The fear is back
The original Alone in the Dark remains a first class exercise in survival horror and ranks as a must play for fans of Silent Hill and Resident Evil. However, this attempt to bring the franchise back to its glory days is pretty heavily flawed and stands as a tough game to like, particularly when viewed from the comfort of the present day. The story is a slightly confusing and underfed one which finds our original hero, Edward Carnby, looking not much older than he once did, despite it being 83 years since the first game. He's quickly shot, then unholy forces are somehow unleashed and he's forced on the run while trying to stop an old enemy from finding some sort of powerful stone. This all unfolds via a series of eight episodes of action/adventure gameplay where you can switch between first- and third-person perspectives while facing off against a number of horrific enemies. This one goes back to its survival horror roots by providing little ammo and with weapons only having limited lifespans while one interesting feature is the role that fire plays and which can be both a help and a hindrance. It was certainly a bold idea to bring Alone in the Dark back but any such endeavor is fraught with danger and unfortunately, this take doesn't really work. It's hampered by some highly awkward controls which render the gameplay an exercise in frustration. The enemy AI is also rather broken and there's a general feeling of futility to the whole thing which makes this a hard game to like.
