I was going to write a normal review for the Abyssal Forge, the latest piece of Darksiders II DLC and the first piece of DLC released under the season pass banner, but then I couldn’t figure out how I was going to take my criticisms of the last DLC and rephrase them for this DLC. I mean, sure, I could have done that, but I simply don’t want to. Plus, I don’t see that being particularly interesting for any parties involved.
If you want an extra hour, maybe hour and a half, in the world of Darksiders II and don’t mind that the enemies are all reskinned versions of stuff you fought in main game, by all means, download it and enjoy it. Sure, there’s new loot and if you’re not up to level 30 yet, I’m sure the experience points will come in handy. For me, though, there’s no reason to play this DLC, and, I’m guessing, the next piece. The carrot that the game dangled in front of my face for so long is gone and with no new carrot, there’s no reason to play, not when there are so many games currently filling up my backlog. I was willing to let the lack of any real challenge and lack of additional achievements go for the first DLC, in the hopes that these things would be offered in subsequent packs, but not so for this one. I’m not saying that there isn’t worth in playing the DLC just for the joy of exploring more dungeons, but for my Death, the only way I’d get a challenge would be to equip myself with crappy weapons and if I have to make my character less badass to enjoy your DLC, any interest evaporates quickly. Oh, and that level cap raise that was promised when the season pass was first announced? Yeah, nowhere to be found. Whether that’s a result of a dropped feature or a bug, I have no idea.
Like I mentioned before, if an hour in another dungeon interests you, then have at it. Me, I have so may new gaming experiences just waiting to be discovered, that my game time, both for fun and for review, is better spent elsewhere.
I’m going to try to make this off-topic comment seem relevant by tying your final line, that your game time is better spent elsewhere, to your Twitter comment that Assassin’s Creed Liberation is awful.
Because seriously, it’s AWFUL.
I don’t understand how this game scored higher than “Miserable Waste of Time” anywhere outside a dream sequence. The regressive game mechanics are bad enough, especially the one forcing players to micromanage notoriety for three pseudo-protagonists instead of just one. It’s also slow, obtuse, and *shockingly* buggy.
“The Lady” cannot climb. At all. That includes knee-high steps, for the record, so make sure you give the city docks a wide berth anytime Aveline appears in a dress. Those minor drops are an impassible death trap.
She also has the ability to Charm lonesome guards, mutely beckoning them to follow a few paces behind her for a few minutes and…er, do nothing whatsoever. Is she supposed to lead them someplace quiet and stab them? Why not just quietly stab them right there?
Lowering the Lady’s notoriety is supposed to be accomplished by murdering witnesses around town. Surely stabbing guys is something an Assassin’s Creed game can do correctly, right? Nope: roughly half the time, Aveline will go through her little execution animation, a few pixels of blood will spray out of the mark…and then he’ll drop to a wary pose and become immune to attack.
There’s so little ambient sound, the voices sound like they’re straight out of the recording booth. I honestly thought there was something wrong with the speakers when, wandering around town, Aveline’s tinny footsteps were the only audible sign of life.
I can’t make heads or tails out of the pickpocketing system. It has something to do with locking onto a target, entering Focus Mode, and swiping around the rear touch screen, but I have absolutely no idea why it sometimes works, sometimes fails, and always admonishes me for not having done it better.
Enemies circle for minutes on end without attacking. The Counter button often does nothing at all. Characters glitch between prone and standing, alive and dead, randomly during battle. And with four hours under my belt, I couldn’t tell you a thing about where Aveline comes from, where she’s headed, or why on earth anyone should care.
This game is disastrously bad. Everyone here should stay far, far away.