Alone In The Dark Review – Return To The Roots

Last year was an absolute blast for both Action Horror and Survival Horror, from Resident Evil 4 being a remake of a beloved classic that basically revolutionized how third-person shooters are made to Alan Wake 2 being Remedy’s first foray into the survival horror genre and lastly; Dead Space balancing out both genres with a stunning recreation of USG Ishimura. 

While Alone in the Dark doesn’t reach the highs of the Survival-Horror games from last year, it definitely kept my interest in the genre alive with an excellent cast of characters, story, and, most importantly, its fantastic setting.

Story And Setting

Shortly after completing the prologue, Emily Hartwood (played by Jodie Comer), accompanied by Private Investigator Edward Carnbary (played by David Harbour), arrives at the Derceto mansion in search of Emily’s uncle Jeremy Hartwood. Upon their arrival, it is revealed to them that Jeremy has gone missing due to a pact he made with the Dark Man.

The curse runs in the Hartwood family and has taken the lives of many of the Hartwoods before, and this investigation kicks off their journey into the Derceto mansion. A haunted mansion occupied by mental health patients, some eerily aware and content, others willfully oblivious, make up for an intriguing setting.

Suffice it to say, the premise of searching for a madman taken over by an otherworldy curse that unravels as you slowly descend down a spiral of madness is an interesting one, and Alone in the Dark certainly delivers on this promise.

A haunted mansion occupied by mental health patients, some eerily aware and content, others willfully oblivious, make up for an intriguing setting.

Genre Alien Locations & Silent Hill Inspiration

The neatest aspect of Alone in the Dark by far was its journey and the level-variety. Usually, survival horror games take place in a particular setting, and their levels are usually restricted to that setting. My journey took me to places I never expected from survival horror games, such as deserts, temples, warzone trenches, and more.

The neatest aspect of Alone in the Dark by far was its journey and the level-variety.

Also, at the same time, it doesn’t shy away from its Silent Hill inspiration. Fog enveloping entire towns and swamps remains a central part of the game, not only to keep the player vigilant of any adversary but also to convey a sense of mystique and enigma.

An Intriguing Set Of Characters Brought To Life By A Star-Studded Cast

Seeing David Harbour and Jodie Comer on the cover meant that the THQ wasn’t going to cheap out on the voice acting and performance, and I do feel they got their money’s worth out of them. David and Jodie do an excellent job of bringing the hard-boiled Detective Edward and an ever-curious Emily to life. 

The decision to keep their roles the same in both playthroughs did feel a little weird to me, as in both playthroughs, you don’t explore the other character’s perspective; rather, they play the same role in both of their playthroughs.

David and Jodie do an excellent job of bringing the hard-boiled Detective Edward and an ever-curious Emily to life. 

That said, their interactions with other characters and their cutscenes remain completely unique. 

Each note and piece of note you find is also narrated by its author, which not only kept me engaged with the game’s history and background but also goes to show the extra mile developers went to help the players stay in the loop.

Derceto Was The Star Of The Night

Despite its star-studded cast and engaging narrative, the best aspect of Alone in the Dark, by far, was its main setting: the Derceto mansion. Brilliantly designed, with its interconnected corridors and silent hallways, it felt like reliving a modern iteration of the original Resident Evil 1’s Spencer Mansion, which is one of my favorite survival horror settings of all time.

With strong sound effects and excellent ambiance as the backdrop, Derceto is one of the finest survival horror settings I have experienced in recent times.

Alone in the Dark is at its best in these slow walks around the mansion, picking up key items, solving its puzzles, and meeting new characters along the way while remaining clueless about what’s to come. With strong sound effects and excellent ambiance as the backdrop, Derceto is one of the finest survival horror settings I have experienced in recent times.

Gameplay

Alone in the Dark comes equipped with what you’d expect from a survival horror game. Puzzles, picking up notes, exploring for clues, occasionally engaging in combat, and progressing deeper into the mansion. I’d say it does the exploration and puzzle part right. 

Alone in the Dark is at its best in these slow walks around the mansion.

Moving around Derceto was a treat because of its moody atmosphere. While not the most complex in video games, the puzzles were still good enough by survival horror standards. What stood out the most was scouring through notes and research papers for occasional clues, as the game really incentivizes reading and observation a lot. 

No Resource Management, Serviceable Combat, And Little Route Changes

Alone in the Dark offers little variations in terms of its combat. In both playthroughs, both characters receive the same weapons and are forced into the same encounters. The cutscenes do change, but the gameplay and level progression for both are ninety percent the same, which made the second playthrough devoid of al gameplay surprises.

The animation of melee combat is so clunky and unsatisfying that I was surprised it made it into the final product.

The guns feel fine, but the enemy variation is so small that you never have to change your strategy even once. A bunch of fire bottles also lie around in the arena and are of no use unless there is an enemy nearby, and the game offers no option for storing them either. Speaking of storing, the game also lacks any kind of resource management, which is kind of a staple in the survival horror genre, so seeing its absence was a bummer, too.

The animation of melee combat is so clunky and unsatisfying that I was surprised it made it into the final product. Making dodge and melee essential to the combat did more harm than good to the overall combat.

Visuals & Performance

The Derceto mansion, the foggy towns, and all of its many locations are carved with high care and have pretty decent art direction. But I believe my enjoyment would’ve severely increased if the game had the same lightning as the pre-alpha footage. A lot of the lighting and shadows feel baked, and the game looks brighter than it should in some parts.

I don’t generally criticize games for not having the latest state-of-the-art graphics, but for a game that’s heavily reliant on cutscenes and environments, I think the game needed some more time in the oven. 

The game maintains a solid 60 FPS for the most part in performance mode; I think its visuals definitely suffered for it, and I didn’t notice any big overhaul in the fidelity mode either.

Verdict

Despite its faults, Alone in the Dark is a return to survival horror genre roots with a high emphasis on exploration and storytelling. Those who are looking for an action-oriented game with some survival horror elements may want to skip it, but if you are a fan of traditional survival horror, I suggest you pick it up.

Alone In the Dark may not be a worldwide success the fans and developers would’ve hoped for, but it undoubtedly stands as one of the better entries in the franchise.

This has been my Alone in the Dark review. While you’re here, consider checking out some of our other articles. 

• The Thaumaturge Review
• Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection Review
• Pacific Drive Review
• Expeditions: A MudRunner Game Review
• Helldivers 2 Review

What Other Writers Think

• Usama Mehmood: While I do appreciate the character performances, I believe Alone in the Dark ended up allotting way more budget to the voice-acting department, leaving little room for improvement in terms of gameplay and visuals.
• Muhammad Haris Umer: Alone in the Dark’s high emphasis on atmosphere and exploration shouldn’t have come at the cost of underwhelming combat, although I still enjoyed my time all the way to the end credits.