Darksiders II Preview

The Legend of Death

by Robert VerBruggen

While Darksiders wasn't quite a mega-hit for THQ, it was certainly an enjoyable, bloody romp that competently blended of God of War's combat with Legend of Zelda's dungeons. If you ever wished that Kratos would use his puzzle-solving abilities more, or that all of Link's sword-slashing would produce some gore, Darksiders was the game for you. But will its sequel, due in 2012, build on this foundation, or just retread old ground?

Plotwise, the game isn't exactly a sequel—or even a prequel—even though the original ended with a cliffhanger. It takes place during the very same time period as the first game, the twist being that you control a different one of the Four Horsemen (Death, instead of War). At the beginning of Darksiders, War was convicted of starting the Apocalypse early and sent to Earth—and Death, knowing this couldn't be true, set out to prove his fellow Horseman's innocence.

He figures that if he can resurrect humanity, he can undo what War is accused of, working out some of his own demons while he's at it. Death travels to the Nether Realms, a sort of limbo between heaven and hell, to search for evidence of what really happened and save the human race. The Nether Realms is just one of many worlds besides Earth, a fact that introduces an extra element of fantasy to the franchise.

The great thing about this plot is that by changing the location, it forced the developers to come up with all-new environments. Reportedly, Darksiders II's game world will be twice the size of the original's, with at least four cities that serve as hubs, dungeons galore, and huge, open stretches of land in between. And if War's horse couldn't fill the Epona-shaped hole in your heart during the first game, you'll be glad to know that Death's horse will be quite useful for getting from place to place.

Sengoku Hands-On Preview

Who Pulls the Strings?
by Joshua Wirtanen

Sengoku is a strategy game that allows you to take control of a noble family in 1400s Feudal Japan. Recently, we got some hands-on time with an early build of the game and got to take our diplomatic skills for a test drive. 

Sengoku is fairly similar to Crusader Kings, which isn't surprising considering both were developed by the same team. The major difference here is setting: instead of the Medieval European backdrop of Crusader Kings, Sengoku takes place in Japan's Sengoku period. You have the option to begin the game in a fictional 1467 and play from there, but if you insist on taking your strategic gaming with a side of historical accuracy, you can also select between a couple real-life historical events to kick things off. The preview build allowed us to select either the Onion War or the Kanto War as starting points.

You will begin as the head of a noble family. As the game progresses, your main character will grow old and eventually die, to be replaced by an heir. This means it is very important to make sure your character doesn't remain a bachelor for life; the end of the family line means the end of the game. Throughout the game, you will receive proposals from other noble families. To make your marriage count, you'll want to select a bride from a territory you want to get on the good side of. Family bonds can lead to good diplomatic rewards. 

But it's not all love and arranged marriage in Sengoku. The main objective is to take command of at least 50% of Japan. If you can hold over half of the nation for 36 months, you will become Shogun and win the game. Of course, this most likely isn't something you'll achieve in a single generation.

Borderlands 2 Preview

Did You Say Gunzerker?

by Josh Wirtanen

Borderlands came out back in 2009, delivering completely over-the-top cel-shaded shooter action combined with several RPG and dungeon crawler elements. It may not have been a completely flawless experience, but it was an absolute blast to play nonetheless, especially when teamed up with friends. 

Borderlands 2 was unveiled just a month ago, and it definitely looks like developer Gearbox is prepared to answer some of Borderlands' major criticisms while keeping intact all the elements that made the first game so great. 

One of the biggest downsides of the original game was that its environment remained pretty similar through the entire game. There was desert, and there was rusted metal. But Borderlands 2 is taking us to some brand new locations on Pandora, and believe it or not, the planet is not just one big junkyard of a desert. Even though different areas will have very different aesthetics, Gearbox promises the new locations will still have that trademark Borderlands feel.

Along with the new environments comes a broader assortment of creatures. Borderlands 2 seems to be embracing some fantasy elements, bringing us several creatures that are a bit dragonish in appearance. A more sci-fi enemy type is a robot called a Loader, and we've been told there are several various categories of Loader, each with its own skill set. Of course, the skags will be back, as will the classic psychos and midgets. 

While new creatures might lend a bit of visual variety to the game, without decent A.I. they could fail to impress from a gameplay standpoint. Thankfully, this is something Gearbox is hard at work on. In Borderlands 2, not every enemy will rush you like it has some sort of kamikaze death wish; now you'll encounter baddies who actually utilize a bit of strategy.