio delay you are able to convince the Charred Counsel that they are in a win/win situation by granting you your release. You show them that you either die due to being too weak to battle the demons or you find out who broke the rules in regards to the seven seals. When you find the one who broke their law you promise to bring them to justice to restore order and balance to the factions. At this is moment your epic journey starts.
Like many action-role-playing games, when you first start you have to slowly build up your skill level and combat powers. This is where the game is a little tough to play at times. You just have your speed attack and power attack at this time. You quickly find that you have been gone for a long time and no humans remain but you are able to battle demons and zombies to gain souls for power ups. There is a lot of evading and button mashing until you can earn enough souls. What gets you through this time is the beautiful levels that continue the details all the way up to the sky.
Even in a gray tone apocalyptic world you still see details and contrast that IMMERSE you in this world and make you want to explore this semi open environment. The smooth motion of your sword going through demons and zombies as you preform finishing moves brings out your younger self as you yell in delight as you split them in half and see the blood splats. All the details you were missing from the PS3 version are now on display and draw you in even more. You clearly get to read billboards, watch dust blow across the screen, and see more colors and details that increase the frightening realism details of the demons as well as your armor.
The game quickly turns from what could have been a beautiful but boring button mashing game into a game that’s not only beautiful but makes you think by solving puzzles to make your way to the Twilight Cathedral. You quickly find ways to string together combos to take down more opponents and gather more souls. From the Twilight Cathedral you then move on to the Ashlands where you continue to catch yourself not playing the game but just watching as the detail of the desert level at times get you to forget you are just playing a game as you move through the desert.
Not only are you lost in the visual brilliance of the game but the perfectly timed reward system keeps you immersed along with the acquiring of a new weapon. War is the horseman known for battling with a big sword. That isn’t the only weapon that he is able to wield. He is able to master multiple primary weapons and even gains access to a pretty awesome sidearm that even Strife would be envious of. The souls you gain reward you with currency to upgrade all your weapons and allow you to add new combos and increase your power. This system just feeds your need to play. Each passing moment you play this game draws you further into the game in different ways. Level designs, graphics, gameplay, story, character designs, and upgrades just keep pulling you in and making it hard to move on.
So, what will it be? Pick up the next game where you play the hero again or indulge in your inner villain? Play a game where you try to save people or take out your rage on angels and demons? Grab the game where you run, look for cover, and shoot or look a demon in the eyes without flinching. Then take it down with your sword all while clearing your name by finding out who set you up by breaking the oath and setting you up to take the fall while they find a way to gain enough power to take over all. Will you have the strength to battle through thousands of demons, then take on thousands of angels, and then find the traitor and face them head on? No matter if you have played this game on the PS3, as I did, test your skills and dive right back into it and find out!
