Swedish developer Starbreeze managed a very rare feat back in 2004, by making a game based on a license, that wasn't crap. Not content with merely being not crap, it was actually very good. What's more is that it was based on a film that was crap. Like the old saying goes; you earn respect, and it's because of the fine job they did with Ridicules of Chronic, sorry, I mean Chronicles of Riddick, that many informed gamers have been optimistic about what they'll do with their next game based on a license: that of cult comic book series The Darkness.

   Was their optimism misplaced? Absolutely not, as although The Darkness is far from perfect, it's a step in the right direction for the progression of first-person shooters and thoroughly enjoyable and immersive to boot.

Phantom Ass

   Immersion: that's what gaming's all about, right? Escaping from your mundane real life (sorry to assume) and all its problems, into a fantastical virtual one, with different problems; only problems without real consequence that can usually be solved using totally awesome super powers. If that sounds like what you're after then you should seriously consider picking this one up. And in case you're wondering, no knowledge of the source material is required to enjoy it.

   The Darkness is a game that oozes atmosphere from every pore. The decision to not have a HUD a very good one, and one that helps The Darkness pull you further into its world of gangsters, foul language and lots and lots of killing. There is no visible health bar and no first aid kits - if you get hit, the screen flashes red. Stay out of harms way until it stops flashing and you're good to go again. If you didn't know, you'd swear the license came from a movie, rather than a comic book, such is the cinematic feel of the game. The excellent voice acting and expressive animations of the non-player characters amplify this more so. Faith No More and Mr. Bungle singer Mike Patton lends his voice to the role of The Darkness and, as you'd expect from hearing his musical endeavors, does a good job of sounding creepy and sinister. Unfortunately, the music itself is the generic kind of symphonic metal we're so used to hearing in games these days, where a more subtle soundtrack of ethereal clatters, moans and wails would've been more apt and atmospheric. It's not obtrusively bad, just really bland.

Premature ejaculator

Worst. Birthday. Present. Ever.

   You play as Jackie Estacado, a gangster who, shortly into the game, inherits an evil possessive spirit on his 21st birthday. Not the shiny new car he was hoping for, to be sure. It's not all bad though, as although this demonic birthday present pretty much ruins his life, it also allows Jackie to wreak havoc in some very creative ways. Light is one of your many enemies in this game, so if you want to use your powers, and you will, you'll need to remember to shoot out any sources to maintain darkness. Pass under a light source with The Darkness activated and you will hear it sizzle to signify that it's robbing you of your powers. You can recharge by spending a few moments in the dark.

   One of the early abilities you gain, Creeping Darkness, allows you to send off an eel-like creature that can very gorily tear enemies' faces off with a simple press of the R1 button when in proximity. When the dead body then falls to the floor, you can devour its heart to increase your darkness powers. As this creature cannot be killed, it becomes very easy to play the game in a safe manner if you're stealthily inclined - scoping out every area before entering in person. If the creature does get shot, the camera simply zooms back to Jackie, without any loss of health. Controlling it can be very satisfying when you're on a roll, tearing faces off left right and centre, but also frustrating, as it sometimes gets stuck and, although it can slither over practically anything, all it takes is a corpse on the ground to stop it in its tracks. Later on you gain abilities that include a massive tentacle arm that can pick enemies (not to mention larger obstacles, such as cars) up and throw them into the distance, and a black hole that sucks up everything in range and spits it back out......dead, of course. Despite all these different abilities, play does start to feel repetitive before the game ends.

Hell...p

   Another feature allows you to summon darklings from hell holes, to assist in your battles. Like miniature mother-in-laws, the darklings are small gremlin-like creatures of which there are four kinds: berserker (beats up nearby enemies), gunner (shoots nearby enemies), light-killer (zaps the lights around you, keeping you in darkness and also electrocutes any nearby enemies) and kamikaze (runs at enemies and explodes). These creatures are a nice touch and each one says and does the odd blackly humorous thing, for example, urinating on the corpse of their victim. The darklings add some comic relief (not that pissing on the dead is funny or anything......ahem) to this dark and mostly straight-faced game. In many cases the darklings can come in very handy, but there are just as many frustrating times where they pointlessly stand around doing nothing while poor Jackie gets pumped full of lead.

   Which leads us to guns: the bread and butter of any FPS. In this department, The Darkness is lacking (only pistols, shotguns and machine guns are available), but this is surely intentional as a way of encouraging players to use their supernatural powers instead. If you just want to shoot things with guns, then perhaps a more traditional FPS would be a better choice. If you don't mind change, would like to see the FPS genre branching out and like horror movies and killing things in more creative ways than just shooting them, then this game will be worth some of your attention.

       ... Lunk