Darkman

"Action Liam Neeson and the World's Most Difficult Platformer"

Darkman was probably the first pre-Star Wars title in video game history to allow a gamer to control Liam Neeson. That is, considering plans for that Schindler's List game on the SNES fell through. Now, I truly enjoyed the original film Darkman - it's like a gritty comic book come to life, and that feeling even surpasses that of director Sam Raimi's later effort, Spider-Man. The plot itself is pure comic book: A scientist develops a synthetic skin that can only survive under an amusingly arbitrary time limit of ninety-nine minutes – and then he just happens to be involved in a mob plot that leaves his face burnt to a crisp. Why, it's the perfect opportunity to use his experiment! I live for that kind of stuff.

So, considering that video games thrive on the plots of comic books, Darkman should have been the perfect contender for its own NES game, right?

If you're one of those rare individuals who prefer their video game adaptations to be faithful to their source material, then for God's sakes, look elsewhere. The Darkman game has its plot points all out of order, and takes all of the logic that existed in the film and tosses it right out the window; considering the movie's nature, that's really saying something. Why would Darkman disguise himself as his enemies if he knows that they know he's coming? How could he masquerade as a one-legged man when he only has synthetic skin at his disposal? But never mind – video game adaptations weren't faithful to their parent plot until long after the advent of the N64 – not even GoldenEye could stay true to the original movie, for gameplay concerns.

The graphics are surprisingly good when considering the limitations of the system. Backgrounds are expansive, and obvious care was taken in crafting the sprites – I loved the fact that when you disguise yourself as Skip, the one-legged henchman, you're left constantly hopping around, even when you're standing still. However, in the same token, the sprites contain a major flaw – when you are disguised as your quarries, you are dressed exactly like they are when you face them at the end of the level. It wasn't a problem for me, personally, but be sure to keep track of your character as you fight the identical bosses.

The music is unabashedly NES, but manages to hold a little interest. Be aware, however; that statement speaks more for later levels. Early in the game you'll get acquainted with what is apparently "Darkman's Theme," which is so repetitive that it begs for a mute button. Unfortunately, the sound effects bide just as well – it's average platformer fare, with a cute little "bloop" when you jump, and an annoying “skidding” noise every time you stop walking – and I do mean every time.

The game certainly gets a few points for innovation. Although most of the game is the stuff of average platformers, it manages to pull a few punches with its helicopter and photographing levels. If anything qualified the movie for a video game version, it was the idea that photographing of a subject determined the quality of mask. It's sort of like an early version of Pokemon Snap. That is, if Pikachu was packing an AK-47.

The controls are so-so. Darkman runs in the direction that you want him to run, but he can't jump worth crap, truly unfortunate considering the ridiculously precise maneuvers you have to perform to proceed through the game. You'd best be prepared to take a running leap across platforms; otherwise you're headed straight down. One of the odder aspects of these controls is that your physics change slightly with every level you start and identity you take, as if the very fact that you are dressed as Smiley means that you also possess his amazing ninja jumping skills.

I'm going to be honest with you – I didn't finish this game, because it's so bloody difficult. This was partly due to control problems, but more for the fact that the enemies' AI quickly switches from "pathetically easy" to "murderously hard" in between levels. I eventually quit at the point where Darkman was wandering around a hilariously stereotypical Chinatown, where those damnable ninjas kept kicking me into inconveniently placed rivers.

Overall, this game gets an "A" for effort, but considering when this game was made – 1991 – enough advances had been made in the 2D platformer genre that the various problems here could have been easily avoided. If you like Darkman and are looking for classic gameplay, you could certainly do a lot worse – but you may want to pick up a Capcom title instead. There'll be no Darkman, but you'll probably end up being a lot less frustrated.

This review of Darkman for the NES is Copyright 2004, Ian Pugh.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 11/15/04, Updated 11/15/04