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Only played the demo - but that's as far as I wanna go.

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 5 / 11
Date: June 30, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Just a warning for those that aren't familiar with the Alone in the Dark series that they may want to try the demo first. The reason being I tried the demo and have never been more unimpressed by a game hyped such as this.

Fans of the Alone in the Dark series might find the sequel entertaining but some of my gripes with the demo -

(And keep in mind it was the demo so I can't give you an idea on the entire game, but like I said, the demo made me determined not to buy the game.)

-- The perspective is constantly switched. In other words, in one scene, you are looking at the front of the character, when he moves to another area (zone) that is downloaded, you are looking at him from the side, etc... Each small area (zone) has to be downloaded and the viewing perspective constantly changes which is very annoying.

-- The mouse didn't work. At least on the demo. It was keyboard only.

-- Great FX on the character, but the scenery (especially the pouring rain) was TERRIBLE. It was a giant clash comparing this beautifully, lifelike character with some aspects that looked like the old CGA graphics.

-- The gameplay system was very cumbersome. It wasn't managed to give you a smooth flow when you are switching items, etc..

With lack of a better way to explain it, the game reminded me of an 80's game. For instance, the downloading of every small parcel of land (zone) as opposed to smooth flowing through the entire area like ALL games today. And as far as the horror/spooky theme, it was very cheesy. I would recommend Clive Barker's Undying as a game that is everything this one attempted to be.

The original and the best!!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: July 06, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game is marveolus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Excelent graphics!!!!!!!!!!!! Excelent Sound!!!!! Excelent history!!!! Better than any Resident Evil game!!!! 3 CDs of pure terror The original survivor horror game is here............Buy it now!

This Game is in a class by it's self.Three words. Go buy it.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: July 06, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game is worth every penny.I have been playing this game for 15 hours and still playing. The special effects are beyond the realm of computer gaming. Finally a game that is fun and makes you think. Resident evil is no match to alone in the dark.

The New Nightmare is the classic adventure game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: July 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

The Alone in the Dark series has always been an adventure series. To all those who have played The Quest for Glory games, Alone in the Dark is not that much different except that it has a horror theme. You find items and you must use them to solve puzzles. There is some fighting, but for the most part it is not an essential part of the plot or storyline. The storyline, as stated very clearly by the creators, is inspired by H.P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft's stories are not that of brazen heros blasting monsters to bits. It is exactly the opposite. Lovecraft is of old gods, insanity, and the unknown.

The system used by this game for game play has always been a problem. If you have never played an Alone in the Dark game, you will find the same kind of system in Nocturne. In fact, Nocturne might a be the best test for this game. If you liked the storyline to the Texas adventure in Nocturne you will probably like Alone in the Dark. The only difference between that scenario and Alone in the Dark is that Alone is more puzzle oriented.

The biggest con to this game is that like all classic adventure and puzzle games has no replayability. Once you have played both characters, the game is done. This is not a Diablo nor will they probably create expansions for this game. You will just have to wait for next Alone in the Dark game... which if you watch the credits at the end, another game is coming. Edward Carnby will return.

In the end, if you like adventure and puzzle, you should like this game. If you like Lovecraft you will like this game. If you are into games like 1st person shooters or other action oriented games this is probably to slow of a game for you.

My prayers were answered

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: July 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I am a big fan of the AITD series, and this game fits perfectly into that dark and lovecraftian category.

Don't waste yor time

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: July 11, 2001
Author: Amazon User

A great looking game. Moody. Atmospheric. Creepy. Unfortunately the PC version is so riddled with bugs and lockups that it's almost unplayable ...Save your money or at least wait until the manufacturer comes out with a patch.

AitD created the genre, and now once again rules it.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 13 / 18
Date: July 12, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game totally rocked! The graphics are very pretty, it's incredibly scary (the heavy-metal style music both makes you tap your feet and jump outta your skin - scary, huh? :)), and the story is very well-fleshed out through the text (and if you don't want to wade through all that text, the important stuff is marked in red letters so you don't have to read it all). The game doesn't rely on monsters constantly crashing through windows and grissly gore for cheap thrills (although you will find a few dismembered body parts in there).

Unlike in RE (in which there was always enough lighting to see your way around a room), rooms are often very dark. However, you are given a flashlight to search the room, and the effect is both scary and helpful. Slowly moving through a new, dark room, only able to see what the flashlight can show you really makes you feel, well...alone in the dark. Since the enemies you're fighting are shadows, they react in a variety of ways to the flashlight (since shadows are both dispelled and cast by light, depending). For example, certain enemies will die from overexposure to the flashlight, some will simply run away, while others are spawned by it or go absolutely berserk upon being illuminated (you'd better be ready to either run or plug a couple dozen bullets into him, because these monsters are _TOUGH_).

I have only three complaints about the game: a. zombies. Zombies just don't fit in this game, they're the only enemies that don't react to light, and they're just plain annoying (except in Allen's lab where they can scare you silly). b. the first disc (although it only makes up about 30% of the game) is pretty annoying in that you haven't a clue what to do next, and there are lots of locked doors and lots of keys you have to deal with simultaneously. However, the longer second disc makes you glad you waded through the first disc; scary as heck, filled with even freakier monsters, scenes and music. You're forced to really think, too (attaching the blue lens to the flashlight to search for dried blood stains and eventually find a combo was ingenius). c. the final boss. He was really a ... and didn't exactly fill you with fear.

Despite these flaws I've pointed out, upon beating the game you won't remember them too well; you'll remember the best and most logical puzzles in survival horror, the scariest monsters ever shown in a video game, and perhaps the excellent theme song played during the credits. Conclusion: If you're a survival horror fan who's tired of Resident Evil's cheap thrills and weary gameplay (not to mention zombies), this is the way to go. And if you do like Resident Evil, grow up and play the true ruler of survival horror: Alone in the Dark. ;-)

Alone in the Dark

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: July 19, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Just plain fun. Great way to escape from reality. The graphics are great and the creepy creatures literally made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. In this game I get to be a beautiful red head, lost in a spooky manson loaded with nothing but a shot gun, granade launcher, and rapid fire pistol. Great way to take my mind off a lousy day at work.

Far, far below average

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 10 / 12
Date: July 27, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Okay. I'm going to do my best to be brief. If you are a player of PC games, you might want to avoid this game. From every angle it screams "I WAS MADE FOR A CONSOLE!" Very little attention went into importing this game for PC, and I'm afraid the bad outweighs the good.

The graphics sub-par. In some respects, they're actually embarassing... After all the hype and all the screenshots, the end result looks like it was produced about five years ago. The backgrounds are all washed out and flat, and strangely pixelated. The animation is generally terrible. In some places, the fact that they attempted to pass it off as professional animation actually makes me hurt. When you backstep, it's like watching film of someone walking played in reverse. When objects overlap, you could swear you were playing, say, Space Quest. When your character opens a gate, the screen goes black and then comes up again with the gate now open. Aiee.

This should give you some hint as to the lack of care given to this game's PC incarnation: there are no options. You can't select higher screen resolution, enable environmental sound, adjust mouse sensitivity or invert the y-axis... No, the designers apparently felt that such an array of choices would merely confuse gamers today, and in their generosity opted instead to allow you to configure a key or two and choose whether you'd like to listen in mono!

The saving system (that's right, there's a system), is bizarre and painful... for every amulet you collect, you can save once! I wouldn't recommend it, though, because whatever you did in the level on which you save, you'll have to do again. Yup, I'm not kidding.

The controls are awkward... They were clearly created for a gamepad, and only reluctantly assigned to a keyboard.

The voice acting is right on par with everything else, so I suppose they get points for consistency. Let's just say it won't help you immerse yourself in the story. The male lead shouts everything like Freddy from Scooby-Doo... and listening to the female lead is like attending a reading of the epic poem "I'm a Large Plank of Wood" put on by the National Association of Cardboard Boxes. "Carnby. Please. Come quickly. There are things. Terrible things. I'm begging. You."

The game does have some good elements... the design is extremely strong, and I can see how, with some more work, it could provide the foundation for the creepiest horror game ever. It isn't there yet, though, and what good it does have is simply overpowered by its problems. It may work on a console, but on a PC, it falls very flat. I can't recommend this game... I am a tremendous fan of the genre, both in gaming and in literature, and even I couldn't bring myself to complete it. It goes out of its way to prove that console gaming will eventually ruin the medium. No, that's not fair, because Silent Hill was brilliant...

Honestly, if you're the sort of person who really enjoys immersing yourself in a PC game, this is likely not going to satisfy you. If you're looking for a truly spooky and atmospheric horror game for the PC, please go out and pick up a copy of Nocturne. That game reflects real care by the designers, and contains possibly the most effective interpretation of Lovecraftian monsters I've ever seen.

This game would have been wonderful in 1997. Graphically and aurally, that's right where it is. By today's standards, though, it simply doesn't measure up. A lot of these problems could be addressed in patch form, so there is hope... but I have a very strong suspicion that we won't see that happen...

decent game...not great though..

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: July 30, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I could overlook all of the before-mentioned flaws but the one flaw that sinks this game is the horrible save feature. I don't know what the designers were thinking when they came up with that but it sucks all the fun out of the game..

If you truly want a game that is befitting of the horror genre then I recommend "Clive Barker's Undying." I can only recommend this game to the hardcore Alone in the Dark fans of yesteryear...

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