The Darkness

"So there is Darkness and...what was that game by Insomniac?"

The Darkness is a very unique first person shooter for the PS3. Unique really is the best word to describe it, at least in a nutshell. At first, you think you are playing one of Grand Theft Auto's many spin offs, but in the first person. As you progress, you soon realize this is certainly NOT the case. Many people seem to write this game off as either a generic FPS, or budged game because it pretty much came out of nowhere. With exception to an ad in a few game magazines…I personally would not hove known this game existed. However, I would go so far as to say I enjoyed this game better than Resistance.

Graphics
The graphics in this game are crazy good, and they are in 1080. The animations of the characters movements are perfect. The hand and body motions done while each character is talking really look realistic. Unfortunately, here is the games first, and arguably worst flaw. The mouth animations for when they are talking are so bad; I would go so far as to say that there AREN'T any talking animations done. It's not quite that extreme, but it is a shame to see such good detail done in the movements and almost none in the facial expressions. On a brighter side…the shadow/light effects are great. This is very good because a lot of the game play is based on staying in the shadows.

Sound
The voices are all great. Everyone has the Soprano style Italian accents that really add to the whole gangster atmosphere. The voice of the Darkness itself is done very well, a true demonic sound to it. The trains in the subway, the explosions, and the gun shots, all are pretty realistic sounding. There is some good music too, but it's the voices that truly shine.

Controls
FPS controls on a console are never 100%. First, there didn't seem to be any option for motion control, which could be good or bad. Second, generally, the controls aren't too bad. The L and R buttons are used for shooting the guns…in your right or left hand. All movement is done by the analog sticks…the digital buttons are used for other things. Most commonly…the digital's are used to select your “dark” mode, more on that later. You can also summon demons to fight for you...choosing which one with the arrow keys. The chief complaint is that the aiming is a bit iffy, because sometimes if I move up…it goes up too far…move it back down…its down to far…all of this while I'm being shot at. The other problem is that with your demon arm…while attacking is not hard…if you want to lift something up and move it…it's a bit of a pain.

Game play
The game play is really hit or miss…you will either love it or hate it. The game starts out like your basic shooter. However, it quickly evolves into something way more unique. You get these Darkness powers that allow you to do some crazy things. One is creeping dark, which lets you extend a snake-like arm to see and/or kill people around corners and such. Another is the demon arm, which you lash a tentacle out at a person or object, and then you can throw whatever you pick up. Next, there is the “Darkness Guns” which are basically guns that have an unlimited amount of ammo provided you stay in the darkness. Finally, we have the Black Hole. The black hole's name says it all…problem is…it's rather difficult to use. You will spend most of the game using either Creeping Dark, or the Arm.

The whole game has a, dare I say, “Deus-ex” feel to it as you walk around NYC going to various places. The events don't actually happen till you get to the place you are needed to go to continue with the story. There are various side quests for you to take. You can help your buddy fend off some muggers…help an old lady find her lost jewelry, and various other mini quests before proceeding with the main story. One problem with this…is that you only have about 3 or 4 total blocks of NYC to work with. So if variety in the level design is an important thing for you…it could be an issue. However, each time is slightly different, so it shouldn't be noticeable.

This game has good lighting…and for good reason. You need to stay in the dark as much as possible. Lights can either be switched off or broken. The “Darkness” inside you is afraid of the light. When you summon demons to help you, they need to be kept in the dark as well or else they die very quickly. In fact, there is a special demon that specifically destroys lights. The other 3 are the kamikaze, the berserker, and the gunner. The names are pretty self explanatory. However, you should note that the Berserker is also used to open up doors or windows that you otherwise can't reach, as well as killing everything that moves.

The physics are pretty good as well. Almost everything that isn't nailed down can be moved with your demon arm. The best is when you lift up a car and then drop it on a bunch of people. The scenes where you are in a car or other vehicle seem very real too. Although, there isn't much recoil on the guns…at least enough for me to notice, and that is NOT realistic, especially for the bigger guns.

The two best things in the game are the body language animations and the voices. Not to mention the dialog is great in some areas. Some good examples are: “I like music…and I got no music to listen to…so let my buddy play the harmonica”, “Don't go in there…I mean people come in and never come out…and there is something really ****** up about this place”, “Come out and no one gets hurt…at least, no one worth giving a **** about”. The animations of the people as they talk are top notch. If people are freaked out they are visibly shaking…they point to the person or object they are talking about…and wave their arms angrily if they get frustrated.

There is multiplayer, however, its nothing to go on about. It's just the same as any other first person shooter. The core of the game is in its single player.

Story
The story is the bread and butter of this game. You start out as a boy who just turned 21 and your “uncle” try's to kill you. Well…ok then. Thankfully, on the same day, the “darkness” inside you comes out and rears its ugly head…quite literally. Well, actually its two heads…but the point is that you now have demonic powers that allow you to totally kick everyone's ass from the Bronx to the Battery. The game then has a few moments that can be compared to Godfather. You soon sort out your enemies and allies alike…all the while trying to protect your girlfriend and fight off this “darkness” that is trying to consume you. Then things get a little interesting…if they weren't already. You get transported to this mysterious “other” world. Without giving any spoilers away…let's just leave it at that. It just gets crazier and crazier after that, but that is a good thing.

Then ending isn't great…but cool. Of course it hints at a sequel, what else is new. Overall, the game was about 9, maybe 10 hours. While some could argue that, that's not long enough for a full game with prices being what they are now…I say different. Those 10 hours are simply amazing…you will be glued to your PS3 controller, and the TV screen, until you finally beat the game.

So while this game does have a few issues…they don't take much away from this otherwise great game. It was a very unique experience…I highly recommend this game to anyone of the FPS genre, it's a shame this game is not on the PC.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 02/27/08

Game Release: The Darkness (US, 06/25/07)