Alone in the Dark

Alone in the Dark pays homage to a horror classic with a strikingly familiar and yet utterly fresh retelling of a cult classic. Modernized gameplay, stunning graphics, and a faithful yet expanded retelling of the classic story make Alone in the Dark perfect for fans of the original and newcomers to the series alike.

This is a fresh story, but the respect and adoration of the original are clear at every turn. Because that original happens to be the grandfather of survival horror, Alone in the Dark is a must-play for any fan of the genre.

Alone in the Dark is surprising. It doesn't have the budget to fight the big boys, but through sheer care it manages to punch above its weight. Its biggest detractors reside in its combat, and its biggest strength are just about everywhere else. It's clear to me that the entire production understood the assignment. Even with its missteps the combat design has valuable ideas. The audio and visual designs are a delight. The acting is probably its greatest strength. The writing, led by Soma's Mikael Hedberg, brought lessons learned from both his previous involvements and the legacy of the series to make a more refined story. He also showed, through a nuanced understanding, that Lovecraft's world extends so far beyond tentacles and old-Gods named Cthulhu. It's far from perfect, but it exists, at the bare minimum, as a great starting point for a revitalization of a series that has fallen from influential to forgotten.

Designed for those who want to enjoy a classic adventure with modern comforts, this game will have a lot of fun for Derceto veterans. Don't expect scares that will take your heart out of your chest, but rather a mystery experience, with gray matter, some smell of gunpowder and pills of Lovecraftian lore.

Although sometimes a little rough, Alone in the Dark is a fantastic remake/reimagining that brings the series back in line with its most interesting events and timeline. This is essential for players looking for a semi-old-school survival horror title that has excellent world design, acting and a host of interesting mysteries to solve. A really great return to form!

Alone in the dark is not as fluid or refined as some other remakes in the genre. It has some technical limitations. What Alone in the Dark does do better than its peer is deliver on an engrossing narrative, and an excellent voice cast with Derceto as the main character. Those looking for an action horror or survival horror video game might be turned off by some of its uninspired action gameplay, but those that stick around will be treated with a fantastic psychological experience.

Alone in the Dark has a few problems like the clunky combat system and some technical issues. But overall it’s a fun horror adventure with an absolute brilliant atmosphere.

The heart of Alone in the Dark is not in its action sequences – it’s in the narrative. And believe me: you’ll want to see how this horror detective story plays out. [Issue#264, p.52]

Not all aspects bridge the decades-long gap seamlessly, but as a modern re-imagining, Alone in the Dark is at once a comprehensive love letter to the venerated original and hands-down one of the best forays into Lovecraftian horror yet.

2024's Alone in the Dark is not on par with the Resident Evil remakes which set the bar really high to be honest and not the triumphant return we've been waiting for the legendary series. Nevertheless, it's a notable addition to it, one that if anything makes its name sound more than just a distant echo again. With a satisfying 9-hour campaign and good replayability with 2 characters with different perspectives on the story (plus some other differences I won't spoil), it's a good offering in the genre.

Alone in the Dark is not particularly good as a shooter, but it does a lot right as an excellently designed puzzler.

Unsettling and narratively ambitious, this is the best Alone in the Dark game since 1992.

Alone in the dark is a wonderful reimagining of the 1992 classic. A survival horror that draws on the best traditions of the genre, which only lacks some variety and spark in its puzzles and combats, as well as homogenizing both parts to reach greater heights. . Both Jodie Comer and David Harbor do a superb job giving voice and face to the protagonists of this horror game inspired by Lovecraft's cosmic horror.

Conclusively, Alone In The Dark properly writes its love letter while creating appeal to a wider audience through cinematic aspects. The classic horror elements and nods to its origins are seen, heard, and felt from beginning to end.

When I first played this year’s Alone in the Dark re-imagining, I thought it was a very good but flawed experience. After this week’s massive update, I’m glad I waited a bit longer to do my review because it is now in a much better state, and is worth your time even if you never played the original. Just be aware of the visual cutbacks needed to get this running on Steam Deck. I liked it enough to get it on PS5 for a replay.

A lack of horror behind the captivating puzzle adventure. While exploring the Derceto Manor is consistently enjoyable, it is really hard to catch the sense of fear which is crucial to a horror game. Still, it might serve as a nostalgic journey for those who remember the original.

While it has plenty of rough edges, Pieces Interactive's take on horror royalty is the best the series has been in decades.

This reboot of Alone in the Dark is mainly driven by its characters and its story, whose particularly meticulous narrative resources immerse us in an intriguing atmosphere and scenario. Fighting and puzzles are unfortunately disappointing, with only a handful of memorable confrontations and a few (too few) devious puzzles. This 2024 version of Alone in the Dark won't become a genre staple, but it will keep survival-horror fans busy until the release of the Silent Hill 2 remake.

Alone in the Dark is undoubtedly an ambitious and researched reinterpretation, a tribute to the original game (and everything that came after) that delivers a new, compelling story, excellent acting performances, an interesting art direction, and nice puzzles but also a pretty sloppy combat design and outdated graphics.

Ultimately, this return of Alone in the Dark is a project that was only able to convince us halfway. On the one hand there is excellent writing, capable of keeping you glued to the screen for the entire duration of the campaign while, on the other, we find a playful structure that thrives on ups and downs and a shaky technical realization, elements that prevent the title from Pieces and THQ Nordic to take flight. In any case, fans of the genre and admirers of the brand might consider venturing into the gloomy Derceto manor.

Alone in the Dark’s clumsy action and boilerplate occult story may be off-putting to new players hoping for a Resident Evil-like glow-up. Meet the remake on its own terms, though, and you’ll find a charming '90s horror homage that doesn’t turn its nose up at gaming’s roots. It revels in its old-school design like a dedicated cultist, even inviting Hollywood actors to dance around the fire with it.

Alone in the Dark presents a promising yet imperfect reimagining that captures the essence of a mesmerising, atmospheric adventure game. However, it struggles to rationalise the inclusion of clunky combat and basic stealth elements that detract from the overall experience…Solid performances support a narrative rich in psychological and cosmic horror, motivating you to delve deeper into the mysteries of Derceto Manor, even though lackluster boss battles weaken the impact of its critical moments. While these action-oriented sections constitute just a fraction of the game, their lackluster implementation impedes the revival effort from achieving its fullest potential and matching the success of other recent survival horror remakes.

Alone in the Dark offers a good mix of puzzles, exploration and moments of good tension, but it doesn't really surprise or innovate.

Despite a few glitches and a rather classic construction, Alone In The Dark is nonetheless a game that you'll love to play. The game's ambience is clearly present throughout, and the pace of puzzle completion and progression is very well managed.

The survival horror genre has leaned more into action these days with greater success overall, such that it’s hard to recommend Alone in the Dark for its combat, which feels updated to modern standards when compared to the original but remains significantly lacking.

AITD is a game that does a lot of things well, but it is also burdened by its weaknesses. Enjoyable puzzles, a good script, and an immersive atmosphere are all lost in the surprisingly poor combat mechanics, bugs and technical issues that spoil the enjoyment of the game.

Alone in the Dark (2024) developers decided to run away and jump into the rich Survival Horror genre, without having any trump cards at the ready. That’s exactly what the authors of the new Alone in the Dark decided to do. The mystical plot of evil in the Louisiana swamps quickly turns into a disjointed kaleidoscope, where characters and any semblance of integrity are lost. The game system turned out to be obscenely poor: four types of weapons, five types of enemies, two types of puzzles! This thing can only be recommended to researchers of the genre, and other players do not even need to know about the existence of Alone in the Dark.

An old-fashioned Lovecraftian action-adventure game rather than frenetic Survival Horror, Alone in the Dark allows itself an interesting re-imagining of the founding episodes. Nostalgia unfortunately collides with obsolescence: even the hardcore fan of the license will have difficulty getting past systems that are too archaic. We would have appreciated that, freed from the chains of AAA with huge budgets and the need to necessarily do better than its competitors, the Pieces Interactive title tried more things, did things differently, allowed itself a certain radicality. It is not so. An adventure with a capital “AA”, imperfect in its substance as in its form, but sincere in everything it undertakes.

Alone in the Dark is a game that gets 60% right, and the rest is a mixture of poor or frustrating gameplay mechanics.

Another unsuccessful attempt to restart Alone in the Dark. I wouldn't want to see a sequel made in the same vein.

Alone in the Dark doesn't bring anything new to the genre; it's just a completely standard (non)horror adventure with action moments. It's a shame because this franchise probably won't get another chance for a comeback.

It’s not without its memorable moments, but Alone in the Dark fails to escape the shadows of the other contemporary survival horror titans that it helped spawn.

Alone in the Dark has fumbled once again, with this reimagining circling the drain to a pit of mediocrity. Though the game itself and the environments can be beautiful, it doesn't take advantage of its star-studded cast nor does it tell a story that is remotely sensical or engaging. Always offering just the bare minimum of staples for the survival horror genre and nothing more, it's sad to see the grand daddy of the genre be a shell of its former self. Maybe Alone in the Dark should remain exactly like its namesake.

Alone in the Dark builds its atmosphere competently but continually fails to pay it off. Okay puzzles and world design are drowned by flawed combat and dull writing.

Alone in the Dark is a B-class game that can be compared to projects like Daymare: 1994 Sandcastle and Song of Horror. But it can't even come close to the legendary original.

Alone in the Dark is a weak survival horror pastiche largely devoid of original moments. The occasional dash of character in its 1920s Deep South setting can't make up for repetitive puzzles and the feeling we've seen all of this before.

The game certainly gets better as time goes on, and the story is well-told enough that it's worth experiencing for survival horror fans. However, it comes with the caveats that the overall gameplay leaves a lot to be desired, and its survival horror contemporaries just do a better job on nearly every front.

Atmospheric scenario notwithstanding, this horror story is neither scary nor does it well told. The true horror lies in the atrocious combat against boring enemies.

Alone in the Dark tempts you with some great ideas but inevitably provides no substance. Couple that with less than stellar gameplay and a hunger to tell a better story, I left Derceto Manor feeling unimpressed, frustrated, and ultimately dejected by the sum of its parts.

Alone in the Dark squanders the promise of its compelling source material with ropey design, awful combat, and choppy presentation.