239: Journey Into Darkness

[TraumaHound]

While the article was one big-fat-spoiler (does it count as a "spoiler" if the game is 3 years old?) I'd never known anything about the game other than it was based on a comic but after reading the 3-page recap I'm sold on looking for and playing through this game.

 

[Aurora219]

The storyline of The Darkness is indeed one of the best in FPS history. I say this because it's not the best storyline ever, but then again I've not seen many FPSes that even bother trying!

Unfortunately the game itself is pretty so-so. It's a fun run through but it's not an earthshattering experience in terms of actual gameplay. I completed it once and I've not looked at it since.

 

[The Random One]

Hells yeah, the Darkness. I love it. I actually ended up buying a collection of the first few issues of the comic to compare (yeah, I know you can see them on the game, but I couldn't read the blasted things on my tiny TV). It's awesome how in the comic Jackie is pretty much the quintessencial 90's antihero, and the only thing that bothers him about the whole being taken over by a demon thing is that he can't have sex, and when they made the game they switched the whole thing around and made him a much more humane character. And Jenny is right up there with Aylix in the scale of well-rounded female characters. As a matter of fact, I think there are few characters in videogames that are just as human as she is. (One that comes to mind is universally rated Roman Bellic. He, too was a deep, realistic character, and as is rare in videogames his body language often carried the weight.) Her reactions during the scene of her death are pretty much perfect - they frame him first as a spunky girl, than as merely human. (It's also telling that Estacado's reaction to this is shooting himself in the head without hesitation. Can't think of comics Estacado doing that.

Although that kiss scene trampled over the Uncanny Valley in a rocket-powered monster truck. I don't think kisses work in first person games! The character's mouth is clearly supposed to be by the TV that is sitting halfway across the room, as well as twice the size of a human head!

(And the gameplay was also cool. The first time you manage to shoot down one guy while impaling the other in the heart with your evil spikes of evil... I hope they get a sequel so that the story doesn't end up hanging.)

 

[Firia]

Logan, I'm very glad you took the time to talk about The Darkness. I feel like it was the most underrated game of the advent of the new generation. It wasn't just an advance in graphical technology, it was a masterpiece of story telling. Moreso than Metal Gear, more than most other games that strive to combine gameplay with compelling story.

I've played through the game TWICE at seperate times. Each time took me a week to beat, savoring the story every step of the way. I see used copies sitting at EB games for less than 10 dollars, and I shake my head that people that aren't in the know aren't snapping that golden deal up.

@all, if you haven't played it, The Darkness is fantastic.

 

[Firia]

I hope they get a sequel so that the story doesn't end up hanging.)

It's an old google find, but a man in Starbreeze studios suggested heavily that they were working on the sequel. I haven't heard anything, but I also hope for the same.

I kinda wish Yahtzee would have reviewed it properly rather than the demo. Granted, he'd probably have pooped all over it anyway. But some people make their purchases based on his say so. After his demo review, I can't imagine he convinced anyone that it was a worthwhile game.

 

[BlackieC]

Great article for a great game. Another one I'll mark down for a replay someday. Shame the online multiplayer sucked huge dino balls

 

[Jumplion]

Hmm, this does make me think that I shouldn't have passed up this game, though when I played the demo at the time it was hardly breathtaking for me and all I saw (from it's marketing at least) was gun-shootn' action and such. Didn't seem like a game I would have enjoyed.

That and I never knew about the comics it was based off of.

Either way, an interesting read, though it feels kind of arbitrary to go back and play it now for some reason.

 

[Firia]

I'll have to pick this game up at some point if I see it in the bargain bin,

You're in luck! There has never been such a bargain. [http://www.ebgames.com/Catalog/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=65698] Local EBs will likely have the same thing in your choice of system.

 

[fozzy360]

The Darkness is still one of my top ten favorite games of this generation. The story was incredibly well told, and the vo's were well done. What also worked was the writing, because very little of it felt corny or unrealistic. It's a total shame it didn't sell as well as it should have, but it is nice to see it get some recognition every now and then. Maybe more folks will get exposed to it and pick it up.

Great article, though.

 

[Loop Stricken]

I wonder; does anyone have any info about the planned sequel?

You're in luck! There has never been such a bargain. [http://www.ebgames.com/Catalog/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=65698] Local EBs will likely have the same thing in your choice of system.

By Grabthar's hammer... what a saving.
Just a shame so many of the achievements are multiplayer.

 

[bjj hero]

The Darkness is a masterpiece of this generation. Storytelling has never been so well done in an FPS.

You will not find immersion like it. As the article says, you really start to care for Jenny, when you first get your new power you find it awesome and love using it. Then when it shows its true self and stabs you in the back you despise it.

The demons, although stupid had real charm. Each one had its own charecter and was quite disturbing. The visit to pergatory is genuinely twisted and leaves you feeling uneasy for the duration.

What I found interesting was how hollow your revenge felt at the end.

A fantastic game that everyone needs to play through.

 

[undeadfly]

the Darkness was one of the three games I bought with my xbox 360. It is now one of my favorite games eva!

 

[ranger19]

I'll have to pick this game up at some point if I see it in the bargain bin,

You're in luck! There has never been such a bargain. [http://www.ebgames.com/Catalog/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=65698] Local EBs will likely have the same thing in your choice of system.

I like! At that price, how can I not pick this up! Thanks!

 

[shadow skill]

One thing I would like to point out is that the Darkness doesn't really restrain Jackie to prove that it can when Jenny is set to get shot, it is more concerned with simply removing anything that will keep Jackie from turning to it. I also find it interesting that Starbreeze chose to make the Darkness more adversarial than it is in the comic. The comic presents the Darkness as a much more passive entity, in fact the tag line is "Jackie Estacado is The Darkness." over time his bodily functions are being subsumed by the Darkness itself. The last time I checked he isn't even able to eat food any more because the Darkness has taken over his digestive tract.

 

[Sennz0r]

and a boss fight you win by not fighting (something that took me ages to find out, and was a surreal experience).

Really, which one was that because my memory fails me at the moment...
EDIT: Found it. Indeed you don't fight him per se

The Darkness is a great game. I played through the story 3 times and sometimes I still feel like playing.
I can't say I really hated The Darkness (the creature that is). I can remember being pissed at it for not letting me stop Paulie from shooting Jenny, but eventhough I did spend that one "level" with her watching tv until she fell asleep I didn't feel that great a connection to her just yet. Events after that sure did help raise sympathy though.

There's no doubt The Darkness is the cruelest creature I've ever encountered in a videogame, and I'm fairly certain it took great pleasure in making Jackie watch how his girlfriend got shot, but I don't think it stopped Jackie "just because it could". I think it stopped Jackie because it wanted him to feel lost, to lose everything good left in his life so he would have but no other way to go than into the darkness.

Still, brilliant story showing that to get revenge you can lose everything you were.

 

[TheSpider]

I read the first volume of the comic, downloaded the demo and found it interesting if nothing else.
I'll have to get the game in the bargain bin.

 

[Citrus]

Yeah, I liked the Darkness.

Although I wasn't big on the enemy AI/dialogue. You'd think they'd be a bit more intimidated to see a guy with two massive demon tendrils with mouths rip out and eat one of their allies' hearts.

By the way, I bet a few people don't know that Yahtzee's little "evil imp" characters are based on the summonable demons in that game. But you know now!

 

[MorkFromOrk]

In my opinion The Darkness is one of the most underrated video games ever. Sure the AI sucked and the puzzles were often stupid (see Yahtzee's review) but it had a great story, great characters and perhaps one of the best depictions of a consuming dark evil of any video game. As video games based on comic books tend to suck The Darkness was surprisingly good.

As mentioned, I found the scene where Jackie is cuddling up on the couch with Jenny quite moving, not to mention being able to watch The Man with the Golden Arm in it's entirety. It makes what happens to her later in the game all the more chilling.