Darksiders

War, one of the Four Horsemen

Developer: Vigil Games
Publisher: THQ
Released on January 2010

Darksiders is inspired by the idea of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse from the Book of John in which was stated that there were seven seals held by God. Opening the first four of these seals will bring out the harbingers of destruction, heralding the Last Judgment. These creatures ride horses of different colors and symbolize events leading to the Apocalypse. The four beings come out in the following order: Conquest (riding the white horse), War (red horse), Famine (black horse) and Death (pale horse). Collectively, they are called the Four Horsemen.

The Watcher and War on Ruin

The Story

In Darksiders, the player takes on the role of War. The mythology behind the Four Horsemen is slightly different from the one in the Bible.

Heaven and Hell have been in a constant war with neither one gaining enough advantage to secure victory. Because of this stalemate, the Charred Council was created to serve as a bridge between the two factions. Its aim was to secure balance in the world. It was the Charred Council who created the Four Horsemen to serve them in times of disaster. The Horsemen will act as enforcers of the Council.

In time, a third party emerged---humans. Because humans were frail, the Seven Seals were created and will be broken only when the Endwar between Heaven and Hell begins.

When War appeared, he thought that the final battle has started but he learned from the angel Abaddon that the last seal has not been broken yet and that he was the only one of the Four Horsemen who arrived. The humans have all but vanished on the face of the earth.

The demon Straga killed Abaddon and defeated War. But War appeared before the Charred Council and was accused of starting the Endwar. The Horsemen were supposed to be neutral but the Council claimed that War is fighting for Hell. War insisted he had no hand in the disaster and he did not know why he was summoned even when the seventh seal is still intact. He asked the Charred Council to give him a chance to clear his name. The Council agreed to let War find the real perpetrators but he will lose all his power and will be bound to The Watcher. The Watcher will follow him closely but will only interfere, and even possesses the power to destroy him, if he forgets his mission.

Samael

Gameplay

Darksiders is a third-person hack and slash game. War has physical and magical combat skills.

The world, now destroyed by the premature war, is divided into several areas that can be visited later. Some areas become accessible only after War acquires certain weapons or abilities to unlock the passages. Once the area is unlocked, War can travel easily. Traveling involves hurdling environmental puzzles, fighting warriors both from Heaven and Hell, and collecting items like the artifacts. War has to climb, jump, swim and fly. War has a phantom horse named Ruin which he will be able to summon later on.

Some fights can last longer because puzzles are incorporated in the chase.

War replenishes his health and mana by absorbing souls from defeated enemies. The souls can also be used a currency when purchasing from Vulgrim.

His main weapon is the Chaoseater but he can acquire other weapons later in the game, both melee and projectile weapons. Once the enemy has weakened, a prompt appears for a QTE.

His magic attacks are divided into four, namely; Affliction, Blade Geyser, Immolation and Stoneskin. Collectively, they are called Wrath powers. When unlocked, he can also use a form known as Chaos when the Chaos meter is filled.

Items and upgrades are purchased from Vulgrim, a demon merchant recommended by the Charred Council. He appears in specific locations on the map that need to be unlocked. Later, he will also provide War a way to travel faster through the Serpent Holes. 

Ulthane/Black Hammer and War

Darksiders reminds me of God of War and Dante’s Inferno. All three have used elements in religion in creating the stories. In terms of gameplay, Darksiders was more fun overall because of the variety of obstacles I had to overcome to beat the game.

The puzzles were harder, the bosses were more difficult to beat and the map well-planned. I did not have to pass through an area once but I had to explore the nooks and crannies just so I would not miss anything. Some areas after all can only be opened later so it was easy to try to remember the map. I like how it maximized the use of the environment throughout the game, not a site you just pass through and forget. The puzzles in particular were fun because they were as challenging as those found in Prince of Persia.

I enjoyed fighting as well because of the variety of enemies I encountered. I had to cycle through all the weapons and magic abilities to find the right one, never relying on just one approach to attacking.

War was not exactly the type of character you’d remember even after you’re done playing. There was no emotional appeal and so I was not particularly attached to the story.

The music and graphics were both good. I like how the different environments were planned. I went through an abandoned human city, the desert, and a lake of fire.

Although it was obviously made in response to the success of the God of War franchise, Darksiders can stand on its own. When it felt alright spending hours playing a linear game like this, then it must be good. It’s such a shame that both the developer and publisher are now defunct (Nordic Games has acquired THQ and is now known as THQ Nordic) and they were not able to complete a series.

Rating: 9 out of 10