Nostalgia: Darksiders 3 - A Classic Beat ‘em Up
It's been 4 years since the release of Darksiders 3. With the demise of Vigil, the development company responsible for bringing the Darksiders franchise to life, fans weren’t truly sure that there would be a third installment at all. Yet, thanks to THQ Nordic and Gunfire games, the Darksiders franchise came back with another sequel, a new hero, and extra glimpse into Darksiders lore.
FURY: The Black Rider
Darksiders 3 takes place in between War’s torture and captivity by the Charred Council, the triad in charge of keeping the universe balanced, and Death’s return from worlds unknown. This edition stars Fury, the sister to War and Death; who is tasked with taking down the Seven Deadly Sins, an amorphic group of creatures who have somehow escaped their imprisonment in Hell and are running amok on Earth. Fury takes to her task without hesitation, stalking through a ruined metropolis and hunting down the sins one by one.
Just like it’s predecessors, Darksiders 3 is visually pleasing to the eyes. The animations and character sprites are well detailed, and the animation of Fury’s flowing hair alone does a good job of showcasing how the Unreal Engine 4 can bring characters to life. Unfortunately, the development team didn’t spend as much time on the background. The gameplay is fun and highly technical, with Fury’s dodges needing to be timed almost perfectly to activate her power up, a slow motion moveset called “arcane counter.” Although it does take some time to figure out just how each enemy attacks in their own special way, it is highly rewarding once you know how and when to dodge and counter.
As a hero, Fury comes off as vain and egotistical; a far cry from War’s humble servitude, and Death’s sense of justice. She contributes nothing to the notion of heroism outside of the fact that she accomplishes her mission for the greater good. Like it or not, she is a hero, and a pretty good one at that. Fury’s blind arrogance and extreme self-confidence gives her a personality all her own as she does what she does for her own reasons, giving zero f*cks to who does or doesn’t like her choices. Fury is the kind of hero that gamers, and fantasy fans need more of; one that isn’t going to hide who she is or what she’s about behind clichés and worn out tropes. Instead, she forces you to come to bear with who and what she is no matter the situation, and there’s nothing more badass about a hero than that. Like it or not, she’s the right hero for the occasion.
Darksiders 3: All Boss Battles from Gamer’s Little Playground <subscribe to his channel>
Story-wise, there isn’t much to Darksiders 3 in comparison to its older siblings. Outside of what is necessary to introduce Fury and her horse, Rampage, we don’t learn much else about the lore of the Four Horsemen in this addition, only a few tidbits not worthy of mention. The story in Darksiders 3 moves along without hitch, but there just isn’t much to chew on. Nothing taken away, but not much added either.
All in all, the third installment to the Darksiders franchise is a solid game. Although, the backdrops are a bit mundane, the character animations and detail is top notch. The gameplay is very involved, and the replay value is high, a must in the hack-and-slash genre. Moreover, it introduces a new type of heroine that doesn’t have to flaunt her femininity to get anyone’s attention (cliché whip excluded of course). Darksiders 3 is a game for fans of games, and well worth every penny.
Well worth a download, or pre-used purchase.
