Dark Fall: Lights Out
A very good bang for a minimal buck.
Tags: Dark Fall: Lights Out Categories: PC Reviews, Reviews
Posted by David Hinkle on Sep 30th, 2004
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark Fall: Lights Out (title page) | 1 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Adventure | No | ||
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If you’re familiar with titles like Myst and Sam and Max, then you’ve pretty much got an idea of what to expect with Dark Fall: Lights Out. The sequel to Dark Fall: The Journal, Lights Out is set around a lighthouse on Fetch Rock, located near the town of Trewarthan(a harbor town in the Cornwall area of the United Kingdom). The story takes place in 4 different time periods, all the time revolving around this lighthouse. You play as the young Mr. Jonathon Parker, who was called here from Scotland to map the landscape. The story starts as you are roused from your sleep one evening by a knock at the door and, upon investigating the outside alley, proposed with a task, which is to explore the lighthouse and discover its dark secrets.
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Graphically, Lights Out does a great job of creating a very believable and very crisp atmosphere(given that it runs on your generic, integrated graphics chip). From the moment you step out of your cottage, you are immersed in a thick fog that really creates some exciting effects with the lighting and makes you believe you can only be in the UK. The street lamps look as if you can actually reach out and touch them. Not only that, but the dark caverns and dank, dusty lighthouse you’ll find yourself exploring later on really come to life, and are that much more enjoyable when returned to during the different time periods later on. The only problem I had was with the character models, who seem to move a little wooden(see: Pinnochio). Sometimes it can draw you out of the experience, but you’ll only encounter characters a few times throughout the game, so this isn’t something too major.
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Lights Out doesn’t do anything new in the first-person, graphic adventure genre, yet still manages to stay fresh through inventive puzzles that span the different time periods. The story is engaging, and the controls are pretty much the same as every other game of this kind. Basically, you just point the mouse to different objects, wait for the cursor to change, then click on it. That isn’t to say that the title is mindless, as you’ll be expected to comb every inch of area you’ve explored before progressing forward. Luckily though, you may save at anytime. So if you encounter a certain problem that you are unable to overcome at the moment or just don’t have to the time to solve, you may save right in the middle then come back at a more convenient time. This also poses a problem, however, in the way that if you have saved in the middle of a task or puzzle and have been away from the game for quite some time, you may find it difficult to figure out where you exactly are. Sadly, a journal keeping track of the story and your progress is missing, and in my opinion, is the biggest flaw with this title.
As far as the sound goes, it’s really quite good. If you have even a slightly low-end speaker setup you’ll be able to appreciate the small nuiances of crackling thunder in the distance, chirping crickets, and echoing footsteps. Every visit to the lighthouse in each time period will bring new sounds that not only make you believe you’re standing on a cliff overlooking the ocean, but will also chill you right to the bone. The voice acting in this title is pretty good, although I wouldn’t call it great. The inflections are hit and miss, and the lip-sync never fails, so I mean what else can you really expect in that department?
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At the end of the title, you’ll be wishing there was more. Sad the title is a bit on the short side, and titles in this genre rarely have any replayability. If this were a full price title, then I’d be giving this title a lot lower of a score. Seeing as how you can find it for a suggested retail price of $19.99 at most stores, you can safely expect enough game for your hard earned dollar. I would’ve liked to play a bit longer, but upon looking back was pretty satisfied with what I got.
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If you’re looking for a well-rounded story and to kill an afternoon or two, then I definitely suggest picking this up. Seeing as how it’ll run on just about any PC from the last few years, it appeals to a wide audience, especially those who wish to game on their PC, but lack all the expensive parts to play some of the more recent, graphically-demanding titles. Although some would argue that this is nothing other than an interactive movie, it’s hard to find points to argue that it isn’t. It’s true this is a very linear title, and actions are very limited, but it does something that a lot of games with ten times the control and flash don’t – provide an immersive atmosphere and leave you with a memorable gaming experience.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
Environment Story Sound |
7.8 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
Nothing new gameplay-wise A bit short No replay value Niche title |
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| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| All in all, you really can get a lot of enjoyment out of this title for the suggested $19.99 pricetag. This is more for a niche crowd though, as anyone who hasn't had previous experience in this genre is more than likely going to lack the patience to really get into it. | |
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Tags: Dark Fall: Lights Out
Posted by David Hinkle on Sep 30th, 2004 and is filed under PC Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
