The Darkness (video game)

The Darkness is a first-person shooter from acclaimed Starbreeze Studios that meshes a classic mob tale with supernatural gothic horror. Based upon a popular comic of the same name, you play as Jack Estacado a mob hitman who has inherited The Darkness power that comes to fruition on his 21st birthday. His hitman roots give him the abilities to use a variety of guns, while his powers can be used in five main ways including summoning a black hole, and creating little creatures to take out your enemies.

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The Darkness (video game)
MSRP$59.99
Release date June, 2007
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Reviews5
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Pros & Cons

ProSCORE
4 reviews
68
negative
mixed
positive
3 positive
1 mixed
0 negative

[i] How is the ProSCORE calculated?

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Pros:
Do you agree?
Great presentation
+3agreedisagree

Gorgeous graphics
+3agreedisagree

Strong story and storytelling
+3agreedisagree

Fantastic sound
+2agreedisagree

Very atmospheric
+2agreedisagree

Can be bought very cheap
+2agreedisagree

Cons:
Do you agree?
Creeping dark is awkward to control
+1agreedisagree

Shallow multiplayer
+1agreedisagree

Floaty aiming
+1agreedisagree

Jack moves too slow
0agreedisagree


5 people added to this review by submitting or voting on pros and cons. Add your say!

Details

Story is a strong priority with the game as one of the top writers of the comic was hired to write the entire story for the game. Starbreeze also hired a swath of voice talent including Mike Patten from Faith No More to increase the production values. Similar to The Chronicles of Riddick, Starbreeze's standout game, the story is told through a series of real-time and interactive cutscenes. At various points in the story Jack will stand alone delivering a monologue of what's happening in the story, which is actually a clever way to hide loading times.

Gameplay is split between standard first-person shooter fare and action elements with the darkness powers that gain abilities and prominence as the story goes on. As per its name, Jack must stand in the dark to gain the juice necessary to launch his dark-power attacks.

A multiplayer mode is included that leans heavily towards the shooter side of things. Jack's powers are completely stripped away, and the only "power" left is the ability to morph into a darkling, a small creature, that lets you run fast, jump far, and crawl along the walls.

Extras

Starbreeze has included full length feature movies such as To Kill a Mockingbird which are played on in-game televisions scattered throughout the levels. Accomplishing side quests and exploring bonus areas unlocks special content including commentary and concept art imagery.

Differences between PS3 and Xbox 360 versions

From a technical level Starbreeze claims the two games are nearly identical both achieving the same visual fidelity with insignificant differences. For the PS3 version Starbreeze includes more extra video content as per the larger amount of storage space that Blu-Ray affords.

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This report was started June 26, 2007 at 6:00 pm by Omar
with the last edit occurring November 17, 2009 at 8:04 pm by SJBenoist
This page has been viewed 2581 times, with 47 edits by 6 contributors.
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Comments

1.  avatar Omar said:

I just beat this game over the weekend and I have to say it's a very high quality title. There are definitely some faults and a couple of frustrating sections, but the presentation and polish on the entire experience is very unique and special. The developers really captured a haunting and depressing atmosphere that really envelops you as you spend more time with the game.

My favorite parts were probably the subways and the World War I scenes. I liked the subways because they felt very real, realistic sights, sounds, you could almost smell them.

And the World War I scenes... just wow. Some people call me a lightweight but I honestly felt pretty frightened while playing these parts. It's extremely desolate and the enemies you fight are particularly creepy. It's all made better as the lighting is incredible and you get some particularly unnerving moments.

As far as storyline goes, it's more mature than regular fair without being overly gratuitous which is nice.

Overall, I'd actually say I had a better time with the game than BioShock. So... take that for what it's worth.
Nov 03, 2008 4:18pm
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Reviews

Sort by: Most helpful  •  Newest  •  Most positive

Omar

avatar
November 3, 2008
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
60
negative
mixed
positive
6 pros
4 cons
love itlove it

Pros

  • Great presentation
  • Gorgeous graphics
  • Strong story and storytelling
  • Fantastic sound
  • Very atmospheric
  • Can be bought very cheap

Cons

  • Creeping dark is awkward to control
  • Shallow multiplayer
  • Floaty aiming
  • Jack moves too slow

Comments

"I just beat this game over the weekend and I have to say it's a very high quality title. There are definitely some faults and a couple of frustrating sections, but the presentation and polish on the entire experience is very unique and special. The developers really captured a haunting and depressing atmosphere that really envelops you as you spend more time with the game.

My favorite parts were probably the subways and the World War I scenes. I liked the subways because they felt very real, realistic sights, sounds, you could almost smell them.

And the World War I scenes... just wow. Some people call me a lightweight but I honestly felt pretty frightened while playing these parts. It's extremely desolate and the enemies you fight are particularly creepy. It's all made better as the lighting is incredible and you get some particularly unnerving moments.

As far as storyline goes, it's more mature than regular fair without being overly gratuitous which is nice.

Overall, I'd actually say I had a better time with the game than BioShock. So... take that for what it's worth."

Competitors

Omar prefers The Darkness (video game) over BioShock
Did you find this review helpful?
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colemanm

avatar
May 14, 2008
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
100
negative
mixed
positive
4 pros
0 cons
love itlove it
have ithave it

Pros

  • Great presentation
  • Gorgeous graphics
  • Strong story and storytelling
  • Fantastic sound

Cons

Did not agree with any cons

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

zluzlutt

avatar
August 22, 2007
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
67
negative
mixed
positive
2 pros
1 con

Pros

  • Great presentation
  • Gorgeous graphics

Cons

  • Shallow multiplayer

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

SJBenoist

avatar
November 17, 2009
approved
reviewer
ProSCORE
50
negative
mixed
positive
1 pro
1 con

Pros

  • Can be bought very cheap

Cons

  • Creeping dark is awkward to control

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

scrap104

avatar
March 29, 2009
ProSCORE
100
negative
mixed
positive
5 pros
0 cons
have ithave it

Pros

  • Great presentation
  • Gorgeous graphics
  • Strong story and storytelling
  • Fantastic sound
  • Very atmospheric

Cons

Did not agree with any cons

Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
 / 
No

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