Customer Reviews

Darkness Within: In Pursuit Of Loath Nolder

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This game just happens to be down my personal alley, but I think it would be fun for anyone who enjoys adventure gaming (with a twist). I haven't played a game this fun, this engaging, in a long time. It is scary, to be sure, but the scares aren't cheap slasher fare- in fact you rarely see anyone or anything that could harm you. It's a psychological thriller, as it has been promoted, in the style of the great HP Lovecraft.
It takes a little while to work through the beginning to establish the whole "detective" scene- questions, clues, etc-, but each time the answers break through the layers of established routine, until the character begins to question his own sanity. It's a lovely time.

I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who has problems with motion sickness. It is sometimes hard to control your character's gaze (cursor)- at least at first- and is a little like running with a video camera. Can get rather nauseating at first.

All in all I think it would be fun for just about anyone, even without the Lovecraft/horror connection. The story is engaging (a strange murder mystery), the means by which you gather clues from documents is new to me, the puzzles are more easy than hard but fit well- no need for a walkthrough, and the graphics are just about perfect. It's not completely linear: you are free to explore any location at any time, but you do need to have certain information before you can move into new areas. This one puts to shame every game I've played in the past year that was even remotely promoted as "horror" or "thriller" (I'll mention no names...). I was sorry it had to end so soon, and played it again.

This game is terrific. No blood, no violence, but yet the best horror music, graphics and story since the era of Shadow Of The Comet.


Graphics ? Splendid. Dark and horrifying, they will glue you to the screen.
Sound ? The best. Do not make the mistake of playing this game at night with sounds enabled. You risk a heart attack.
Plot ? Very good. While the game is supposed to be based in a cthulhu myth, there is actually no cthulhu involved - you will just go from a nightmare to reality and back.
Atmosphere ? 200% You will jump out of your chair a LOT. Lots of crappy houses, dirty attics, suspicious trap doors, evil cellars and more Alone in the Dark stuff - Get Ready!
Action ? So so - You will have to read a few books (and I *mean* it) before you can proceed - but the game can offer you hints. Hey, did any one understood why he lost 4 days in sleeping ?


Get it now!
Highly recommended!

And my favorite quote:

"It's a link... it's a link!! It is a link between what's above and what 's below..."

This game is definitely a departure from the mystery genre of computer games and while it was certainly interesting and downright spooky at times I was disappointed.

Usually mystery games grab you right away and you want to stay up all night playing. This was not the case with this game, it's a slower paced kind of wander around and explore game that I found an interesting take on the genre.

While it was fun to wander around, this game was WAY TOO EASY!!! I like reading all the notes and the psychological bent of the game but there was no challenge just a bit of fun plodding around uncovering things.

Graphics - Great, although I had to play with the advanced options a bit because they were so dark it was difficult to spot things sometimes.

Sound - WONDERFUL! Think Poe's Telltale Heart, with the spooky noises and breathing while you play.

Navigation - It really detracted from the fun of exploring.. You need extra steps to get places (stairs) and it's a bit counter intuitive. Also, most games you right click to back out of something, here right clicking brings up the inventory panel.

The other aspect of this game is you have to make the character think. You have to combine thoughts to get him to think and generate a new clue. This was utterly stupid I mean we can think for ourselves why waste time doing this!!

The game shows great promise though, I look forward to any sequels!

I have never played an adventure game as frightening as Darkness Within. Penumbra Black Plague would be a close second to this one in scariness for me. You would think that the point and click interface would kind of lessen the scary factor but it doesn't. In fact, that might even be adding to it. I have gotten chills up my back playing this game. You have to play with the lights out and headphones work pretty well too for the sounds.

The game just lures you in to some truly freaky experiences. The graphics are very good with high resolution and the rooms are very realistic looking with some very creepy places to search through. The cutscenes are very well done. The sounds and voice acting are excellent. The nightmares are interactive and seem like ones someone would actually have. The story is strong in this game too. It really sucks you in. You will find yourself reading everything to find out more.

This game also can be for experienced adventure gamers or someone who is new to this type of game. You can disable hints if you like. I didn't find myself referring to a walkthrough either like some other adventure games. This is not a game with those mind bending,obscure,arbitrary,mechanical puzzles. There was only a couple of times when I got really stuck; the map puzzle and ring puzzle where you have to align some circles. But I got past them.

Darkness Within is one very enjoyable gaming experience.You might want to play something else or watch something on tv after playing it before bedtime.

If you enjoy games that are intensely creepy but aren't of the hack and slash variety, then you will love this game. If you've ever played "Scratches" - this is like Scratches on crack. Its ten times scarier, but theres also ten times the amount of reading; If you've played classic adventure games before, you know the deal - there's books on the table, books on the shelf, sheaves of paper lying around everywhere, ready to be read and parsed and analyzed (no walk-throughs are necessary, just patience). If you're in a rush playing games and want quick action, don't bother with this game. If you're a thinking type who enjoys HG Wells, solving mysteries and prefers scariness to sort of build up slowly and then scare the living crap out of you, then this game is well worth the time and effort.. Don't let the puzzles scare you though, playing on Standard level I never got stuck on a clue for more than 20 minutes, most of them were pretty intuitive anyway.

This game was very enjoyable and it took me 28 hours to beat (the game tracks your time of game play), the puzzles were difficult enough to stump me a while but weren't so difficult that i had to use a walkthrough. Another neat factor of this game, is when the game ends it rates your gameplay and there were a lot of "secret stuff" i missed; which is good because it made me want to play the game again. The only reason i didn't give this game 5 stars is because i don't feel that there is enough voice/communication with other characters in this game. There is a very small amount of talking in this game, so there is long amounts of silence which makes the game lonely at times. But other than that, it was a very different and entertaining game with an interesting plot.

Finding Lovecraftian games is a difficult process. Sure, many a game uses elements of the author, but few capture the essence of his work. The psychological horror of the unknown is what appeals to true Lovecraftian fans, not the use of a shotgun on a Deep One. No offense to the enjoyable "Call of Cthulu: Dark Corners of the Earth". "Darkness Within, in the Pursuit of Loath Nolder" delivers when it comes to being faithful to the Lovecraftian genre. It will truly SCARE you.

The game is a point and click mystery adventure, strikingly similar to "Scratches", but far longer and more creepy. You play the role of Howard, a detective out to catch a private investigator gone bad, one Loath Nolder. During the case you have phantoms to chase, books to read, puzzles to solve, and the sinking sensation that you are either A. Going mad, or B. Something terrible really is happening and you sure wish you were going mad!

The puzzles are fairly easy and it seems the developers were more interestd in storyline than complex math equations or wordy riddles or heavy pixel hunting (thank you). There is a lot of reading to do, but that is the point. The game is more an interactive book, than a true adventure point and click. If you want something like that, check out "Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened (Cthulu Loves you!)" However that particular game won't scare you like this one will!

What about graphics? Scenery is well done and even by day exceedingly creepy. However the graphics, when it comes to the 'few' living beings you encounter, are terrible and incredibly dated given when the game was made. We are talking late 90's graphics when it comes to people, but great when it comes to objects. Odd mix.

So far we have a game with easy puzzles, lots of reading, and graphics that are excellent, so long as nothing alive is involved. Why the 4 stars? The game is scary! Genuinely, heart stoppingly, scary. The plot is very layered and does not rip directly from HP Lovecraft, but is clearly inspired by him. Little Lovecraftian phrases riddle the game such as Curwen, Pickman, the author of the Necronomicon Al-Azif, beyond the spheres, and the dark places below etc. etc. But the plot itself has many unique elements. Although I'm well versed in Lovecraft, the game took its own twists and bends that kept me guessing as to what was going on. I still don't think I figured it out! Is the world about to end? Are my friends my friends? Am I just paranoid? Did I take my medicine today? Bah...who needs medicine!...and why don't I have a gun? Oh right, the game is set in England where detectives walk about armed with polite manners.

I completed the game in a little over 8 hours (and there seemed to be some areas not fully developed...or I just missed the needed item/clue to go there). Not a lot of game play, but judging by my score at the end, I missed a lot of story developing hints and secret rooms. This is a shame. The game is fairly linear, and I wish they would have led me to every nook and cranny, easter egg, and secret room. Why? Because replay for a game like this is rather low.

If you want to be scared and you like the Lovecraftian genre, give "Darkness Within" a try. Games like these need gamer support and praise! A forum about the game indicated the developers were planning on more, and I wish them well! R'yleh is surely about to rise though, so they best hurry!

All in all, I had a good time playing this game.
The story and the objectives are pretty much clear. So, I don't know why someone would end up walking around aimlessly. If you pay attention from the beginning, you'll know what to do. It's a typical adventure. The story has a little twist of weird in it, especially towards the end, but that seems to be popular lately. This isn't meant to be a realistic story. Besides, I found the small changes a little refreshing. Instead of the same old storylines.

I didn't experience any technical difficulties at all during installation or while playing. Someone complained about the mouse being movement sensitive, but I didn't experience that. I didn't even have to adjust my mouse settings.

The graphics are okay. I would say average.

The puzzles are of easy and middle skill levels. There weren't any brain busters here.

What bothered me was the ending was rushed and the game was way to short. This game needed a longer story and more puzzles.(at least 2-3 more hours)

This is a game for in between the really good games, which unfortunately, are becoming fewer and fewer.
If you get it at a reduced price, it's worth it.

This game was a huge disappointment. After reading the description I decided to take the plunge and buy it (no free trial with this one) because I was ready for something other than another Hidden Objects game. The storyline sounded intriguing, the screen shots looked good, so I figured this would be a lot of fun. But not so.

First of, it made me seriously motion-sick. This is a first-person game and whenever the cursor moves just a tiny bit the room view/perspective changes. Several times I just had to take a break because all that movement made me nauseous. I also got tired very quickly of having to constantly adjust the view - the game is way too sensitive to cursor movement and so I ended up accidentally staring at ceilings/floors way more often than I would have liked.

Secondly, there really was not too much to do in the first place. I spent almost all my time wandering aimlessly through one drab-looking scene after another without being able to figure out what I had to do. So I finally just gave up and never finished it. It was just too boring and depressing. My husband who is a very different game player and actually enjoys solving difficult puzzles, etc. (i.e. not at all an impatient hint hunter like me :-)) also quietly quit playing it. He agreed that it was boring and that "it required too many steps to get something done", plus "one never knew what one was supposed to do".

Had it just been me, I would have chalked it up to this game simply being not my type of game, but this assessment coming from my husband as well convinces me that this is just not a good and interesting game. My admittedly subjective advice: Save yourself the money.

I especially liked that you could choose from 3 different levels of play. There is a built in hint system, if you are roaming around wondering what to do or where to go next, a ? will pop up and give a slight hint, such as, look at the photos closer. I need that in all the games I play. ha-ha I would recommend this game.