The Darkness seemed to be an under the radar cult favorite game when it first released a few years ago. Not being too familiar with the first game, I came into this demo with literally no expectations at all. I knew the premise as you play a mob boss of some sort who inherits demonic powers called The Darkness. Essentially, that was the extent of my knowledge going in.
First booting it up, I was treated to a first person perspective of getting a stake driven through both hands. Yes folks, this is going to be a bloody and violent game. You pick up things as Jackie Estacado once more as you’ve been seemingly captured and crucified by a group who’s looking to reclaim your powers for themselves. Between the interrogations and beatings, you flashback to earlier events, perhaps eventually leading up to the situation you’re currently in.
The first gameplay segment is a total Godfather moment as you’re walking through a restaurant and your associate chats up everyone he sees as you make your way to a table in the back where a pair of busty twins awaits you. Things go south quick as you reach the table when a bullet rips through the skull of one of the twins and a car blasts through the wall. You live but your right leg is badly burned and in addition to the influx of enemies, the restaurant is in the process of burning down. You’re given a gun to defend yourself as you’re dragged to the kitchen and potential safety. It’s a bit after this point in the next couple of gameplay segments that you’re given access to the Darkness powers and introduced to controlling them and gaining essence from kills to upgrade your character. The story presented in the demo seems pretty compelling and it’s at least interesting. I wonder if the main game will be told through the flashback style method, or if that was just for demo purposes.
One thing that’s not in short supply in the demo is violence and gore. Between watching getting a stake driven through your hands, a badly burned leg, impaling a guy with a demon arm, ripping someone in half, and many, many more, prepare yourself for some truly visceral moments. What’s also cool is that you can pick up objects in the world and use them as projectiles. I have to admit, it never got old picking up something like a parking meter and launching it like a missile at an enemy and seeing him stuck to the wall. Plus, being able to rip a car door off and use it as a shield never got old.
Controls are fairly standard for a first person shooter, though I couldn’t shake the feeling that the controls were a tad bit floaty. Might be a case of just getting used to it though. The demon powers are pretty cool and were exciting at first but after seeing the animations start to repeat fairly quickly for the brutal execution moves, it lost its charm a bit. I’m hoping that the final game will have more of them to keep things fresh. Once I had the darkness powers though, I never felt in danger of dying as I could have the demon arms eat the hearts of downed enemies to replenish my health. Overpowered? Maybe.
The graphic style of the game really impressed me. It has a definite comic book feel as it features heavy black lines around characters yet maintaining a semi-realisitic look. It really creates a wonderful looking cel-shaded style that fits the game well. I know the Darkness is based on a comic book so the cel-shading style in the game really is a cool feature.
Overall, I was impressed by what I played. Thankfully, the inclusion of the Darkness powers and upgrade system give the game that hook it needs. You’ll get a good taste of what to expect in the story line with the demo as it jumps around, but thankfully you won’t have to wait too much longer as the full retail verison hits on February 7.
