2K Games announces The Darkness II

By Robert Purchese Published 8 February, 2011

Made by Dark Sector dev Digital Extremes.

2K Games has announced sequel The Darkness II for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

The game arrives this autumn.

The sequel will not be made by The Darkness developer Starbreeze. Instead, Digital Extremes, developer of Dark Sector, will do the honours.

The Darkness II rejoins possessed hero Jackie Estacado, now boss of The Mob, as a full-scale gangster war breaks out and his monstrous Darkness powers surface.

Those, if you remember, were voiced by Mike Powell [Surely you mean Mike Patton, you turnip brain -Ed], and comprised of tentacled heads and little dog-goblin things that did your bidding. They each had their own powers and they also talked to you.

"Sometimes that whooshing sound you hear is that of comic fans holding their collective breath. So often disappointed when a favourite character gives birth to a lame movie or videogame, us fans have come to expect the worst. And sometimes we get it," said Marc Silvestri, owner of Top Cow productions and co-creator of The Darkness comic.

"But not with The Darkness II.

"Yeah, call me biased, but this second instalment of Jackie Estacado's epic saga is – in my humble opinion – one of the most brutally cool games I've ever played. 2K Games hammered this one out of the park."

The Darkness, released in 2007, remains a dark, delicious and dastardly first-person shooter. It looked bloody good, too. What did Eurogamer think? 8/10: "Once The Darkness gets its tentacles around you, resistance is futile."

The Darkness, the original.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (39) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • fabiosooner #1 1 year ago

    By Mike Powell, you mean Mike Patton of Faith no More fame.

  • Hunam #2 1 year ago

    Yeah, who the hell is Mike Powell?

  • SAMagic #3 1 year ago

    Still trying to get round to finishing the original - it's quite difficult at points but very fun (and goddamn dark and gorey). Anyone who liked Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines will enjoy it.

  • Lunastra78 #4 1 year ago

    Actually I preferred Dark Sector to the Darkness.

  • bratmandu #5 1 year ago

    The Darkness was a gem. Never got tired throwing cars at people with a giant tentacle. More plz!

  • Coughthulu #6 1 year ago

    Seems we remember who voiced the Darkness, but you don't. :)

    Another Darkness would be nice, the original was pretty damn good.
    Edited by Coughthulu at 08/02/11 @ 13:26

  • Machetazo #7 1 year ago

    :D Great to see this have another shot at it. Anticipating first details/media!

  • AllenSpawn #8 1 year ago

    Just hope they can nail the atmosphere of the first....

  • Bertie Verified Senior Staff Writer, Eurogamer.net #9 1 year ago

    By Mike Powell, you mean Mike Patton of Faith no More fame.

    Yes I do!

    /fail

  • FreakyZoid #10 1 year ago

    I used to work for Mike Powell http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet...

  • BigDaddy82 #11 1 year ago

    Damn, another game i have to buy this year

  • asphaltcowboy #12 1 year ago

    The Darkness was one of my favourite titles early on in the console cycle... few games have achieved such a great atmosphere and feel! Slightly concerned that Starbreeze aren't doing the second one, but I live on in hope of great things! \o/
    Edited by asphaltcowboy at 08/02/11 @ 13:34

  • menage #13 1 year ago

    The Darkness was very good for it's time, it has aged quite a bit though after Bioshock and such.

    I'm cautiously optimistic, but I do hope the wolds are a bit more alive instead of empty streets with a random npc once in a while. And I can do without the WW levels. It had as many flaws as it did great ideas.

    Edited by menage at 08/02/11 @ 13:33

  • kinky_mong #14 1 year ago

    You're all wrong, he meant to say the character was voiced by Jenny Powell.

  • StolenGlory #15 1 year ago

    This makes me happy.

  • Machetazo #16 1 year ago

    @13: "I do hope the wolds are a bit more alive instead of empty streets with a random npc once in a while."
    Why, are you planning a visit? :D

  • kangarootoo #17 1 year ago

    I rather liked The Darkness.


    Dark Sector on the other hand ran low on ideas after a while, AND was one of the those cover based games where being in cover doesn't do what it says on the tin... grrrrrr.

  • Bertie Verified Senior Staff Writer, Eurogamer.net #18 1 year ago

    You're all wrong, he meant to say the character was voiced by Jenny Powell.

    Haha. Made me snort.

  • glottis0 #19 1 year ago

    Loved the story and writing in the first one, especially the ending. The bit where the girlfriend dies had me totally on the edge of my seat - one of the most memorable bits of gaming ever. Overall I found the game was somehow much more than the sum of its parts.

  • darleysam #20 1 year ago

    The first one was utterly brilliant, but I just don't see how this can top it. Sorry Digital Extremes, Dark Sector just didn't impress me the way Starbreeze have done.

  • davisorle #21 1 year ago

    Post deleted at 20:44:35 16-04-2012

  • beatwolf #22 1 year ago

    GReat news!! The Darkness was a totatally overlooked little masterpiece.

  • Roamer #23 1 year ago

    Anyone who liked Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines will enjoy it.

    So it's a dark and atmospheric RPG with a focus on backstory and involving conversations?

  • kalinichenko #24 1 year ago

    awesomeeeeeeee,glad the sequel is coming to PC.
    Digital Extremes did a great job on Dark Sector,hopefully they will with this.
    Edited by kalinichenko at 08/02/11 @ 14:00

  • slippysloppy #25 1 year ago

    Great game, glad there's finally a sequel. Lets hope it lives up to the original. I always thought a 1st person Batman or Superman game like this would rock.

  • muscleblade #26 1 year ago

    "Your problems with your uncle Louie has gone far enough. Time to take action"

  • SAMagic #27 1 year ago

    @Roamer : No, but there's a dark setting which you can roam the night whilst wielding horrifically vicious powers, with hubs and plenty of optional quests. It's not identical (and I'm not sure which is better, having not finished The Darkness) but I can see a few similarities.

  • Murton #28 1 year ago

    Think I'm up to a dozen must haves this year now and getting dangerously close to 20 if I include just wants.

    Need to score me a new job or a lottery win or I'm screwed.

    Loved the first one, think it was the first game I bought on my PS3 after my original bundle deal and still a favourite now. Been hoping for a sequel ever since, I just hope that it lives up to the first game,

  • muscleblade #29 1 year ago

    I need to quit my job to get enough time to play all the games.

  • levitate #30 1 year ago

    I never heard of The Darkness, but if you have tentacles and can do stuff with them then count me in!

  • Jonathan_Fakenham #31 1 year ago

    I liked the feel of the city in the first one, they did something right there.

  • Phantom_Dynamite #32 1 year ago

    I loved the Darkness but I would of loved this news a little more if I knew Starbreeze was still involved.

  • bdgr #33 1 year ago

    just as long as there's no horribly long load times in the subway going from place to place! I hated that, but liked the rest of the first Darkness.

  • evild_edd #34 1 year ago

    Really enjoyed the original. Not a title I went back to, and the MP was really a tacked-on after thought, but the SP story was great fun!

    Must say that my reaction to the news was:

    "2k Games announces The Darkness II" - YAY \o/
    "Made by Dark Sector dev Digital Extremes" - hmmmm......oh dear.

    I only played the Dark Sector demo which was more than enough to put me off buying that title. 5 mins showed if as the definition of unimaginative mediocrity, pinching gameplay mechanics from popular titles, but understanding of how to fully implement them in to their own title.

    I will watch this with a cautious hope.

  • AdamAsunder #35 1 year ago

    I've just completed (finally) the Darkness and thought there should be a sequel. Not too sure about Digital Extremes doing it though but I'll wait and see before I judge.

    So what exactly is Starbreeze doing then? They've been quiet an awfully long time.

  • FusionReaktor #36 1 year ago

    The original had a superb single player campaign. Really looking forward to this, just hope they don't waste time doing a pointless (and broken multiplayer)...

  • tomjoadsghost #37 1 year ago

    Its a good fit, given the bewildering corporate decisions we normally see attached to licensed games this is pretty refreshing.

    pretty optimistic for a worthwhile sequel.

    @adam assunder:- starbreeze are doing something (or possibly somethings) super secret for EA, its thought to be a reboot of the bullfrog game syndicate.
    Edited by tomjoadsghost at 08/02/11 @ 17:05

  • thefishmonger #38 1 year ago

    Good game. New Devs, please avoid the strange flashback type levels to WWI.

  • napalm68 #39 1 year ago

    The Darkness was a pretty awesome game. A very impressive early PS3 game.