GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links.

Check Out Darksiders 2 Definitive Edition Comparison Images

See how the game's visuals have improved.

144 Comments

Ahead of the game's release this winter, Nordic Games has released the first comparison shots for Darksiders II: Death-initive Edition, showing how much the game has improved since we last saw it in 2012.

Check out the two images below; the remastered version is on the left, while the original is on the right. Be sure to use the slider to compare the two images and note the differences and improvements.

The Darksiders II Death-initive edition runs at an improved 1080p resolution, but there are also character model changes and new lighting effects.

"When we thought about what we wanted to do for the Deathinitive edition of Darksiders II, obviously we wanted to run in native 1080p and increase the resolution of the textures," design director John Pearl said in a statement. "Additionally, we decided to rewrite the renderer to be physically based like a lot of other current generation game engines."

"What this means visually is metal, leather, stone, and skin look and respond to light as you would expect them to in the real world. This new rendering method meant we revisited every texture and surface in the game, reworking and re-authoring them for the new renderer. To take full advantage of these texture changes, we've also gone back and relit the entire game."

Outside of the visual upgrade, the new version of Darksiders II comes with refinements to the game's balancing and loot distribution systems. Also included is all previously released downloadable content.

Leading development on Darksiders II Death-initive edition is Gunfire Games. This studio is staffed almost entirely by people who worked on the Darksiders franchise at creator Vigil Games before its closure. The game launches this winter for Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

Looking ahead, Nordic Games--which acquired the Darksiders franchise from THQ when the company went bankrupt--has said it has plans for a third game in the series.

Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com

Join the conversation
There are 144 comments about this story