Alone in the Dark

by Atari

Product Features

• A New Inventory System ¿ Players utilize the pockets of protagonist Edward Carnby to hold items which they can view, switch and combine without leaving the game.
• Narrative intensity ¿ Taking its cues from blockbuster TV dramas, the story is told in a TV season style narrative structure based around episodes that deliver maximum intensity throughout and keep the player hooked.
• A Captivating Story ¿ Centered in iconic Central Park long-time series protagonist and paranormal specialist Edward Carnby returns to delve into the frightening events occurring in the Big Apple.
• Real World Rules ¿ In-Game movement has been designed to allow players to do almost anything that is physically possible in the real world.
• Photographic Rendering ¿ Game developer Eden¿s Propriety ¿Twilight¿ technology creates a lavishly detailed game world with highly realistic and advanced cinematographic effects.

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00113HUZ8
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches ; 15.4 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: June 24, 2008
• Average Customer Review: 1.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #20,659 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Platform: PC

Amazon.com

There?s something strange and frightening happening in the middle of New York City?s Central Park; something whispered to have been intentionally kept secret; something that players are compelled to explore in Alone in the Dark.

Known today as a safe haven for New Yorkers yearning for relief from the stresses of their chaotic metropolis, history records that Central Park was built on a useless swamp, yet as the New York City skyline hurtled towards the sky over the last 150 years, making the city the most expensive real estate in the world, the park has remained untouched. Why? Civic pride? Perhaps, but the recent strange happenings in and around the park are casting doubt on that, doubts that require investigating.

The return of an iconic series

Paranormal PI Edward Carnby. View larger.

Stunningly spooky views of NYC. View larger.

The odd wildlife of Central Park. View larger.

A whole new inventory system. View larger.

Enter Edward Carnby, Paranormal Investigator
Despite the title, Alone in the Dark is actually the fifth game in a series that dates back to 1992 and centers around the experiences of Edward "the reptile" Carnby. A paranormal investigator by trade, Carnby is looking for answers to the strange events and horrific creatures reported in and around the park, but gets more than he bargained for when all the mysteries and terrors of the park spill out over the course of one apocalyptic night. It?s the player?s task to avoid the new frightening dangers of the park as you search for the answers to what these supernatural occurrences mean and why they are happening.

Gameplay Based on Full Player Immersion
Packed full of action and vivid in its realism Alone in the Dark goes to the extreme to keep players engaged and immersed by plunging them into the heart of the action in real-time at every turn and challenging them to survive using full movement control. The goal here is to allow players to do or at least feel that they can do more or less whatever is possible in real life, within the game.

Need to avoid a blast of steam or an eruption of fire that has shot up in your path? You can simply side-step it or you can handle the obstacle with a little more panache by using the environment around you, for example by swinging around it using reachable pipes or wires. In another situation you may be challenged by attacking monsters. No problem. You can take the path of least resistance, again by side-stepping them or placing an obstacle between yourself and them, but if you are feeling like taking out a little aggression you can pick up a board, chair, box, etc. and have at it. Nearly anything that you come across that would be usable in real life is usable in game and can be wielded in several different ways.

In addition, game developer Eden Studios has done away with a few in-game conventions in favor of real life upgrades. Instead of old-fashioned health bars Alone in the Dark uses realistic body damage and physiological effects to show players how much damage has been done to Carnby by the new dangerous nightlife of Central Park. Basically this means if Carnby has been taking a licking he?s going to be a little bloody. Monsters use sensory perception of all kinds to find their victims, so players need to keep aware of Carnby?s physical state, as well as the impact he has on his surroundings. Also gone are traditional inventory systems that take players out of the game while you switch or check items in your possession, replaced by an in-game inventory system where items are carried in the folds of Carnby?s trench coat. This allows you to stay in the action the whole time. Sticking with the realism theme, the number of items that Carnby can carry is limited, but since ingenuity is built into the system, items can be combined or their uses altered, mostly with tape, so players can adjust as challenges arise.

TV Style Intensity That Keeps You Hooked
Built around a unique television style episodic narrative game structure, the storyline of Alone in the Dark is split into a number of distinct 30-40 minute episodes, doled out one at a time as you play. This new way to progress through the storyline ensures that players can enjoy the game regardless of the amount of time they have available without ever feeling lost. Each time a saved game is launched, the episode will begin with a video summary of the previous episode to quickly re-immerse the player in the story, removing the need to remember where you were or what you were doing at the end of your last play session. In addition, every episode will also close with a nail-biting, cliff-hanger ending to rattle players? nerves. And when you choose to leave the game, a video teaser of the next episode will play to leave players always wanting more.

Vivid Photographic Rendering
Even on a bad day, and this will be a bad one, Central Park and New York City are something to see. With Game developer Eden?s proprietary Twilight technology and rendering engine, players can expect to see everything from the City?s famous landmarks to the manifestations of the evil that have been festering in Central Park come to life as if you were there. This lavishly detailed game world takes advantage of highly realistic and advanced cinematographic effects including depth of field, camera focus, numerous light sources, moisture, reflections and High Dynamic Range effects.

Whether it?s the innovative game play, the unique episodic game structure, the advanced physics or the return of a ground-breaking protagonist recast in the modern era, Alone in the Dark holds something for players willing to take on the mysteries and dangers at the heart of Central Park.

Product Description

There’s something strange and frightening happening in the middle of New York City’s Central Park; something whispered to have been intentionally kept secret; something that players are compelled to explore in Alone in the Dark.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Greatness yanked down by poor decisions, August 1, 2008

By 

Terry Mesnard (Bellevue, NE) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

= Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Alone in the Dark (Video Game)

Most people attribute the start of the Survival Horror genre to Resident Evil. While you can trace the birth of Survival Horror back far, far before that game (to Sweet Home or, if you want to stretch it, to Haunted House in 1981), modern Survival Horror games were firmly established by the first Alone in the Dark. Since that first game, though, the series has been an up and down roller coaster that never seemed to be able to outmatch some of the better known and more famous franchises like Resident Evil or Silent Hill.

So, when Eden Games started to work on reinventing the franchise, I was cautiously optimistic. A lot of the ideas and concepts they spoke of seemed like great ideas, and they seemed to be trying to Do Something Different. Unfortunately, the sum is not greater than its parts and Alone in the Dark, while reaching for the stars, can't stay afloat.

Things begin appropriately apocalyptic. Edward Carnby awakens in some hotel with some bad men arguing about cryptic shenanigans. Carnby, no longer useful, is led up to the roof to be executed but before that can happen, bad juju hits the fan as a "scar" tears through the building. From here, this first episode really picks up as you're trying to escape the building alive.

Here is where the goodness lies. Alone in the Dark has a great opening that's appropriately cinematic but in such a way that only games can do. The building starts to fall apart, you have to run and jump your way to safety, climb along the outside of the building while debris tumbles and while watching cars below you explode. You learn how Eden Games created some appropriately realistic fire for the game as you watch it spread and have to put it out or use it as a weapon. You'll see things happen to the various rooms you're in that will make you want to believe you're watching a cinematic, not playing through a game. It's very cool.

And then you try to move.

Movement is the worst part of the game. Actually moving feel as if you're controlling a drunk, disobedient person. Another problem comes in the form of switching perspectives. Melee is in third person (and horribly implemented; you'll be hit a lot more than you'll actually hit) and incredibly sluggish. Fighting monsters becomes a chore, one you'll grow to hate because as the game progresses, you'll learn that basically all monsters can only die via fire. So, grab that chair, light it on fire and swing away...hoping you hurt it more than it hurts you. Similarily, gun fights are also not terrific as you have to pop into first person whenever you want to shoot someone. No lock and pop here.

Likewise, if walking around makes you feel like a drunk, driving is a good approximation of drunk driving, I believe. The controls are incredibly loose and in the first driving portion of the game, loose controls isn't a good idea. What should be an exciting escape sequence that involves the ground behind you exploding, tears appearing across the streets, buildings collapsing, fire, death explosions, cats and dogs sleeping together turns into frustration as you'll probably find yourself repeating the episode. Over. And Over. From the beginning. It loses its fun and becomes a chore.

Towards the end of the game, the game pulls a Zelda: Wind Waker moment and has you hunting down certain things and destroying them in an effort, one has to assume, to artificially lengthen the game. If there's one thing that Alone in the Dark does exceptionally well, it's the pacing. When you hit this moment it's like running smack dab into a brick wall. It's sad.

There's a lot going for Alone in the Dark, don't get me wrong. The inventory system is a cool innovation. The whole episodic "TV show/DVD" feel is perfect, with DVD-style menus complemented by the ability to switch to any episode you like. The graphics are pretty decent, as is the engine it's running on. Some cool, small features, like the ability to blink your eyes is very effective during some sequences. And the pacing--for the most part--is perfect; it can really get your adrenaline going...until you're forced to repeat the same thing over and over again.

I really wanted to like Alone in the Dark. I didn't honestly think that Eden Games would elevate the game to the front of the pack, but there was enough little things and innovations that I thought maybe it'd be a good game. When I played it, I was amazed. Eden Games wanted no less than to shoot for the moon and make the most ambitious Survival Horror game yet. Unfortunately, reality is sometimes like gravity and unfortunately Alone in the Dark isn't the masterpiece I, and Atari, I'm sure, was hoping for. Definitely give it a rent, but I'd hold off on purchasing it.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars What the..., June 27, 2008

By 

Gamer - See all my reviews

= Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Alone in the Dark (Video Game)

Alone in the Dark is a game that should have worked...get a new developer to reboot a series that apparently took a nosedive a while back, and you can easily fail. I was even willing to put my doubts aside that I'd heard about the Xbox version when I heard that despite the faults, the storytelling wasn't that bad...

There's a problem however. While developing this game, the developers missed the advent of the third-person action genre, with games like "Gears of War." They missed how you worked with camera for such games, how the controls work, and how gunplay works. The controls are as unfriendly as they come, with movement relying on the fact that you're supposed to act as though the camera was behind our hero Edward, even if it's halfway across the room. You do not get used to this, at all. Doesn't help he handles like a truck either...

The combat, as I played, basically amounted to me and the other uglies taking turns batting each other over the head, repeatedly. I'd barely come out on top, and wasn't even sure how to heal. To add to that, it took me a while to figure out how to use the fire extinguisher as an extinguisher, not a blunt object...wasn't very clear on that point, I'll tell you that.

A lot of people are knocking the driving sections, but personally, I actually found this the least problematic...after you got the bloody car started that is. Not all cars have keys, and the hotwiring isn't so easy to do when you've got baddies closing in fast. But if you played Halo on the PC way back when, it handles about as well as those Warthogs did, just there's some obstacle issues you encounter that dampen it a bit.

As far as storytelling goes...eh, it's there, but the horror was lacking, and the controls made me to frustrated to appreciate the story, and I am HUGE nut about storytelling, so that goes a long way.

Basically, if you really want this game, go buy the first one, or whatever one was the thing that made people love this series so much...if I didn't know better, I'd swear Uwe Boll got involved with this game's gameplay as much as he did the movie...unfortunately, I think this series just might have to be left "Alone in the Dark" for a little while longer.

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely PATHETIC waste of potential. Someone needs a beating., June 27, 2008

By 

Kerch Thomas "dissident10" (United States) - See all my reviews

= Fun:2.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Alone in the Dark (Video Game)

I love these types of games: the survival horror genre. The sad thing is, they are few and far between these days, especially on PC. I was eagerly anticipating this game, although the last AITD for PC was absolutely horrible. I should've learned, but the graphics for this one looked great and the inventory system looked cool.

I never thought to question the controls. In 2008, you'd think a game developer would understand how to make fluid controls, especially for the PC. Not the idiots who completely screwed up this game. The controls just destroy the entire game. The worst part for me is, in third person mode, you CANNOT USE YOUR MOUSE to move your character! You can only move him with the direction keys. Just about every modern game I can think of with a third person mode allows you to turn your character with the mouse. Not since the late 90s have I encountered a game that won't let you do this. It is incredibly unnatural and makes things amazingly difficult. I thought I'd try to play the game in first person mode, where you CAN turn your character with the mouse...but the game is always switching you back and forth, whether you want to or not. It's just horrendous.

The sad thing is, there are a lot of good ideas here and a lot of cool set pieces. But without good controls that feel like second nature, WHO CARES?? A game is absolutely ruined without a great control scheme, and this game is a prime example. What really stinks for me is that I bought a digital download of this abomination, so I am out 50 bucks. Never again. Don't support this kind of crap, and hopefully some developer with working synapses will make the great survival horror game we've been waiting for. THis one ain't it.

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