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In recent years the prevailing wisdom in the games industry appears to have been that delivering a product without online multiplayer is somehow market suicide.
Why that is has fuelled more Internet shouting matches than could be read in a lifetime. Perhaps it’s digital rights management, or a form of it. No doubt the exaggerated spectre of piracy loudly rattles its chains in publishing boardrooms around the world – possibly as much a go-to excuse for poorly performing products as it is a real threat to the market.
Or it could be in response to the videogame aftermarket: online passes and downloadable content have in recent years become an intrinsic part of a game’s production; frankly, transcribing the various whims, hysterias and paranoias that curiously help to inform “best practices” at games publishers could constitute a small book.
Conceptually at least, The Darkness II appears to be unapologetically shallow. Based on the Image Comics series, it’s a tale about a young Mafioso named Jackie Estacudo who is possessed by the titular evil, a literal inward struggle for his soul, and for the soul of his beloved. Internally, the Darkness promises, threatens and bargains with its host, hoping to shape his actions to its own mysterious ends. When Jackie fights, the malevolent Darkness manifests itself externally, protruding from his shoulders and taking the form of two black anaconda-like limbs to butcher his enemies.
It’s a game that revels in contrast. Here the demonically possessed Jackie is pinned to a crucifix. His effeminate good looks – high cheekbones, flowing locks, narrow jaw – are juxtaposed against the disabled grotesque who is interrogating him. This villain is in the vein of Richard III, he wishes to take the Darkness and bend it to his own evil purposes.
In another scene, it’s opulence in squalor: prostitutes behind velvet curtains to ply their trade in a derelict warehouse (“So much suffering!” delights the Darkness within Jackie). Then there's opposing depictions of the Mafia borrowed from popular media. The game indulges our romanticised notions of a quasi-religious secret criminal fraternity turned out in three-piece suits. Elsewhere they’re greaseball thugs in gold chains and jogging suits.
The Limited Edition includes:
- Custom artwork by Marc Silvestri
- Alternate darkling outfit
- 2Â Character ability upgrades
- Free Comic download of the The Darkness Origins Vol 1 and II
It's been two years since Jackie Estacado, now the Don of the Franchetti crime family, used The Darkness to kill the men responsible for his girlfriend's murÂder. He's been unable to shake the memory of Jenny's death since bottling up his supernatural power, and now The Darkness wants out. A sudden, unprovoked attack on Jackie's life heralds the start of a full-scale mob war, which has clearly been orchestrated by some outside force. The botched attempt opens the door for The Darkness to reemerge, and sets Jackie on a journey to hell and worse, as he unravels the mystery behind the attack and the motivations of The Darkness itself.
The Darkness II breaks out of the sea of conventional first-person shooters with its fervid Quad-Wielding gameplay, which will allow players to slash, grab, and throw objects and enemies with their Demon Arms while simultaneously firing two weapons. The game is layered with the use of dark versus light, steeped in deep and twisted storytelling, and engulfed in stylistic violence that is visualized through a hand-painted graphic noir technique that stays true to its comic book origins.
