$29.99The Darkness II Two guns, two demon arms
A first-person shooter about a New York crime boss with a hungry supernatural force living inside him. Fire two guns while demon arms grab, slash and throw. A dark, twisted crime story in a striking comic-book style, with a four-player co-op campaign on the side.
Is The Darkness II worth it?
The Darkness II is worth it if…
- you want a shooter where the powers change how every fight plays out
- you like dark crime stories with supernatural horror mixed in
- you enjoy graphic, over-the-top violence with a comic-book edge
- you want a short, focused campaign you can finish in a few evenings
- you and up to three friends want a co-op campaign with powers of its own
Screenshots
Quad-wielding: guns plus two demon arms
Most shooters give you two hands. Jackie Estacado gets four. You fire a pistol in each hand while the Demon Arms do the dirty work: snatch an enemy off his feet, hurl a car door through another, rip one apart entirely. It turns every fight into controlled chaos, and it pushes you forward instead of behind cover. You are the aggressor here, and the game knows it.
The Darkness powers only work in shadow, which gives the combat a rhythm all its own. You shoot out the lights first, then wade in. Get caught under a lamp and you are suddenly just a guy with two pistols, while enemies deliberately fight back with light as a weapon. Killing the lights before killing the men is the whole trick, and it never gets old.
A crime story that goes somewhere much worse
Two years ago Jackie used the Darkness to avenge his girlfriend's murder, then bottled the power up and tried to live with the grief. It does not stay bottled. A sudden attack by a cult-like organization called the Brotherhood kicks off a war, and the Darkness wants out.
The story was written for the game by comic author Paul Jenkins, and it plays like a modern crime drama that keeps sliding into supernatural horror. It is a personal story about loss as much as a violent one, and the quieter moments land harder because of everything around them. Multiple endings wait at the end of a campaign that stays short and does not overstay its welcome.
Four players, four sets of Darkness powers
Alongside Jackie's campaign there is a separate co-op campaign for up to four players, each taking one of four unique characters. Every one of them wields weapons infused with Darkness powers, so the same grab-and-shred absurdity of the main game carries over to the group.
It is built for a straightforward evening: join up, pick a character, and tear through rounds together. The combat is fast and arcade-like, so coordinating with friends mostly means agreeing on who gets to throw the enemy and who gets to shoot him mid-air. Dark humor included at no extra charge.
Frequently asked questions?
Can you play it solo?
Yes. The main campaign is a singleplayer story about Jackie Estacado, and it stands on its own. The four-player co-op campaign is a separate mode with its own four characters, so nothing in the main story requires other people.
How long is the campaign?
Short, in the best sense: it moves at a steady pace and ends before it wears thin. A first playthrough fits comfortably into a handful of evenings, and finishing it unlocks a New Game+ if you want to run through again with everything you have learned.
Is it scary or just violent?
Both, in different measures. The violence is graphic and constant, but the horror creeps in around it: the Darkness itself, the things it shows Jackie, and a story that keeps questioning what is real. It is more unsettling dread than jump scares.
What does it look like?
Like a living graphic novel. The game uses cel-shaded, ink-heavy visuals with strong noir lighting instead of chasing realism, and it has aged well because of it. The style suits the grim tone and makes the blood read like spilled ink.
