Darksiders Genesis (2019)

This title represents a bold step for the long-running Darksiders franchise, shifting away from the traditional third-person action-adventure formula and embracing an isometric, top-down perspective reminiscent of Diablo or Torchlight. This prequel to the original Darksiders manages to capture the series signature mix of hack-and-slash combat, puzzle-solving, and heavy metal-inspired world design while adapting it to a new gameplay style. The game follows the horsemen War and Strife, with the latter making his playable debut. War, known for his brute strength and swordplay, contrasts perfectly with Strife’s agility and dual-pistol combat.

Particularly speaking I paid zero attention to War on this game, despite it being an amazing character, simply because Strife is way more fun to play around with, and works better for this kind of gameplay. You can freely switch between the two characters in single-player mode or team up with a friend in two-player co-op, either locally or online. This dynamic creates a satisfying blend of playstyles: War’s close-range power suits crowd control and boss fights, while Strife’s ranged attacks provide precision and mobility. The combat system, while streamlined compared to previous entries, remains fluid, fast, and immensely enjoyable, offering a great rhythm of melee combos, dodging, and ability use.

Visually, it maintains the series trademark comic book-inspired art direction, with bold lines, exaggerated proportions, and apocalyptic landscapes teeming with demonic enemies. Each level offers a mixture of combat arenas, hidden paths, and environmental puzzles that reward exploration. The music and sound design complement the tone perfectly, blending orchestral and heavy guitar tracks that intensify major battles and boss encounters.

The game’s story takes place before the events of the first Darksiders, exploring the early days of the Horsemen’s service to the Charred Council. It follows War and Strife as they hunt down a demon prince named Lucifer, who is plotting to upset the balance between Heaven and Hell. While the plot isn’t groundbreaking, it provides enough intrigue and personality to sustain the adventure. The banter between the two protagonists is a highlight, Strife’s witty, sarcastic humor plays well off War’s stoic seriousness, giving the duo a fun “buddy cop” dynamic that keeps cutscenes entertaining.

Despite its strengths, this game isn’t without flaws, the isometric viewpoint can occasionally make combat or navigation feel imprecise, especially during sections requiring platforming or tight jumps. The story, while entertaining, leans more on humor and action than emotional weight or character development. Some people may also find the loot and customization systems lighter than expected, especially if they’re coming from loot-driven action RPGs. Still, these shortcomings are balanced by the game’s brisk pacing, satisfying combat, and creative level design.

Ultimately, this game succeeds in delivering a compact but stylish reimagining of the franchise. It may not match the grand scale or narrative ambition of its predecessors, but its focus on fun, fast-paced gameplay and cooperative action makes it a standout entry in its own right. It’s a testament to the flexibility of the Darksiders universe that such a different approach can still feel authentic to its roots. Whether you’re a long-time fan or a newcomer looking for a well-crafted action game, it is still an easy recommendation since it has a ton of replay value.

This is my second Airship Syndicate game after Battle Chasers: Nightwar and for what it is, it's solid. It's a run and gun twin-stick shooter-esque with dungeon crawling and RPG elements.

The story is mediocre, but you're mostly in it for the fast-paced gunning. And while you can play as War with a massive broadsword, the game is most fun when playing as the gun-toting Strife, who makes his first appearance in the Darksiders franchise. So, if you're playing co-op, flip a coin for Strife?

Character customization is decent, with enemy orbs dropping from each enemy type that allow you to customize your abilities to make for different builds.

The game is broken up into 16 levels, with a handful of them being boss battles only, making the game fairly short, with little replayability beyond going for the platinum trophy. That being said, each level is designed really well with huge maps, including fun mini bosses, platforming sections and puzzles that break up the gameplay

While critics might think of this as an "objectively" 3-star game, any game I play long enough to enjoy getting the platinum trophy deserves 4 stars from me!

It's a sad thing really. I didn't enjoy Darksiders 3, and I enjoyed this even less. I don't even feel compelled to play it through in it's entirety, and instead opted to end at the beginning of the second chapter. There's just too much other good stuff to play to waste my time on a mediocre game with good art.

~David.

As a fan of the series, I can't give 2 stars to the title, but I feel really disappointed. I like the characters, but it has an odd start. Ok, that's a spin-off so you're supposed to know at least a bit of how the gameplay works, but you can't just pop me inside the game without a tutorial. I'm not a lover of tutorials, but give me the chance to understand how controls work. I got bored of it in the prologue so I felt the need to drop it, I couldn't have fun. You get a horde, you beat it, and stop. There's no fun in it. You don't even know you have "super power" moves, you just get to see them by randomizing some combo buttons.

I'll try to play it again in the future, hoping to get away from the boredom that I felt.

Darksiders Genesis - First Impressions

I was honestly expecting to drop it outright after the first hour, but thankfully it actually started to show its cards before the refund period ended. It’s not exactly what I’d say is a good hack and slash, but it’s a competent one insofar. It has solid charm to its banter between War and Strife, strong fundamentals in terms of strafing around enemies and dashing between danger zones, and some neat setpieces.

It’s far from cohesive though, the aesthetic isn’t very good to me, and the visual information in general is kind of a mess. It’s got really solid enemies (my favorite so far is a mage that can deck half your health on Hard, which you really should play on) and fantastic animations, but it isn’t particularly deep.

Good enough at a bargain I’d say, but I’m putting this one on ice for a while. It’s alright