The Darkness (Xbox 360, 2007)

This game is definately one of the very best Xbox 360 games that I've played to date. The graphics are top-notch, the physics are quite good, and the plot is interesting and engrossing. Overall, the gameplay is extremely entertaining, and the single-player campaign is long and changes enough to stay very interesting.

There are only a few little hitches that make this just an excellent game and not a completely amazing one. First and foremost, the dynamic of the player's darkling minions is pretty flawed. The player's control over the minions is awkward and unreliable. The only way I've found to make them reliable at all is to avoid using minion controls entirely and hope that they'll be helpful just following me around and using their AI. Sometimes they can be really helpful, but only if you avoid trying to tell them what to do.

Otherwise, both the weaponry and darkness powers are very fun to use. There is no reliable way that I've seen to quantitatively gauge the amount of darkness a player has stored up, but things are fairly intuitive anyway. The plot is mysterious and interesting, and the characters are well-portrayed and feature good voice acting. Parts of the game are downright scary, and the campaign stays challenging, though it's almost never so difficult that anyone should get stuck.

The darkness powers are fun, just like the first time you get your gravity gun beefed up in Half Life 2, but cooler.

The shooting aspect is neat too. Cover is important, and gunfights can be pretty engrossing and cinematic.

The player's darkness powers are spaced out at intervals that keep things interesting. They could be a little better documented, though. I didn't know until my second time through that holding down the tentacle button caused it to impale enemies, allowing me to throw them at their buddies.

My only issue with the plot is that Jackie, the player's character, doesn't seem very surprised when he first sprouts a set of evil demon snake heads.

So, despite some flaws, The Darkness is an awesome game. Now that it's a bit older and cheaper, no fan of shooters or horror/suspense games has any excuse not to own this game. I picked it up used for ~$15, but this game would have been worth full price when it came out, and I've bought only 1 of my 20 or so Xbox 360 games new for full price (Gears of War 2).

The side quests are OK, but I was so absorbed in the main quest I missed them the first time through. The multiplayer is decent, but not good enough to pry me away from Gears 2, Halo, or Call of Duty 4/World at War. The game's greatest strength is the single-player campaign, which is totally awesome.

I've heard rumors of a sequel, and if one does come out, I'll fight my way to the front of the line on launch day. The only other recent sequel that has me this excited is Gears 2.

Keep this one away from impressionable kids. In case you didn't guess, it is incredibly violent.

So, this game was almost one of the greatest ever. Here's what would make it an incredible game rather than just an excellent one.

-Better control of Darklings.
-Tougher, smarter enemies.
-Easier to find/more varied side quests.

Really, that addresses the few flaws in the game. If this sounds like it might be fun, get it. You won't be disappointed, especially for under $20.