The Darkness II Release

the release of The Darkness II in North America (and Friday in Europe).  The first game did well overall among critics, receiving an 82 on Metacritic and a Game of the Month award from Game Informer, though it did have many flaws.  The lowest critic review on Metacritic (from G4 TV) said, “I spent the entire game waiting for it to get good, to make sense, to make a case for all the incongruous elements of design, gameplay and story, and then it ended.”  The sequel received a high score from Official Xbox Magazine – 9 out of 10 – with criticism for the length of the game and issues such as reviving players.The Darkness II maintains combat similar to its predecessor, adding features like “quad wielding,” which allows the use of The Darkness and guns together.  This sequel also allows you to use The Darkness in public places.  One of the Darklings shows you useful items in boss fights and lets you kill enemies from a distance by using the Darkling’s eyes.  (Very satisfying!)  Another new feature is the ability to add to your “dark essence” by killing, urinating on enemies, and collecting hearts.  The dark essence allows you to gain new techniques from your talent shrine, such as getting unlimited ammunition for a while.While The Darkness is undoubtedly a fun series, gamers will have to determine for themselves whether the sequel is much of an improvement over the first game.  Anyone wanting a game to vent anger and frustration need look no farther than The Darkness series.  (After all, the first game was so intense that it was banned in Singapore for a while before receiving a M18 rating!)