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Darksiders was one of the last generation’s hidden gems, a dark, beautifully designed pastiche of several other action-adventure titles. Planned as a four-part series, the franchise only got as far as Darksiders2 before publisher THQ declared bankruptcy in 2011, and its intellectual properties were sold off piece by piece. Most people who’ve played Darksiders were probably disappointed that THQ fell apart before the planned quadrilogy could be completed, as the two games we got were both highly entertaining, enjoyable action titles.

Each of the Darksiders games tells the story of one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and the first centers on War. War and his brothers act as enforcers for the Charred Council that maintains the balance between Heaven and Hell, keeping them in check until the third faction, humanity, is strong enough to provide a challenge to both sides. As the game opens, War finds himself called to Earth as Angels and Demons fight their way through the streets of a nameless city, but the squishy humans who reside there are no match for either. Clearly, he’s been summoned too early.

War fights his way through the streets until he comes up against a demon he can’t defeat, as it seems something is sapping his powers. He’s knocked unconscious and wakes up before a tribunal, accused of being the one responsible for kicking off Armageddon too soon and dooming humanity.

The story takes itself completely seriously, but there’s a disconnect between the heavy-handed narrative and the exaggerated visuals, and it can be hard to tell if Darksiders is being sincere or has its tongue planted in its cheek. The use of Christian end-times mythology as a backdrop for the story works well, and the chunky, colorful Joe Madureira designs resemble decked-out characters in World of Warcraft. Everything is edgy and over-the-top; there’s not a treasure chest in the game that doesn’t have at least three skulls in its design, and War’s enormous sword is known as the “Chaoseater.” Although this can feel overblown, it’s still fun. It gives Darksiders its own charm.

Darksiders borrows heavily from some of the best titles in the action and adventure genres, and although it’s imitative, it comes together to be more than the sum of its parts. Much of the gameplay is borrowed from The Legend of Zelda series, with dungeons that must be explored to find tools that aid in exploration and can also be used in combat. Beating a boss upgrades your life bar, and you literally collect the creatures’ hearts after besting one. The overworld’s visuals resemble Gears of War in their greyish-brown defiled beauty, and bosses might remind you of God of War or possibly Shadow of the Colossus. There’s even a dungeon later in the game that borrows ideas from Portal, with an item that shoots orange and blue rifts at special targets. You’ll come across some genre clichés, but for the most part, they’re fun ones. (A large, slow-moving elevator? Sure hope a bunch of mooks don’t jump in and start whaling on me.)

As I mentioned, neither the audio or the gameplay have been altered for this re-release. Thankfully, neither of these needed any changes. Liam O’Brien gives War a stoic, world-weary voice that sounds like he’s constantly holding back his rage, and Mark Hamill lends the Watcher the same voice as his Fear Feaster character from Adventure Time, basically Joker without the mirth. The boss’s voice lines are too few and spoken too frequently, but it’s a minor annoyance you probably won’t notice if you don’t get stuck on a boss fight.

I did run into some minor problems. During the first couple of hours, lip syncing didn’t quite match up during cutscenes, though this did self-correct after a while. Even though I was playing with a controller, the mouse pointer showed up center screen whenever I was shopping, no matter how many times I moved it offscreen.

Darksiders still holds up exceptionally well, and it’s easy to recommend. It’s not quite as fresh and exciting as it was in 2010, but I still think it’s something everyone should try out. If you’ve played it before, it’s worth revisiting. If you haven’t, it’s a solid adventure that’s well worth your time.

Verdict: 8/10