Alone in the Dark it is a series that has seen multiple revivals and remasterings over the years, often without fully satisfying either the critics or the public. After various more or less worthy chapters and a 2008 reboot that moved away from the roots without enjoying the hoped-for success (not to mention a couple of truly awful live action films), Pieces Interactive has now decided to accept the challenge, proposing to the public a new chapter that would act as real reboot for the saga which gave birth to the survival horror genre as we know it today.
Despite the pedigree of the development team in question, with few active games known to the general public (as well as of dubious gaming depth), the focus was on the presence of actors of a certain caliber as Jodie Comer And David Harbour, in order to attract the attention of the public who – either due to lack of interest, or due to being too young – have never heard of Alone in the Dark. So let's find out how this new relaunch of the horror franchise par excellence fares.
The horror is back
The plot, edited by Mikael Hedbergknown for works such as Amnesia: Rebirth And SOMA, promises to connect back to the origins of the series. The game is set in the 1920s and follows the story of Emily Hartwoodwho tries to find out what happened to his uncle Jeremy, disappeared mysteriously. To do this, he enlists the help of the investigator Edward Carnby and together they head towards the villa of Dercetoa sinister place that hides numerous dark secrets.
The player will be able to decide which of the two main characters to play, with an identical first part for both, but with some different adventure passages and that they will provide a much broader overview of what actually happened to Jeremy. Completing the game with both Emily and Edward will therefore help to clarify elements of the plot that would also be left open, in addition to the fact that to get 100% of the narrative details (and collectibles) you will need one double run (which won't take you more than 10 hours for each character).
During the exploration of the villa, the protagonists will be called to face strange creatures, terrifying realms, repulsive monsters and a evil presence what a plot behind the scenes. The plot is based, from the start, on Jeremy's distorted memories, adding psychological depth to the whole thing. Obviously, we won't reveal anything else so as not to ruin the surprise, but from this point of view they are obviously recognisable quite a few analogies with Lovecraft's storiesthe occult writer who certainly laid the foundation for the story.
The gameplay includes exploration, puzzles and combat, although the layout of the levels is quite simplistic: in addition to often having to retrace our steps, a common element in this type of game, and the map which is well made but certainly not particularly clear, we proceed without encountering too many difficulties. The game also offers the possibility to adopt a traditional and a more modern approach.
In the first all aid will be deactivated and there will be no indicators in the maps, while the second provides instead text suggestions which will appear when you don't know how to advance or how to solve a puzzle.
At the level of gameplay, we may have expected greater freshness, also considering that the game was also postponed, giving the developers more time to refine aspects of the game, but unfortunately this was not the case. The combat system is based on classic gun battlesbut with the ability to use edged weapons collected along the way. Hand-to-hand combat is clumsy and the mechanics stealth they don't always work, making Alone in the Dark very similar to a game from about fifteen years ago.
A new nightmare
In addition to these not exactly negligible characteristics, not even the technical sector seems to be a miracle, with a generic design and just enough textures, as well as below-average animations. Bugs also compromise the experience and it's really a shame that the game wasn't polished properly upon release, although we're sure that the usual post day patch one will correct everything along the way.
There soundtrackcomposed by Jason Köhnen and Árni Bergur Zoëga, creates a unique atmosphere, with jazz and ambient songs that certainly manage to do their job, immersing us in a dark and secret context, perfectly in line with the spirit of the saga.
Definitely, Alone in the Dark misses the mark on reinvigorating the series, remaining a relaunch with potential but not enough to reassert itself as a standout series in the genre. A bit of a shame, although from a relatively small team like Pieces asking for who knows what qualitative effort would perhaps have been a bit excessive.
#Dark #Review #trail #nightmare
