Darkness
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Darkness is a point-and-click horror game designed by Lutgames, hosted on Kongregate.com. In all three episodes you play as a young lady that must elude strange, disturbing ghosts that will kill anyone that they get ahold of. If one of the ghosts catches her, then you have to mash the space bar to escape. Starting in Episode 2, you can hide from the ghost when it appears. In order to complete each episode, the young lady must search her environment for items to use in solving puzzles.
The games are notable for actually being scary, despite the humble production values. The game uses the Nothing Is Scarier trope to make the player feel truly alone. The use of jump scares is masterful. The first episode (taking place in the girl's house) is only a little scary, but Episode 2 (taking place in a hospital) shows a marked improvement in terms of High Octane and Paranoia Fuel, and slightly more complex puzzles.
The first episode is found here.
Not to be confused with the comic book The Darkness or the video game based on it.
- Anti-Frustration Features: Surprisingly, if you die, you can continue with your inventory and progress intact. However, you are returned to the start of the episode.
- Downer Ending: Each episode seems to end on one. In the first episode, the young lady appears to fall prey to the ghost. In the second, she gets stuck in the elevator as the ghost girl bangs on the doors. Oh, and the light's dead.
- Ear Rape: If one of the ghosts kills her, you hear your character's horrified, ear-piercing scream.
- Expy: The heroine resembles an older Jennifer Simpson from ClockTower.
- Jump Scare: All over the place.
- Nightmare Face: The ghost girl, arguably. She's a lot scarier than the older, male ghost in Episode 1, nicknamed "Emperor Palpatine" by Kongregate members!
- Nothing Is Scarier: The series uses effective minimalism to make the more shocking parts stand out all the more.
- Oh Crap: Your reaction in Episode 2 when the incredibly ominous music indicating the ghost girl's appearance kicks in.
- Point and Click Game
- Press X to Not Die: Whenever a ghost catches you, mash the space bar to escape. In Episode 2, this seems to become more difficult if the ghost keeps catching up to you. You don't want that.
- Sinister Subway: The setting of episode three.
- Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl: The ghost in Episode 2 continues this proud tradition. And she is horrifying.
- Tears of Blood: The Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl has these. She doesn't look happy about it.
- Weaksauce Weakness: In episode three the protagonist manages to repel the ghost's powers using Mento's and a bottle of cola to cause an explosive fizzy stream of soda that keeps the darkness from reaching her. Really.