Alone in the Dark was one of the most influential games of the
DOS era. How does it hold up today for the first-time player?

I was very
interested in playing this famous older title, which is so frequently referred
to in writing about our beloved adventure genre. After playing it, I can say that
I was not disappointed.

This Game Could Justify the Action/Adventure
Hybrid Label

First of all, as most of you who’ve been around the genre
longer than me probably already know, this is not a pure adventure. You’d have
to call it an action/adventure. In fact, it’s so excellent at blending the two
genres that you could probably make the argument that its one of the original
games of this hybrid genre.

Alone in the Dark is heavily influenced
by the wonderfully dark, twisted writings of H.P. Lovecraft, and that’s a pretty
good literary pedigree for any game. If you haven’t read Lovecraft, chances are
you’ve seen plenty of movies with the same idea: a researcher into the occult
finds some ancient, dusty incantations and rashly begins reading them aloud, thereby
releasing into the world all matter of unpleasant, icky monsters.

It was
released way back in the dark DOS era (1992), and so I didn’t expect it to be
graphically impressive. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Of course, the technical
limitations of the day keep it from having that smooth, polished, rendered Myst
look, but I wasn’t expecting that.

Excuse Me, but Is That Your
Six-Foot, Venom-Dripping, Purple Spider?

However, the game overcomes
its “primitive” technology by a very high degree of craftsmanship. The
sound effects are creepy and convincing. The character movement is complex and
varied. The camera angles are constantly shifting, giving the game a very cinematic
feel. Finally, the characters and objects have a convincing sense of weight and
substance.

All of these factors add up to the result that, DOS or not,
the world of Alone in the Dark is a strangely compelling, real-seeming (if not
exactly realistic) place. This is vital for a game that is filled with such varied
forms of physical danger.

There’s Something Weird About the Old Derceto
Mansion …

The story is extremely simple. The old man of a huge,
mysterious house has died under suspicious circumstances, and you show up at the
house to check it out.

Not two minutes into your exploration of the house’s
attic, and you’re set upon by a vicious “furrball” and a relentless
zombie! Clearly, this house is going to be no picnic.

The rest of the game
consists of you carefully exploring the house, searching for weapons and for clues
to the origin of the vicious monsters that lurk around almost every corner.

See
Monster. Fight Monster. Run from Monster. Find the Next Monster.

Let
me be clear: This is not a traditional adventure game! Action elements are at
its very core. However, since it’s not a pure shooter, I believe it really earns
the title “action/adventure.” You have to find magic daggers to kill
beasties, you have to attack them with knives, guns, and even soup! Some of the
action elements are very challenging. Particularly difficult is a swordfight with
a pirate who, despite his undead status, is still quite a swordsman! Also, the
final sequence is not for the impatient or the faint of heart!

There are
many things I admire about this very influential game. I think it’s cool that
you have your choice of two characters to play through the game as. I’m impressed
that the game includes a maze that neither bored nor infuriated me. I’m impressed
with the level of difficulty–this game is challenging, but not defeatingly so.
I’m impressed with the cinematic feel to the game.

Alone in the Dark
has a very cool cinematic feel, scary monsters, and fun gameplay. On the down
side, lots of combat makes this not a game for adventure purists. Alone in
the Dark is a game that lives up to its hype!

Final Grade: B

System
Requirements: 386
4 MB RAM
1X CD-ROM

VGA with 512 K
Sound board
DOS 6.2