Just about any gamer over the age of 25 has heard of the Alone in the Dark video game series, aside from the abysmal movie that was somewhat based on the franchise released last year. Alone in the Dark introduced us to survival horror games and set the standard of how they should be created and continued to do so for another few titles. As time went on, other survival horror games came along such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill, using the techniques that made Alone in the Dark work and came away with some pretty successful games themselves. Alone in The Dark is looking to make a come back and launch itself back to the top of the survival horror genre by re-inventing it and who else would know how to do it better than the inventors of the field.

At E3 this year, we were shown a trailer of what is in store for the new game and what we saw was pretty phenomenal to say the least. Edward Carnby, the protagonist from the original games has apparently returned from the dead and is alive and well in today’s day and age. How he got there and why he is there is as big of a mystery to us as it is to him, but you can guess that finding out how and why will be a large part of the game. Much of the game is reminiscent of the original where you will spend plenty of time solving puzzles and fighting enemies, but it just looks oh so beautiful this time around. The puzzles are much more in depth and more complex and give the awesome physics found in the game something to show off. At one part, we were shown how Edward was in a pit of sorts on a street and needed to get out. To solve this, he fired his gun at the trailer of a truck that was stuck partially up the wall of the pit to the surface. To get out, Edward fired his gun at the trailer to break the lock that was holding the cargo door shut. Once the lock broke, a car rolled out from the trailer and into the pit. Once the car was free, Edward hopped in it and used the trailer as a ramp and drove up and out of the hole.

This little demonstration showed how physics were going to play a large part in the game as well as the ability to use vehicles. The game devs are touting that just about everything object is interactive and one part of the demo showed just how much it was. Edward was in a parking garage and needed a car to escape. He entered one and found that there were no keys. After playing with the radio and the heater buttons and searching through the glove box, he reached under the dash to find the ignition wires. Matching up the right wires to start the car was all controlled by the gamer and matching up the wrong wires would set off the car horn or lights and attract unwanted attention to your presence and criminal activities. Of course, it was later shown, after the car was hot wired, that simply looking in the top visor revealed a key which would have started the car much easier. The majority of the game takes place in New York City’s gigantic Central Park. The large open environment is a great place to show off what the game has to offer as well as giving Edward a very large playground to roam around in.

Sticking to more realistic concepts, Edward will only be able to carry what a person would in real life. This was demonstrated by opening your inventory which consisted of a top-down view of Edwards open coat displaying its contents. Alone in the Dark is taking an interesting route that will see the game set up in an episodic approach. Each segment of the game will feature a recap of what has transpired as well as a teaser of what’s in store for the next to keep gamers interest up. This structure allows casual gamers to play small amounts at a time and not have to sit through long periods of game play where they would have to stop and leave in the middle of the action. Alone in the Dark is looking to use the same set up as many television shows such as CSI, LOST and 24, some of the most popular shows on television today. Along with this arrangement and the cinematography visuals and an intense use of light and shadows, Alone in the Dark is looking to be an engrossing experience with outstanding visuals and brain tickling gameplay. Be on the look out for Edward Carnby to make his reappearance on the PC, Xbox 360 and Ps3 when a release date is announced later this year. - Jeff McAllister.