With the dissolution of THQ in 2013, one of the franchises left in the lurch was Darksiders. In 2010, Darksiders was the breakout, sleeper hit of the year. However, the franchise has not been able to continue since the release of Darksiders II in 2012. Nordic Games acquired the franchise, but there has been barely a word of its fate since that time.
Hope came in the form of a Facebook post by the franchise’s creative director, Joe Madureira, in May. Joe “Mad” declared that Darksiders is “not dead” and said, “Nordic seems very committed to continuing the series. As far as my involvement, I can’t say at this point. Hopefully we will all have exciting news about the franchise soon!!!!!!” His words were encouraging. Later, a rep for Nordic Games followed up Mad’s post with the following statement (via Rock, Paper, Shotgun): “With regards to Darksiders 3: Of course we’ve always been busy in the background, talking to a lot of former team members about a continuation of the series, but we are not ready to announce anything officially. Joe Madureira is spot on in saying that DS is not dead and we are committed, though. Before we can say something about the ‘how’ and ‘when’ of publishing/financing the sequel is concerned, we are still busy in properly figuring out the ‘who’ part of this large-scale project. All I can say is that we can and will not settle for second-best solutions in the case of Darksiders.”
The confirmation that the Darksiders series could continue is promising. Nordic Games’ head appears to be in the right place. It is encouraging to see the company looking to retain the former team members of Vigil Games, who developed Darksiders and Darksiders II, to work on a potential follow-up. The series had a tremendous storyline that begs for a continuation. Questions need to be answered, and climactic battles need to be held between incredible forces.
If we do ever get to see Darksiders III, some specific things need to be done. Since the franchise already had to endure the bankruptcy of its publisher, Darksiders III really needs to be an all-or-nothing dramatic conclusion that delivers on all the promises of the original. Joe Mad’s involvement is an absolute necessity. The unique artistic style and creatures he designed for the franchise are among some of my favorite elements of the series.
While I enjoyed Darksiders II, the game felt like a step backwards in terms of story. Darksiders ended in a tremendous moment. The disgraced member of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, War, breaks free from the treacherous Charred Council. Despite the fact that War will be seen as an enemy of both the armies of Heaven and Hell, the Seventh Seal was destroyed, summoning his other Horsemen brethren. Unfortunately, Darksiders II did not continue off of that moment, and instead told a type of in-between story following War’s brother, Death. The expectations of the first game’s awesome epilogue were not fulfilled.
A new game would need to fully introduce and incorporate all four members of the Horsemen: War; Death; Strife; and Fury in the narrative. This means the game must be a true sequel to the first Darksiders. No more side stories to establish the other Horsemen in separate games. There might never be another chance to dilly dally around. The story must continue. Death succeeded in restoring humanity to the Earth, so it is likely that the Horsemen might have to unite with humanity to strike back at Satan, the Charred Council, and perhaps even the Heavenly Host. If there is time, use story DLC to show what Strife and Fury went through during the events of the original game.
As a new-gen game, Darksiders III should incorporate the entire Horsemen group as playable characters. When I say all-or-nothing, that means a massive, epic title where all of the Horsemen are available to play. I have been eager to play as Strife and Fury since I first saw their character designs.
The recent Darksiders news was encouraging, so hopefully there is hope for the franchise. Darksiders was a great melding of dungeon RPGs and hack and slash action games. It is a world I am avid to explore yet again.