Darksiders III – Furiously Frustrating or Sinfully Satisfying?
The third entry into the Darksiders franchise introduces Fury, seven over-the-top sins, an open world full of secrets, and a lot of swearing from unskilled players.
After years of waiting and wondering if we’d ever see another Darksiders game following the bankruptcy of THQ back in 2012, Darksiders III has arrived. With an arsenal of weapons at her command and a single-minded determination, Fury heads to Earth on a mission to defeat the Seven Deadly Sins. It’s a challenging, sometimes frustrating, but ultimately satisfying hack-n-slash rampage through the apocalypse.
The story so far
At the beginning of Darksiders, we see War arrive on Earth because he believes the apocalypse has begun. But the Seventh seal, it seems, wasn’t broken and he really shouldn’t be there. Then a pissed off demon kills him. He’s “saved” by the Charred Council (big lava skull guys) who accuse him of starting the apocalypse early, siding with Hell, and being generally uncool. We press pause here as War’s brother, Death, decides to go fix shit by clearing his brother’s name and restoring humanity to life. He gets incredibly lost and ends up nowhere near Earth, but it works out in the end. Right around this same time, Fury is summoned from whatever empty world she’s stuck on spending quality time with her horse. The Charred Council sends her down to Earth to capture and return the Seven Deadly Sins because they’re apparently actual beings. It’s probably rough to have one trait define your entire life, but this isn’t a philosophical exploration game. War tries to warn her that it’s all a setup, but as he’s chained to the floor and not the most erudite guy to begin with, she pays him no mind. We’ll find out what Strife is about next game, but for now, he’s otherwise indisposed. Then the rest of the original Darksiders game happens. So playing it first is kind of a spoiler–thanks, guys.
Let’s go on an adventure!
Tracking down the Seven is Fury’s primary goal, but along the way, she’s inevitably roped into other quests. The Maker, Ulthane tasks her with finding and teleporting any surviving humans to the safety of his forge. She’s forced to align herself with a figure known as the Lord of Hollows that serves neither angel nor demon. And through tragedy, she’s driven to uncover the betrayal that War tried to warn her about. There are enough plot hooks to keep me entertained as I traverse the open world maps in search of hidden loot.
Darksiders III is a return to a simpler time. A time when protagonists had mouths and discernable expressions. The team at Gunfire Games has abandoned the loot-heavy, RPG approach of Darksiders II in favor of a predictable weapon upgrade system. Combat mechanics have been pared down to dodging and attacking with an emphasis on well-timed dodges that allow for powerful counterattacks. If perfect timing and analyzing attack patterns is your thing, you’ve got this. For me, it leads to a lot of swearing as I continually dodge too early or too late. I’m grateful that there’s nothing keeping track of the number of times I died during boss fights.
The world of Darksiders III has a Metroidvania feel to it. From the very beginning, areas tease the promise of items for the taking if only I had some new power to reach them. And so, because I’m impatient, I found myself retracing my steps after gaining each new ability. The payoff, of course, comes in the form of materials for further upgrades, enhancements for weapons, or surviving people in need of saving. And while there are fast travel points to be found throughout the world, the lack of an in-game map does make it difficult to quickly return to unexplored areas.
The biggest problem for me is the weapon upgrade system. Apparently, Fury’s weapons are made of adamantine because Ulthane needs a lot of it in various forms to upgrade stuff. And since it’s limited, I’ve been hoarding it and holding off on upgrading all but one weapon. Choice paralysis is a thing, guys. But honestly, I only have the ability to max one weapon with the materials I’ve found so far. Similar issue with the enhancements, but our merchant friend Vulgrim sells some of the materials. You know, the guy that trades in and also feeds on souls you collect. Am I the only one that thinks he’s creepy?
tl;dr – is it good?
I appreciate that this new installment of Darksiders isn’t exactly like either of the games before it. Those differences help me feel that each of the Horsemen have their own style and personality. Fury’s journey is full of rage, grief, compassion, and a metric fuckton of snark. I’ve loved every minute of it and kept coming back despite my lack of combat prowess. Darksiders III is a gloriously worthy addition to the franchise.
