Darksiders 2
Reel Time Mechanics:
in the game you can:
light attack,
heavy attack
jump
ride your horse
talk to npc
shoot
grab object
In Darksiders 2 there are several action mechanics, walking, riding, attacking, and jumping. Each of these movements can be altered based on a combination of presses between the actions button and another actions button. The basic idea behind a combo.
The movement and jump mechanics have real time control. Jumping riding and walking all responds within 100ms and allow for a sustained correction cycle. They accept input through the entire arc of action. Walking allows for 360 degree movement that snaps instantaneously to where it wants to go, however riding does slow down the effect of changing direction. Controls still act in real time however there impact is dramatically slowed (ie. it takes time to turn the horse the turn begins immediately but it takes time). The movement controls are in real time.
The attack mechanics are isolated into three basic buttons light, heavy, and gun. These mechanics have interrupted continuity. each button plays through an animation that changes the shape of the avatar. The response time to button presses are instantaneous however for certain attacks there is a slight lockout as the player must wait for the animation to end. This is an odd case in that sense though as the light attack button activates this but only when stringing together combos, say the third attack pushed in succession. The heavy attack does this on the first button push for certain styles of weapons (such as a large hammer). However the game allows for the “queuing”
of commands (inputting multiple commands to be preformed in succession) and given the speed at which attacks are carried out this often can give one the illusion of real time without necessarily real time being achieved. This however is not a continous correct cycle and therefore attacking is not in real time.
The jump mechanic allows player to be launched into the air at the push of a button. While in the air control is drastically limited but a player may alter their trajectory and even initiate attacks. This means that the jump command never breaks the continuous correction cycle and therefore is in real time.
Simulated Space:
Darksiders 2 makes an attempt at simulated space and it does work fairly well for the game. There is a large amount of space to explore in the fairly open world. One may revisit dungeons, look for powerups, or even go to the hub town and talk to npcs. The game contains no invisible barriers which is nice. However it does create natural barriers that can give the game world an extremely limiting and linear feel to it. It does however provide a good example of simulated space.
Polish
The polish of Darksiders 2 is everything we have come to expect from a game with such a high budget. Attention to detail is high, the player makes a dust cloud when he lands from a jump. Characters particularly the main character experiences subtle shifts in appearance based on player actions. The combinations of sounds, music, particle effects, and attack interactions all emphasize the interactions of the objects.
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