While many modern games seem increasingly packed with grim, desensitised killer heroes – soldiers, ninjas, minor deities – Darksiders II skips to a logical extreme and stars Death himself. Except in this combat-heavy third-person adventure, Death isn't just a whirl of souls and scythes, he also has a rarely seen softer side, as he puzzles his way through a premature apocalypse – "It happens to lots of horsemen" – to set the universe in order again. Which, naturally, is mainly achieved by smashing things to pieces.
Darksiders II is a grand journey between heaven and hell, a mishmash of legends and biblical tropes that results in a vibrant, comic-book pile of ancient races and ruined, Zelda-style dungeons. Exploring these relies on the primary gameplay mix of fighting, climbing and puzzling, a Prince Of Persia-esque formula of fleet-footed wall runs and lever-pulling posers. A constant stream of RPG upgrades guards against boredom – Death's armour and weapons are tinkered with like some reaper-based Ken doll – and enough side quests and collectibles are packed into the expansive world to make it seem less linear than it really is. Pulled together, it's a big, meaty, end-of-world enterprise, made all the more compelling by the unexpected grace of the grimmest of heroes.
