I am become death, with scythes, and a gun, and shit.

As with the original Darksiders, this sequel comes out swinging with a mythos that, unfortunately, isn't as strong as it could be. Of course the environments and characters are totally badass, and some excellent voice acting really sells those personalities; but the plot, with its convoluted, Diablo-style threads, isn't super-compelling. That being said, after the intro cinematic, Darksiders II lets up and allows you to just get on with the game. Which is pretty cool.

The character-building mechanics - both level-ups, with a skill tree, and weapon/armor equipment drops - really add to the game's sense of customization, without making said customization feel too laborious; there's only one skill point per level (plus you can buy re-specs if you need them), and it's easy to equip new items without going to a pause screen. Combat moves are initially simple, becoming more complex only as you buy new abilities, which really helps the process of learning the game's complicated controls. Quest markers on the map, fast travel, a horse from the very start; Darksiders II is full of design polish, removing many of the barriers between you and the fun parts -- which are, still, dungeons and fighting shit.

One thing I am worried about though, is the overworld. On my trip to the game's first dungeon, I had to travel through a considerable length of uneventful wilderness, sparsely populated with a handful of drone enemies and a couple of treasure chests. Kind of a let-down, especially after the first "town" area had NPCs, and shops, and side-quests. Hopefully there'll be more going on as I explore the world further.

Progress: Finished the Cauldron.