The Darkness
Added February 12th, 2007 by Crystal Ewing
Imagine walking into a room and being immediately surrounded by a group of policemen with one objective -- to eliminate you. Your name is Jackie Estacado, a hitman working for the Franchetti family, and there is something different about you. In this first-person shooter based on the Top Cow comic book, The Darkness, your character is a man who is part of a family that is plagued by an evil curse. The Darkness is an ancient power passed from father to son, and when a son is born, the previous possessor of the Darkness dies as the power is transferred to his child. On the son's 21st birthday, the power manifests.
As you progress through the game, these powers will range from calling up Darklings, evil minions to use at your disposal that look like a creepy variation between a goblin and gargoyle, to a massive addition to your body called the demon arm that can pick up large objects such as police vehicles. When you knock out the lights on the street or in any room, your Darkness strength is powered up allowing your killing powers to increase. One of these powers is called the creeping dark which allows you to launch yourself ahead of your physical body to change the surroundings around you. You also possess the power to create a black hole-like force that sucks in every object in an area, including people, before sealing itself shut.
As you progress through the game, these powers will range from calling up Darklings, evil minions to use at your disposal that look like a creepy variation between a goblin and gargoyle, to a massive addition to your body called the demon arm that can pick up large objects such as police vehicles. When you knock out the lights on the street or in any room, your Darkness strength is powered up allowing your killing powers to increase. One of these powers is called the creeping dark which allows you to launch yourself ahead of your physical body to change the surroundings around you. You also possess the power to create a black hole-like force that sucks in every object in an area, including people, before sealing itself shut.
Shhh... don't tell Jack Thompson
One main part of the game is the use of the Darklings. The game includes about twelve or more different types of Darklings that you can find. Some are found by devouring the corpses of predominantly evil people. One handy type of Darkling will aid you in disabling all of the lights to make your power, along with theirs, stronger. There’s another suicidal Darkling that throws itself at enemies to take them out. Most of your powers come straight from the comic; similarly the Darklings will have a sinister and comical characteristic that also follows the storyline. This type of humor is seen as the Darklings urinating on the corpses of enemies or, after a triumphant massacre, throwing up their arms in victory.
Thankfully, one thing Starbreeze took advice on after the Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay was to add a multiplayer feature. The multiplayer mode offers the typical combination of deathmatch, team deathmatch, and capture-the-flag modes, but instead of using the main character Jackie, with all of his devastating powers, you have the privilege of embodying one of the Darklings. Now, you are the one who can saw through someone’s head or crawl through the urban streets of New York.
The Outlook:
By far the most appealing aspect to The Darkness is the overall ominous feeling you get because the graphics are so lifelike. Also Starbreeze made the choice to use Vo-Cap (voice capture) instead of using traditional voice talent has added to the realism. It brings back the same frightened but not powerless feeling that you get while playing Half-Life 2. On the whole, it looks to be another high-quality first-person-shooter by Starbreeze.
Thankfully, one thing Starbreeze took advice on after the Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay was to add a multiplayer feature. The multiplayer mode offers the typical combination of deathmatch, team deathmatch, and capture-the-flag modes, but instead of using the main character Jackie, with all of his devastating powers, you have the privilege of embodying one of the Darklings. Now, you are the one who can saw through someone’s head or crawl through the urban streets of New York.
The Outlook:
By far the most appealing aspect to The Darkness is the overall ominous feeling you get because the graphics are so lifelike. Also Starbreeze made the choice to use Vo-Cap (voice capture) instead of using traditional voice talent has added to the realism. It brings back the same frightened but not powerless feeling that you get while playing Half-Life 2. On the whole, it looks to be another high-quality first-person-shooter by Starbreeze.
