Bullets and Body Parts Fly in The Darkness II

Jackie Estacado is in a bad way. The last time we saw him Jackie had taken over a criminal empire and gained control over the Darkness inside of him. But the love of his life, Jenny, had been killed at the hands of his enemies. Jackie was a man with truly nothing to lose. The Darkness II shows us Jackie two years later. The pain of Jenny's death haunts him, but the Darkness hasn't manifested itself in a while. That is, until now.

The beginning of the game finds us right as Jackie is forced to make yet another deal with the evil powers lurking within, showing us what a man with insane power and nothing to lose is truly capable of. The scene opens up with Jackie, the leader of his own mafia crew, getting attacked in an unprovoked assault. You don't really know who is attacking or why, but the assault leaves Jackie battered on the verge of death. Out of necessity, the Darkness is awakened, seizing control and wreaking havoc on Jackie's would-be dispatchers.

The Darkness II Video Preview

Pulling off executions is definitely one of the coolest elements of the Darkness II's combat. After stunning an enemy with gunfire or by throwing something at them, you can snatch them and hold them in the air, then perform some pretty gnarly kills. These moves will net you health or ammo, as well as some extra essence points, which can be used at certain spots to purchase new talents for Jackie. Pulling off these moves looks pretty sweet, complete with beheadings, ripping in halfs, and other extremely brutal moves.

The levels in Darkness II unfold in a fairly linear fashion, but in between missions you're taken back to Jackie's house. Here you have the opportunity to speak with some of your compatriots and your Aunt Sara in order to gain more information and backstory on the past two years since the events of the first game.


Whereas you had a handful of Darklings at your disposal in the original game, The Darkness II will give you only one. However, your Darkling buddy (outfitted with a Union Jack shirt and a thick cockney accent) is very handy. He'll offer assistance and know-how when fighting bosses, attack enemies, and even pull off some of his own kills. There are even some points in the game where you'll take control of him in order to pull off some recon-style missions. The Darkling mechanic may have been scaled down a bit from the original game, but it definitely feels a lot more natural this time around.

The most striking change in The Darkness II is the new aesthetic. The game utilizes a cel-shaded look but manages to avoid coming off as cartoony. Instead, it feels like a polished and detailed comic book. Solid lighting effects and details like motion blur make this a great looking game.

The Darkness II's campaign promises to be a pretty sizable improvement over the original game. The action is fast and intense, the execution system is absolutely brutal, and the story driven elements will no doubt please fans of the original game and of the comic. The Darkness II is almost upon us, and from what we've played, it should be a more than worthy successor of the original. Look for a full review of the game when it launches next month.


Steven Hopper is the Executive Editor for IGN's Xbox channels. Check him out on MyIGN and Twitter.

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