Playstation Revamped :: Database :: Reviews Database :: Reviews :: The Darkness Author Topic: The Darkness (Read 354 times) Twelfth Crusader Devil [AWD]0102050613[M0n:1000] member is offline Enough is Enough! I have had it with these Motherfucking snakes on this Motherfucking plane![Mo0:13] Joined: May 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 838 Karma: 6 The Darkness « Thread Started on Jul 31, 2009, 12:18am » Review Title: The Darkness Type: Videogame Genre: First Person Shooter Review: Developer: Starbreeze Studios Publisher: 2K Games Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Genre: First Person Shooter Players: 1 - 8 Release Date: 29th June 2007 (EU) – X360 20th July 2007 (EU) – PS3 If you haven’t played The Darkness then you may think that it is just another First Person Shooter but I assure you that you are wrong. In every aspect The Darkness is more than a typical FPS. The gameplay, story, music, character, narrative and world are all better than what you will normally see in FPS’s. Right from the start I knew it was going to be something special and I was right. I better point out that the story is a key focus in The Darkness and I assure you that there are no spoilers in this review. The introduction to the game is excellent. When it starts Jackie Estacado (Your character) is in the back of the car with two other mobsters. You’re on your way to collect some money but things don’t work out all too well and on the way they the cops start chasing you. The other two mobsters are getting worked up by this while Jackie stays cool and calm while reloading a shotgun very slowly. When it’s finally loaded you start shooting cops from the car which really gives a good feel for the game and is a good way to open it. After a while though, the car crashes and you are left by yourself to get the money. The first thing I noticed about the movement was that it felt like it had weight to it, it feels like you are actually moving and not just a floating pair of arms (This is helped by being able to see your body when you look down. The game is really immersive and it feels like you are a person. It manages to be very cinematic as well which is quite a feat since most games are just cinematic or immersive, not both. Anyway, when you’re just about to get the money you are instead given an unpredictable 21st Birthday present from your Uncle Paulie. Shortly after this you receive your Darkness power. The combat is a mixture between using the Darkness and guns. Both work really well but the Darkness doesn’t really come in handy until you get the later powers. You start off with only being able to use one demon arm which you can control and move. This allows you to stay hidden while using the arm to take out enemies which is very handy but it doesn’t work well in the midst of combat. The later powers, all work well (Though I never used the third one very much). The other demon arm is very useful for killing enemies as you can just stab them with it and then throw them away. You can also pick up cars! You are also able to summon Darklings which are basically your minions and throughout the game you unlock different kinds of them. Even though the Darklings can be useful you can’t really rely on them to do much. Don’t think that you can just stick to only using the Darkness powers; you need to have enough Darkness energy to use the powers which you obtain from staying in the darkness. If you have you arms revealed in the light the power will drain. There is no metre to tell you your energy, or health, level which again adds to the immersion. Now onto the guns which are very solid and stylish. It feels like you are holding a gun, it’s something to do with how Jackie holds them in the game and how they feel when you shoot them. The aiming is generally just auto aim and it is fairly easy to lock and to enemies heads and blast them but it still feels solid. It still manages to be challenging too though and there were a few bits that can be really difficult, especially if you don’t make use of both the Darkness and your guns. On the topic of gameplay, The Darkness has two main areas: the city and the other place. I’m not saying what the other place is since I don’t want to spoil the game for anyone. The city is split into multiple areas and is where the majority of the game is set. You can use the subway trains to travel around and there is a fair bit of freedom but it isn’t GTA. There are a few streets in each area but if you decide to go around and explore you won’t find much to do. There are a few side missions though which are good to break up the game and offer something different, even though they mostly ask you to go and kill people. There are a few ones that don’t though such as getting coins off a subway track before the train hits you. The other place has a completely different atmosphere and mood. It plays in the form of a survival horror for the most part and is generally quite creepy. It mostly tells the story of the Darkness and how it came to be. Both places are done really well, the city has superb level design and the other place has a really creepy atmosphere. The gameplay itself is awesome but the story is where The Darkness really shines (Well not really, since it’s in the dark). It’s not just the story but the character, narrative, music and immersion is what gives The Darkness the edge over other FPS’. The story can be split into two main areas: Revenge and the Darkness. I’ve mentioned how the origins of the Darkness are told in the other place but it is really well done, there are some very well done scenes that show this. The revenge plot is done incredibly well and really did have me hooked from start to finish. The character really adds to it as every character is interesting and has their own input to the story. You really will grow to feel for Jackie, especially after what the Darkness and other people do to him. It is told really well too. There is the main narrative which is told throughout the events of Jackie but every loading screen has Jackie doing something, normally talking about something. This really does add a lot to both the character and story. It was a really good idea to do it like this as it allows you to get a better understanding of the story without it feeling out of place. As well as all that the music really adds to the atmosphere in the game and seems to always play the right sounds at the right time. The game is really cinematic too which is due to the great story and visuals. However at the same time it manages to be really immersive and it feels like you are in control of a proper character that moves like he should. The visuals are still top notch, even though the game came out in 2007. The lighting in the game is really good but normally you will try and destroy any light source and remain in the Darkness. The voice acting is also done really well. Mike Patton does an amazing job as the Darkness and Kirk Acevedo is great as Jackie. The single player in The Darkness is fantastic but there is also a multiplayer mode. Now I can’t really comment on this because nobody plays it. I managed to get one game with one person. It was fun but it clearly is more of a single player experience. Controlling the Darklings in multiplayer is fun though. There are very few problems with The Darkness. Like I just mentioned, the multiplayer isn’t anything special but you won’t be playing this for the multiplayer anyway. The only other bad thing is the way the A.I. act when they see the Darkness. If you saw a guy with big, evil looking tentacles with mouths what would you do? Well, I wouldn’t shoot it like an idiot; I would run the hell away. I understand that this would make it too easy but it would have been good to have really felt like you were an all powerful being that could scare people off. Some enemies should have tried to run to make you feel this way. The Darkness had me hooked from start to finish. It really is a spectacular game which has so much more than most traditional FPS’. It has great gameplay but is also a really cinematic, immersive experience with an amazing story and great characters. Final Verdict: + Incredible story and character + Controlling the Darkness is awesome + Both of the worlds are designed really well - Multiplayer could be better - It would be good to see some better reactions toward the Darkness 9/10 « Last Edit: Jul 31, 2009, 12:25am by Twelfth Crusader » Link to Post - Back to Top   Logged Clicky teh siggy. NapalM Rookie [AWD]01020605 member is offline [Mo0:0] Joined: May 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 516 Location: Los Angeles Karma: 5 Re: The Darkness « Reply #1 on Aug 20, 2009, 6:37pm » Blam Damn right on review. This game was the most fun ive had in along time, The story is amazing, the graphics are pretty tight, the darkness is amazing, the arm things and the devouring of hearts just gets me goin ever time. I give the darkness a 9/10 only because multilayer is weak and idr if any one even played it. this one is up there high on my fav games list. Link to Post - Back to Top   Logged Dienekes Member member is offline Hightech thinger majingers ftw[Mo0:17] Joined: May 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 218 Location: Afghanistan Karma: 10 Re: The Darkness « Reply #2 on Aug 20, 2009, 11:55pm » Tbh, it sounds a lot like a cross between Darksector and Overlord. Link to Post - Back to Top   Logged NBK*Twitch Devil [AWD]0105 member is offline [Mo0:0] Joined: Apr 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 724 Location: right here Karma: 0 Re: The Darkness « Reply #3 on Oct 19, 2009, 7:25pm » I remember playing this game. It was pretty cool. I do think the multiplayer sucked though =[. 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