Check out our review of Alone in the Dark 2024, a brand new adaptation of the 1992 classic survival horror game…
We’ll tell you everything you need to know before you play, featuring the gameplay, story, visuals and more. And most importantly, if you’re allowed to call him Dedward Harbny. I’m so sorry…
Transcript
The Alone in the Dark franchise has a complicated past.
All the way back in 1992, it threw upon the door for the survival horror genre, and without it, we may never have had the likes of Resident Evil or Silent Hill.
But since then, there’s probably been more lows than highs. New Nightmare was a great addition, but the likes of the overly ambitious 2008 reboot and 2015’s truly abysmal Alone in the Dark: Illumination haven’t done much to keep the series relevant for a long, long time.
At least we can all agree the Uwe Boll film adaptation was absolutely perfect and anyone who says differently can take it up with Mr Boll in the ring.
Anywho, will this 2024 reimagining of the original game kickstart things in the right direction for the franchise?
Taking it back to the early 20th century, the story follows Emily Hartwood with the help of private investigator Edward Carnby arriving at Derceto Manor, a psychiatric hospital, after discovering that her uncle Jeremy has gone missing. As you can imagine with such a setting, it’s not long before you encounter monsters, arcane conspiracies and portals to haunted drea worlds.
You know, the usual.
But will it live up to the heady heights of the series, or will it prove to be its final nail coffin? Watch on to find out.
So in a similar vein to other recent survival horror remakes, the gameplay has been completely rebuilt for modern sensibilities. Gone are the fixed camera angles, making way for a third person, over the shoulder perspective.
While you explore the manor building, things are a little slower and methodical. There’s lots of puzzles to figure out and residents to interact with, all of which helps to slowly piece together the story. To be honest, when I first saw the first gameplay trailers, I was a little worried it was going to fall into the walking simulator category, but after getting hands on it’s so much more.
Sidebar, there’s actually some great walking sim games. Definitely check out Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture.
The puzzles are challenging and the characters really breathe life into the dusty old haunted house. In a way, the Derceto Manor feels like a big puzzle box. You gradually unlock more rooms and go deeper into its mysteries. Also the walls literally move, which makes it feel like you’re in a spooky Rubik’s Cube.
Depending on how much of a challenge you want, not only can you adjust the difficulty, but also choose between ‘Modern’ and ‘Old School’ mode. ‘Modern’ gives you a host of helpful features, including more interactive maps and easier to follow objectives. ‘Old School’ mode does away with all of this, meaning you’ll really have to get into the weeds and hope you don’t miss that one clue you walked past thirty minutes ago. Let me know if you beat it this way, that’s mighty impressive.
But exploring the halls of Derceto Manor is only part of the Alone in the Dark experience. You’ll spend time in a liminal dream world that’ll take you to all manner of horrible places, from an abandoned oil rig to the French Quarter, now riddled with nasty ghoulies.
These areas tend to be a lot more action packed, meaning you can really sink your teeth into the combat systems. After recently playing the Resident Evil 2 remake, I was surprised at just how much combat there was here. You’ll have access to guns, and while ammo isn’t as scarce as in Resi, some enemies will soak up bullets like crazy before they go down, particularly on the harder difficulties.
Fortunately, you’ll also be able to find throwable explosives and some chonky-looking melee weapons to keep the baddies at bay. I was genuinely impressed with the depth and variety of the action, and while I enjoyed the moments in the manor, I think these dream world moments will be the ones that stick in my memory. They were a lot of fun.
When you start the game, you get to pick whether you want to play through things as Edward or Emily, or should I say you get to pick whether you want to play through things as Edward or Emily first. That’s because who you pick affects how people and things interact and occur for you. While it’ll be similar (you’re experiencing the same things from two different perspectives), there’s enough difference to avoid a second playthrough feeling repetitive. Expect different cutscenes and some completely different levels. Plus, this is the only way to get the real ending. Each playthrough takes roughly 8 hours, so you’d be looking at 16 to 20 hours for a completionist run.
And speaking of the story and the mood of the gameplay, they bloody nailed it. I’m an absolute sucker for the dark gothic Americana vibe, and the setting, dark jazz soundtrack and Lovecraftian influences all tickled my brain in just the right way. I’m not sure how much material there is in the Eldritch crime noir genre, but I want to read, watch and play it all. Send me all your recommendations.
Also while the game uses the original title and its sequels as a base, it tells a unique story that doesn’t require any previous experience or exposure to the series. So don’t be afraid about jumping in with this entry.
As you can probably tell from the gameplay, Edward and Emily are both voiced and performed by David Harbor and Jodie Comer respectively. While they obviously put in great performances, I think this is my biggest issue with Alone in the Dark, and it very much could just be a ‘me’ thing. Whenever an actor’s face is used for a model in a game, I can’t help but just think about the actor, rather than the character. I think because it’s still a bit of a novelty seeing someone as a 3D computer person, I find it hard to separate them from who they’re portraying. This, coupled with some LA Noire-esque uncanny valley, did stop me from getting as invested as I might otherwise, but this is more personal preference than overt issue.
But aside from that, I’ve had a really good time with Alone in the Dark. Mechanically and technically it might not do anything we haven’t seen before, but it’s got a mood and an atmosphere that’s truly its own. It’s a return to form for the franchise, and whether it leads to a revival or ends the series as a cult classic, it’s definitely one you should check out.
But what did you think of Alone in the Dark? Let me know in the comments below, I’d love to read your thoughts. And while you’re down there, don’t forget to like and subscribe for more on all things gaming, and you can always check out upsidedownshark.com to keep up with everything else we’ve got going on. Until then my name is Tom, this has been UDS and we’ll see you next time.
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Tom Baker
I like Star Wars, heavy metal and BBQ Pringles.
