I’m a big fan of most FPS shooters although I will admit that many fall into the same category, simple run-and-gun gameplay with bigger and better guns as the game rolls on until you finally beat it. Which honestly is fine for me, I enjoy even the most mediocre FPS games.

However every once in a while I’ll play a FPS that stands out from the rest with new mechanics, a unique location, aesthetics or an intriguing storyline. The Darkness ll combines all of these attributes and is the first FPS game I’ve ever played with quad wielding mechanics.

Yes that’s right, you can QUAD WEILD weapons in this game!

You play as Jackie Estacado, the head of a mob crime family that possesses a bizarre secret, an invincible demon called “The Darkness” that makes Jackie an unstoppable killing machine who cannot die. The Darkness talks to Jackie in his mind and manifests itself as two demon-head tentacles that rise out from behind Jackie that the player can control to violently rip enemies limb-from-limb, slash or throw objects and use makeshift items as a shield, all while leaving both of Jackie’s human hands free to hold weapons.

So you can be dual wielding an UZI & desert eagle in your hands while simultaneously slashing and hacking enemies with your demon arm tentacles. It’s a wild mechanic that works so well and makes the player feel like a unstoppable killing machine.

There is also an RPG-style skill tree for The Darkness powers that lets you build out new moves and attacks as the story progresses. Once you fully max out a skill tree Jackie becomes an over-powered juggernaut with demon powers, it’s a blast.

Another unique aspect of the game is the art style. The entire environment is cell-shaded which gives the impression of playing through a graphic novel or comic book. Even on the very dated Xbox 360 the game looks great. The voice acting is spectacular as well, certainly on par with the AAA titles. Brain Bloom (current voice of BJ Blazkowicz) does a great job as Jackie and all the supporting characters are fluid and believable with natural dialog.

The storyline is intriguing and I won’t go into any major spoilers, but as you progress through the player is constantly left wondering “are any of these events true or is it simply a decent into madness?”. It keeps you guessing and really creeps into your head unlike other games with a more generic story.

There are also multiple endings, none of which were very satisfying in my opinion but its clear the developers were setting up for a sequel that never came to fruition.

There are a few drawbacks that I wanted to briefly touch on. A major mechanic of the game is that “The Darkness” powers can’t come out in the light, so much of your time is spent trying to avoid or shoot out any light source like overhead lights, street lights, flood lights ect. It’s a cool concept but becomes tiring quickly.

I also ran into a handful of bugs on the Xbox 360 version, some were game breaking to the point where you would have to reload your last save point to progress. This I figured out only after spending 10 minutes running around, frustration building as I figured I was missing something when it was the game that was broken.

The game is very short, which doesn’t bother me but I know many players expect more considering you can 100% the game and side missions in around 10-15 hours.

Overall I highly recommend The Darkness ll for its unique gameplay, cool art style and captivating story. If you are a fan of dark FPS then this game is a must-play.