GameFly is running a huge digital sale this weekend, including some of the most popular franchises from the biggest publishers. Missed out on the original Mass Effect or the Call of Duty: Modern Warfares? Now's your chance to try them out at a huge discount.

Read more: As much as 70 percent off »

The second century of Weekend Confirmed begins with a corker. Coin-op TV's Rob "Pennyman" Welkner joins Jeff, Ariel, and Garnett for episode 101. They've been playing games like Alan Wake's American Nightmare, Syndicate, and the Darkeness 2. With countless hours invested in Skylanders, Rob helps shed some light on how this unlikely game became a breakout hit for kids of all ages. Discussions also take a look at why we play games that make us curse at the screen, whether Mass Effect 3's day-one DLC is a must-have for the "complete" experience, and Sony's explanation and apology for not offering the PSP UMD "Passport" transfer service to Vita owners outside Japan. All that and more before Finishing Moves puts the exclamation point on the show.

Listen: Weekend Confirmed Episode 101 »

Having been offered up exclusively to Xbox Live Gold members last week, a ritual demonstration slice of demonic shooter The Darkness II is now available to all manners of minions and fiends on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. As well as letting you see just how The Darkness 2 plays, 2K has also unleashed something showing nothing of the sort: the cinematic launch trailer.

Watch: Pre-rendered demons and naughtiness »

A demo for The Darkness II will be hitting in just a couple of weeks, but even sooner if you happen to be an Xbox Live Gold subscriber. The trial will be available on January 24 on Steam, PlayStation Network, and Xbox Live Marketplace. However, Gold members can snag it next week, on January 17.

Read more: European PSN release comes a day late »

In this day and age, every first-person shooter needs an online multiplayer mode--they don't necessarily have to be competitive, though. The Darkness II will have reason for an online pass via a newly-announced cooperative mode called "Vendettas." This four-player online adventure is described as a "dark comedy" that runs in parallel to the single player story. While you won't assume control of Jackie and The Darkness, you will be able to play as one of four cohorts--"enemies of your enemies"--created specifically for Digital Extreme's game.

Read more: Four players, four powers »

"What is this? A Final Fantasy game?"

That's the surprised quip I made as I saw the skill tree you had access to in The Darkness II. While it may be an FPS, the developers at Digital Extremes have implemented an XP system to encourage playing in the most ruthless way possible.

"We didn't want players to just sit back and snipe," I was told during a hands-on demo last week. While every kill will earn you some XP, it's the up-close and personal kills that award the most points. For example, impaling a goon by throwing a spear through his chest earns much more points than an old fashioned head shot.

Read more: Turning bodies into bombs »

2K Games is following the strategy employed by many other publishers as of late. All pre-orders of the upcoming FPS The Darkness II will be upgraded to a "Limited Edition" for free. Yes, it will be "limited" and "while supplies last." In spite of the first game having sold a million copies.

Many of the bonuses added to the bundle are digital, such as an alternate darkling "Crazy Abdul" outfit and two character ability upgrades.

Read more: Other digital downloads »

What is the Darkness, you ask? In case you missed out on the original game... or your memory is fuzzy from 2007, 2K Games has released a three minute video that covers all the basics. You'll learn exactly what the Darkness is, and who Jackie Estacado is. You'll see how Jackie's relationship with the mob gets a bit messy to say the least, thanks to his demon arms.

Just be warned: the video is not for the queasy. Who knew humans were so... fragile?

Watch: 'That's just the way the Darkness likes it' »

Put away your "Welcome Back" party-favors for Jackie Estacado, because the protagonist's latest adventure has been pushed to 2012.

Today, 2K Games revealed that the PC and all consoles versions of The Darkness 2 from developer Digital Extremes, have been delayed until February 7 in North America and February 10 in Europe. The game was originally scheduled to launch in early October.

READ MORE: Comic-Con plans and reasons for delay »

In the competition for the title of E3 2011's Most Violent Violence, so far Ninja Gaiden 3 and The Darkness II are well out in the lead. The E3 trailer for Digital Extremes' follow-up to Starbreeze's supernatural shooter makes an excellent case, with people being ripped in two, cut in half, crucified, impaled with pool cues hurled by demon tentacles, and goodness knows what else.

You'll also find fine demonstrations of The Darkness II's mixed dual-wielding system, and the so-called "quad-wielding" you get when demon tentacles are thrown into the mix too. Plus, of course, there's more splendid growling from Mike Patton, the voice of The Darkness itself. Read more »

The Darkness 2 will arrive just in time to terrorize gamers before Halloween, 2K Games announced today. The upcoming first-person shooter based on the comic series of the same name from Top Cow Productions will launch for the PC, Xbox 360, and PS3 on October 4 in North America. The game will arrive on October 7, internationally.

The Darkness 2 is currently in development at Digital Extremes, which recently developed the PC version of THQ's Homefront. Read more »

Three years after The Darkness was introduced to gamers around the world, a very different looking sequel is in the works from a completely different developer.

Canadian developer Digital Extremes now steers the ship labeled The Darkness 2, adding a graphic novel flair to the visuals and focusing on the personal story of Jackie Estacado. Read more »

It has been nearly four years since the last time gamers were able to control "The Darkness" as hitman Jackie Estacado. Since then the game has shifted developers from Swedish-based Starbreeze Studios to the Canadian dev team at Digital Extremes. If gamers were worried that Digital Extremes would be unable to deliver a standout sequel in the comic-adaptation franchise, all signs currently point to those fears being completely unfounded.

The Darkness 2 takes place two year after the events of the original game. Jackie Estacado is now the Don of his crime family but is still haunted by visions of his lost love, Jenny. "Jackie sees Jenny everywhere," Sheldon Carter from Digital Extremes explains. Though it's still a source of his pain, Estacado remains powerfully possessed by the evil Darkness--a source of tremendous power. Read more »