Film critic Roger Ebert was quoted as saying that, “videogames are not an art form.” It was a statement that many folks out there will more than likely agree with. Videogames have come a long way since Pong. They have evolved from simple lines and dots to fully interactive forms of entertainment that are slowly bridging the gap between it and movies. The Darkness is a perfect example of how this fusion is coming together; combining a narrative that’s not your typical save the princess or save the planet type of deal, with dark characters, a complex storyline, and a visual flair that rivals most films. The result is a motion picture that you control, complete with all the fancy trimmings offered in a Hollywood feature film. The only difference is that you won’t have time to eat any popcorn because your hands will never leave the controller.
gameplay
Developed by Starbreeze Studios (the same folks that gave us the brilliant Chronicles of Riddick a few years back), The Darkness is based on the cult comic book series from the late 1990’s. This stylized first person shooter centers around a mafia hitman named Jackie Estacado, who has been engulfed by a supernatural entity that has given him demonic abilities. This works in Jackie’s favor since his kingpin uncle has put a hit out on him, and every wise guy in New York City is looking to gun him down. Think of it as The Sopranos meets The Evil Dead.
The Darkness has one of the best opening sequences you’ll ever see in a videogame. Period. You wake up in the backseat of a convertible driven by two thugs as you go through the Holland Tunnel with no recollection of how you got there. All hell breaks loose as the cops begin to pursue and before you know it you’re in the center of a major chase-shootout, with bullets flying and exploding cars sailing over your head and bodies everywhere. If you’re not completely immersed after all this, you really need to find another hobby.
As he dual-wields two pistols Chow Yun Fat style, you follow Jackie as he attempts to unlock the mystery of what the hell has happened to him and why his uncle is out to kill him. Periodic cut scenes will feature Jackie telling his side of the story while he’s still attempting to piece things together. These little episodes are very effective mainly because the actor providing Jackie’s voice has a very stern manner of speaking which commands your attention. The controls follow the standard FPS (First Person Shooter) rules, with the left and right trigger controlling the corresponding guns Jackie holds. What makes The Darkness really stand out are the extra abilities our anti-hero can harness whenever his guns are useless.
When needed, he can summon one of his four darkness powers that have possessed his soul to eliminate his enemies or perform various tasks. The Creeping Arm allows you to spawn snake-like tentacles, which can be used to slither in and around tight spaces to shut down power units and open doors. Then, there are the Dark Guns, which fire a powerful blast that eliminates foes with one shot. Next, is the Demon Arm that rips enemies in half with one thrust. Lastly, there’s the Black Hole. This creates a portal that sucks all baddies in its path into it. These abilities can only be used in darkness, so destroying every light source around you is always a priority. Once you have eliminated your enemies and stand over there fallen bodies, the tentacles shoot forward to rip through their corpses and tear out their hearts, swallowing them whole. The more hearts you devour, the more energy the darkness has.
In addition, whenever a hellish portal appears in the ground, Jackie can enlist the help of one of four different troll-like creatures called Darklings. Each of these Darklins feature a different talent. One will rush thugs and eliminate them with various tools such as saws and sledgehammers, the second totes a machine gun and works side by side with you in a shootout, the third acts as a suicide bomber, and the fourth destroys all light sources to help you battle in the dark. These guys will come in handy at certain points in the game, especially when the action gets heavy and you need back up.
Jackie travels through a dark virtual New York City, which while not completely open-world, does offer enough atmosphere to set the mood for the game. There is no car jacking, so your primary means of travel from one section of the city to the other is via subway. Keeping with a cinematic style of gameplay, there is no HUD (Heads Up Display) or any permanent icons on the screen (just as in Chronicles of Riddick). You interact with characters who will feed you information about where you should go and who you should meet. Also, littered all around the environments are scraps of paper with phone numbers. Whenever you reach a payphone you can dial these numbers to either gather info about what to do next or receive random bonus points that will unlock features from the main menu, such as cinemas and concept art.
The art direction perfectly adds to the gameplay, because the city and subway system was designed to resemble the gritty 70’s cinema flick seen in movies like Taxi Driver and The Warriors, rather than the glossy tourist attraction NYC has become today. Interiors are lit with dim lights and when you get outside you’ll never see the sun, because nightfall appears to be permanent in this world. Most buildings you encounter can be accessed, but interacting with objects is limited to their purpose in the story. All the characters in the story are shady, even an old lady on the subway platform will tell you to “screw off” if you approach her. In many ways these interactions may remind you of Shenmue, because in between the action you can always hang with the locals and see what’s going on.
The AI is decent. If you’re in a room and shoot out a light, a bunch of baddies will come gunning at you in the dark. Taking too many hits causes your view to turn bloody red, alerting you to find cover to regain your strength. The one feature missing from Jackie’s bag of mystical tricks is a shield, because you would think that a supernatural force would be able to deflect mere man-made bullets. It would have also been nice if he had a night vision ability, because when you kill all the lights in a room, it’s seriously dark and you’re shooting blindly at times to kill enemies that you can hardly see.
Things do get kind of weird in the storyline, where you go from fighting mobsters to drifting back in time to battle Nazis. But in a game with this premise you have to accept that for what it is and let’s face it, killing Nazis is always fun. With the exception of a couple of side missions, this game is pretty linear and can be knocked out in less than ten hours. There is some really cool stuff hidden within the game, such as feature length public domain movies such as To Kill A Mockingbird, Flash Gordon serials, Popeye cartoons, and a couple of Sonny Chiba Street Fighter movies from the 70’s that can be watched on any TV Jackie comes across in the game.
If you’re a fan of survival horror games or psychological thriller themed games like Condemned, The Darkness is a well-crafted package. While not revolutionary, it does offer thrills, interesting gameplay, and visuals that will keep your eyes glued to the screen.
graphics
The Darkness is interactive film noir and it looks superb. This is one of those games that must be played on an HDTV to get the full experience. The attention to detail in the environments is top notch right down to the gleaming earring in Jackie’s girlfriend’s lip and the cracks in the pavement of the subway floor. It’s not attempting to be photo-realistic and most of the characters look very cartoon-ish, but remember, this is based on a comic book. A lot of the character actions do repeat themselves, such as when Jackie enters the train and the same people sit or stand next to him. There are also some issues with characters standing in your way and blocking your path in the subway station, but none of this is enough to diminish the gameplay.
sound
Crank up the 5.1 surround sound and let the sounds of this dark city fill your room. Besides the basic gunfire and explosions, you’ll also hear some comical dialogue between characters if you sit back and listen. The voice work in this game is excellent, matching the visuals to give you a true film-like experience. It’s especially creepy when the darkness speaks and his demonic voice echoes through your speakers. This is one to play with the lights out and the volume up.
replay value
The solo campaign mode of the darkness is solid and provides a satisfying experience that stands on its own. Multiplayer seems to have been tacked on as an afterthought, because it’s the weakest part of the game. Up to eight players can duke it out in your basic deathmatch, team deathmatch, or survivor modes, with the only gimmick being that you can transform from a human to a darkling. These games are plagued with so much lag that it is more frustrating than fun.
bottom line
We’re going to see a lot of games like this in the next couple of years. That’s a good thing, because with the power of the new consoles and the unlimited imaginations of game designers, the line between movies and games is slowly fading. Some may bitch and moan about a game that can be knocked out in a weekend, but quality over quantity does make for better gameplay. Nowadays, when most companies crank out games that are generic cut and paste jobs, Starbreeze deserves a big round of applause for creating a unique game that was handled with so much care. Do yourself a favor and get a copy of this game.
Review by: Johnny McNair
Posted: 08/14/2007
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Gameplay:
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9.0 |
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Graphics:
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9.5 |
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Sound:
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8.5 |
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Replay Value:
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7.0 |
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Bottom Line:
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9.0 |
