Known as The Lord of Apokolips, Darkseid packs a massive punch, with eye lasers, a teleport, a head stomp, and more. Learn his moves and background details in this handy guide.
Meet the God of Evil
Darkseid is one of the most powerful villains in the DC Universe, a major foe of Superman and the Justice League. He rules the planet Apokolips with an iron fist, commanding an army of parademons and plotting to take over the universe and exterminate free will.
Originally a prince of the planet Apokolips, Darkseid (then known as Uxas) murdered his brother and claimed the power of the Omega Force. He fathered two sons: the hulking Kaliban, and Orion, who was raised off-world and became a hero rather than a villain.
Darkseid was memorably portrayed by Michael Ironside in Superman: The Animated Series and featured prominently in the animated movie Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (played by Andre Braugher of Brooklyn Nine-Nine). He is voiced by Michael Leon Wooley (The Princess and the Frog) in Injustice 2.
Stats and special moves
Base stats:
- STR — 1,250.
- ABL — 1,000.
- DEF — 800.
- HP — 1,100.
Special moves:
Omega Beams — Down, Forward + Light Attack.
- Darkseid fires zig-zagging beams across the screen.
- Notes: Meter Burn available; can press up or down to guide the attack (but it's tricky), and can be performed in on the ground or in the air.
Low Omega Beams — Down, Back + Light Attack.
- Darkseid fires beams towards the opponent's feet at short range.
Upward Omega Beams — Down, Back + Medium Attack.
- Darkseid fires beams at a forty-five degree angle towards aerial opponents.
- Note: Meter Burn available.
Palm Blast — Down, Forward + Medium Attack.
- Darkseid performs a series of three palm strikes.
- Note: Meter Burn available.
Boom Tube — Down, Back + Heavy Attack.
- Darkseid teleports behind his opponent using one of his trademark Boom Tubes.
- Note: Can be performed on the ground or in the air.
Flying Knee — Back, Forward + Heavy Attack.
- Darkseid dashes forward with a knee kick.
- Note: Meter Burn available.
Air Doom Stomp — Down, Forward + Heavy Attack.
- Darkseid jumps on his foe's head and follows up with an Omega Beam blast.
- Note: Must be performed in the air.
Character Power
Pressing the Character Power button once will summon a flying parademon. Press the button again to make the parademon fire a projectile, after which it disappears. If Darkseid takes a hit before firing the projectile, the parademon will disappear without firing a shot. If he does not take a hit or fire the projectile, the parademon will fire on its own after a short time.
Darkseid can summon two alternate types of parademons, as well. Hold left while pressing the Character Power button to summon a green minion (pictured) that uses a Boom Tube to deliver a melee blow to opponents. Hold right while pressing the Character Power button to summon a red parademon that explodes in a fiery blaze at close range.
Darkseid impressions
Injustice 2 ships with 27 characters unlocked by default, with one additional villain, Brainiac, that unlocks upon the completion of Story mode. The twenty-ninth character, Darkseid, was initially offered as a preorder bonus. Now that the game is out, he can be purchased for $5.99.
The number one thing the Lord of Apokolips has going for him is power. Every one of his hits packs a massive punch. Jump in with an aerial Heavy Attack and you can follow up with a Palm Blast or other moves for massive damage.
Every hit counts with Darkseid. That's good, because he also moves quite slowly. Try to land a ground bounce (Death's Boot) or backhand (Dismissed) on a watchful opponent, and they'll usually hit you first. The key is to catch them with another move first, or time your attack around the slowness of his swings.
Initially I dreaded Darkseid's lumbering fighting style. But once I got used to him, I really started to enjoy the sheer power he brings. It's like playing as Zangief in Street Fighter, but you have projectiles and don't need to rely on complex special move inputs.
If you like Darkseid as a character or just crave more playable characters in Injustice 2, you'll get your six bucks' worth from this character.
Join the Windows Central Guild!
One of Injustice 2's most exciting features is the addition of online guilds. Upon reaching player level five, anyone can join a guild or create their own. Members earn Guild XP for every match, which contributes towards free Guild Mother Boxes for everyone in the guild. You get rewards just for being in the guild and playing.
Of course we have our own guild on Xbox One, and we'd love for you to join! Once you reach level five, select Guilds from the main menu. Search for us by Guild ID JQ5PC. We look forward to fighting with you!
Injustice 2
If you haven't picked up Injustice 2 yet, what are you waiting for? In our review, I remarked that "the amount of single-player content in Injustice 2 is unprecedented" and called it "a fantastic sequel." Anyone with a love of DC characters or fighting games needs to play this game.
Injustice 2 is available on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 for $59.99.
