Although the production team from Pieces Interactive clearly put a lot of work into this game, Alone in the Dark—the remastered version of the 1992 classic—didn’t live up to its enormous promise.
Screenshot youtube.com/@IGN
Alone in the Dark (2024)’s attempt to become something that will be generally embraced by the wider gaming community is somewhat in the shadows of other established aces of the genre, such as Dead Space Remake, Resident Evil 4 Remake, and Alan Wake 2. This is a capital “too bad”. Redirecting your Skrill wallet funds from making online purchases at Amazon or making transactions at the best-rated betting sites here that enable this quick and easy payment method to pay €59.99 for Alone in the Dark (2024) on Steam is something that should be pondered upon wisely…
General information about the game:
- Game name: Alone in the Dark
- Game genre: Survival horror
- Developer: Pieces Interactive
- Publisher: THQ Nordic
- Platforms: Windows, PS5, and Xbox Series S/X
- Price on the Steam platform: €59.99
- Final rating: 6.8/10
The Game’s Early Days Date Back to 1992
Many long-time, seasoned horror game enthusiasts firmly believe that the original Alone in the Dark is the actual creator of the survival-horror subgenre. Of course, Capcom refined the genre four years later with Resident Evil (known as Biohazard in Japan and other parts of Asia), but Infogrames’ game Alone in the Dark is credited with creating the genre.
In comparison to modern times, the 1992 first-ever Alone in the Dark is incredibly simplistic. Considering the technology available at the time, this is understandable. Nevertheless, it’s evident that other following games appropriated large portions of the Alone in the Dark game, despite the fact that the game looks the way it does and “plays” the way it does. Naturally, these segments improved and became more polished over time.
Fighting creatures, “tank controls”, and pre-rendered scenery (pictures) were all present in 1992 original Alone in the Dark. These features will make Resident Evil by Capcom even better in the years to come (starting with 1996 Resident Evil 1 and continuing with 1999 Resident Evil 3: Nemesis and the 2002 re-release of the original Resident Evil, Resident Evil: Remake).
Years went by. The first “reboot” or reissue of the classic had been patiently awaited since 2001 when the fourth installment of the Alone in the Dark game was released. It was about the 2008 video game Alone in the Dark. We won’t go into great detail about that game here. To put it simply, it’s a mediocre shooter that’s merely nominally connected to the previous titles in the series. That’s all there is to it. After that, 2024 arrived; March 20, to be more precise. The opportunity to play the brand-new Alone in the Dark emerged!
There must have been a strong response from a large number of fans of the series and the genre. How not? You finally have the opportunity to play a game that’s essentially the creator of the genre, albeit in a different form, after so many years of waiting. With updated visuals. On fresh gaming platforms and channels.
What impressions will you have after finishing both characters in the game? Well… You’ve experienced the sensation of starving so bad, so you head to a local, say, kebab restaurant and place your order. You anticipate a delicious meal that will sate your lion’s appetite; everything is fine, and the kebab has all the makings for a great meal, but after you take a bite, you realize that the meat tastes rubbery, is overly fatty in some parts, not enough in others, and overcooked in some parts. And how are you going to act? You continue eating. And you dream about a tastier kebab while you’re eating. Summing up the experience with Alone in the Dark (2024) we come to a similar. So near, and in certain parts, so far…
Presentation and Graphic Options
Let’s begin with what, in our opinion, is the least crucial aspect of a game: the visuals and their capabilities. Alone in the Dark (2024) has a good appearance. Is it up to par with Alan Wake 2, Dead Space 2, or Resident Evil 4 Remake? Not really. Those games revolutionized the way the game was presented graphically. Alone in the Dark, or AITD for short, still has sporadic, striking visuals, nevertheless.
It’s impossible to argue that the development team performed poorly in this instance. The exterior and interior of the world where the game is set have been masterfully depicted by the boys and gals at Pieces Interactive. The fog, which is particularly noticeable in the “nightmare” environment, really adds to the sense of fear. The shadows and light perfectly capture the mood.
Some may argue that this is to be expected—that each AAA product released in the previous three to four years must have stunning visuals. And to some extent, it does. Nonetheless, the development team deserves recognition. The game will reach its maximum visual and audio quality, especially when played on a Windows machine with a powerful enough graphics card and processor. The PlayStation 5 version is aesthetically stunning, however, it’s obviously incompatible with the PC. Our only gripe is that the game appears to be a little “washed out” at points.
You’ll understand what we mean if you’ve played the Resident Evil 2 Remake released in 2019. Aside from that, everything is of an extremely high caliber and really adds to the horror mood, which is the main reason you’ll enjoy these games. Nevertheless, impressive graphics alone don’t determine if a game is better or worse than others. What about the other aspects?
While Alone in the Dark (2024) Makes an Effort to Be a Scary Game, It Is Rarely Successful in Doing So
And it’s really unfortunate. AITD (2024) does aim to be terrifying, no arguing about that. It’s making a great effort. Alone in the Dark (2024) aspires to be a survival-horror game on par with Resident Evil, with elements ranging from the shadow that rests on a stuffed bear to hideous monsters who frequently arrive suddenly, behind you, and when you were least expecting it.
Sure, it’s sometimes successful in this, particularly when it’s your first time playing the game and you have no idea what’s around the bend or if the doll that menacingly “looks” at you in the corner will move. The design of the monster is excellent. The monsters appear as though they had emerged from a nightmare written by Stephen King or H.P. Lovecraft, and their goal is to frighten you.
Even though you got used to survival-horror games, there will be times when you’ll feel afraid and unsure, and don’t want to find out if the object in front of those cars was a barrel or something else entirely that was creeping toward you. We regret that these circumstances aren’t that often. More precisely, it’s a pity that, after a while, things start to seem the same. This particularly stands for interactions with monsters.
Things will become monotonous after an hour or two of gameplay and encountering some of the terrifying monsters in the Alone in the Dark (2024) game. The fights resemble each other in most cases. When an adversary attacks, you retreat a little and search for a weapon you can use to, say, put the enemy on fire. You then shoot him a few times, hit him when he’s on the ground, and that’s it.
The Combat Is Reminiscent of Resident Evil 2 Remake; Unfortunately, It Only Resembles It
Basically, to be honest, the combat in Alone in the Dark (2024) contains a kind of combination of Resident Evil 2 Remake and Silent Hill. Especially the one that you most probably won’t like, which is Origins. In addition to firearms, there are also cold weapons in the game, which wear out with use and are destroyed after a while. That in itself sounds good because, on paper, it adds to the tension and horror elements.
There are several kinds of melee weapons in the game, but we’re not sure if that’s because of the design of the weapons themselves or the game itself. You won’t detect any variation in power between them. Are there a few little variations in range? We have no idea. Perhaps some of the updates that should come out after this will improve on items like this even more. However, this is another example of a component that seemed solid on paper but fell short in actual use.
It’s necessary to mention that the monsters you’ll face are separated into multiple, or diverse, categories. One looks like one of those “Molded” monsters from Resident Evil 7. It’s predicted that the monsters are frightening and that you’ll feel scared by them for the first hour or two. But eventually, you just begin to adjust to everything. It lacks the diversity of Resident Evil and the earlier Silent Hill titles.
Alone in the Dark (2024), which is neither Silent Hill nor Resident Evil nor Dead Space, became something different purely due to that intense attempt to make the game as similar to those games as possible. And this is just another opportunity lost, in our view. The fight is what we’re talking about. To make matters worse, there are moments when the combat seems awkward and the game feels more like an indie title than a AAA title, which is obviously bad. When all is said and done, the traditional “over-the-shoulder” style of playing—which we are already accustomed to—remains subpar when compared to the genre’s elite.
The Riddles Are… Well, Mediocre
Alright, we didn’t anticipate riddles to be as difficult as the school piano challenge in Silent Hill 1 or the requirement to be familiar with Shakespeare’s works like in Silent Hill 3, but we did anticipate riddles to be more challenging.
A great deal of these are made like this: you enter a room, find a note, letter, or diary with a hint to the solution, fumble with the equipment in front of you, and that’s all. Simply put, the text you’ll read will frequently not include the answer to the riddle; instead, it will be an excessively complex bunch of words that can cause you to get bogged down in the solution, which isn’t that complex at all. Frequently easier than you might think. And you’ll be disappointed by this. We admit that we weren’t anticipating anything extremely elaborate, but if you’ve played Resident Evil 4 Remake, you know that it features riddles, some of which are challenging, but nothing extremely intricate. There might be one or two of these problems in Alone in the Dark (2024). The rest is really easy. They could’ve been more sophisticated, although they’re not quite as simplistic as those in the Resident Evil Village video game. Unfortunately.
Textual Parts Will Make You Feel Bored (or Completely Lost) with the Story, Which Has a Very Good Premise
Alone in the Dark (2024) is starting off strong. You arrive at the deserted Villa Derceto, where you have to locate the missing villa owner, Jeremy Hartwood, whether you’re playing as the young, strong Emily Hartwood or private detective Edward Carnby. Everything is getting off to a great start. You’ll enjoy that you didn’t know what to anticipate, especially if you hadn’t played the original game. What you won’t enjoy, though, are the enormous volumes of information, files, letters, diaries, and books—all of which you should read since they contain plot-relevant elements.
To be honest, we don’t mind at all text files, books, messages, or other content in these games, provided that the data is dosed. Sadly, this isn’t what happens in this game. The amount of text here is excessive to the point where you’ll become disinterested in reading it halfway through. It’s not that the story isn’t well told. However, the dose is what matters. Often, less is more. Less language increases the sense of mystery, secrecy, and things that are subject to many player interpretations.
Alone in the Dark (2024) Made an Unsuccessful Attempt to Work “Side by Side” With the Genre’s Leaders
We regret this the most because there’s obviously potential here. In addition, having completed the game with both characters, you’ll feel that there’s a lot of unrealized potential in this game.
Does that imply that the game is poor? No. Saying that this is a poor game would be greatly exaggerated. The game Alone in the Dark (2024) is mediocre. And that’s it. It’s a nice-looking but average game that occasionally has glitches (like floating bottles that plunge for a moment before emerging), but it can’t compete with the genre’s best games, like Dead Space Remake, Resident Evil 4 Remake, Alan Wake 2, and so on. Perhaps things might have turned out better if the creators had chosen a more original theme rather than ripping off many of the contemporary elements found in horror games nowadays. Furthermore, the cost is 60 euros, which is a lot.
Is it worthwhile to play Alone in the Dark (2024)? Yes, it is, provided you are an ardent follower of the genre and franchise. However, waiting for the price to decline would be wise even in that scenario.
Santosh Kumar is a Professional SEO and Blogger, With the help of this blog he is trying to share top 10 lists, facts, entertainment news from India and all around the world.