Alone in the Dark

This product is included in Alone in the Dark 2

Infogrames

Game

Multilingual: English, Italian, and Spanish

Ratings:

B from  Just Adventure

Game Objective:

The owner of Derceto, Jeremy Hartwood, died a few days ago. The police report, filed after a cursory investigation, concluded that the well-know artist had taken his own life. His devoted butler confirmed that Hartwood had been suffering from considerable mental depression for some months. He had placed even more strain on his already delicate health by translating the many ancient manuscripts contained in Derceto's extensive library. He also suffered from insomnia and what few hours of sleep he had were troubled by particularly disturbing nightmares. He appeared to be convinced of a mysterious presence in the old house.

Derceto is now empty. Rumours abound of a curse or of an evil power dwelling within its walls. Such stories are not uncommon with houses like Derceto, especially in this particular area. For some days now, however, a cloud of doubt has hung over your mind...What are those strange lights inside the house at nightfall? What could account for the eerie noises to be heard each time you approach? Why did Jeremy commit suicide? And what compels you towards the house? What is Derceto's terrible secret?

Also Includes: Jack in the Dark

Night is falling and the wind is whistling through the dark lanes. Every so often grinning pumpkin heads light up doorways and window sills. Tonight is Hallowe'en.

Grace, a clever little girl, has dressed herself up as a witch and, in line with tradition, is going from house to house whistling a well-known tune...

Attracted by the window of a toy shop, she stops and knocks at the door which then opens. Grace enters the shop and suddenly the door bangs shut behind her.

Grace is now a prisoner in this sinister shop. She must not only find her way out, she must also thwart and evil plot.

Requirements:

IBM PC AT or 100% compatible computer, AT 16 Mhz minimum or faster recommended, 640 KB RAM (more than 580,000 bytes of free memory required), 128 KB EMS (Expanded Memory Specification), VGA 256 colour graphic mode, hard disk needed (8MB free required), CD-ROM drive with sound output, MSCDEX 2.2 or higher. Optional: Sound Blaster, The Sound Source or AdLib, Microsoft Windows 3.0 or higher.

Reviews:

Just Adventure by Ray Ivey

"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."

"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."

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