Jackie Estacado has got some serious skills at his disposal.

When he unleashes the Darkness — the presence that consumes him inside and grants him extraordinarily destructive powers — there are few gaming protagonists that can match his mixture of melee attacks, combined with awesome gunplay.

Following on from a successful first outing a couple of years ago, the sequel turns up the gore to 11 as your pair of Demon Arms make light work of the enemies you’ll encounter throughout a host of deliciously decrepit environments in the solo campaign.

The more stylish your kills, the more ‘Essence’ you’ll earn to help you upgrade further, with the likes of insect swarms and black holes waiting in the wings to be added to your arsenal.

Only your sensitivity to light perforates your chances of progressing through the levels, particularly when enemies fight back with flashlights and light-emitting grenades, but that all makes for the thrill of the chase in an absorbing action title that, while gratuitously gory, has great gameplay credentials behind the blood to back it up.

5/5