The Darkness (video game): Difference between revisions

[[File:The_Darkness_cover_7959.jpg|frame|Embrace the Darkness]]

 

 

{{quote|''You're the monster...''|'''Jackie'''}}

For tropes exclusive to the original, [[The Darkness|see here]].

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* [[Affectionate Nickname]]: Jenny has one for Jackie- "Ratface," apparently one she started using when they were much younger.

* [[All There in the Manual]]: The origin story for Anthony Estacado is explained in a special comic book issue published at the same time as the game. Reading it sheds a lot of light on the nature of the Darkness and Anthony's character that is otherwise left completely unexplained in the game. Fortunately, the book is viewable in-game as an unlockable extra.

* [[Art Shift]]: The first game used a more-realistic art style; the sequel is cell shaded.

** [[Unskippable|"And that was the fifth time I died."]]

* {{spoiler|[[The Bad Guy Wins]]: By carrying out his vengeance, Jackie sacrifices his soul to the Darkness. Exactly what this entails, however, isn't quite clear. You are not given the option to spare Paulie.}}

* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: About a hair's breadth away from a [[Downer Ending]]. {{spoiler|Jackie finally surrenders himself to the Darkness during an eclipse in order to take out Paulie and his army of mooks. Jackie's personality is consumed entirely by the Darkness, but he's given a few moments to see Jenny one last time before he goes. It's implied by the "light in the darkness" lines that it may not be completely over for him, either... [[Hope Spot|hopefully]].}}

** However, according to the sequel's intro, Jackie has managed to suppress The Darkness in-between games.

* [[Bland-Name Product]]: The game has "The Green Olive Grove" restaurant.

* [[Blatant Lies]]:

'''Gunner Darkling''': I am unfamiliar with the concept. ''[Attacks a mook.]'' Maybe not, I guess. }}

** Hell, the Darkness expected him to be pleased after it forced him to {{spoiler|[[Forced to Watch|watch Jenny be murdered]]}} because this would "make him stronger" and it seemed utterly bewildered when he chose instead {{spoiler|to kill himself}}.

* [[Border Patrol]]: By all means, head directly into the subway tunnels. [[Too Dumb to Live|See what happens]].

** The Darkness mocks you when you do this, saying something along the lines of "this is not a very good idea..."

* [[Boring Yet Practical]]: The pistols have pin-point accuracy even when fired as fast as possible, and you're tripping over spares for most of the game. Zoom in, aim for the head, and you can take out a bunch of enemies while saving energy you would have otherwise used on a black hole.

** The first Darkness power, Creeping Dark, can move further with each level, and the NPCs are notoriously incapable of hitting it. Furthermore, after making a kill you can eat the heart of your victim to refill Darkness energy to full. This combination makes it possible to clear entire rooms without entering them through most of the game.

* [[Cold-Blooded Torture]]: At one point in the game, Shrote captures Jackie and tortures him by taking a power drill to his face; [[Nightmare Fuel|this scene is shot from Jackie's POV.]]

* [[Convenient Eclipse]]

* [[Dangerously Genre Savvy]]: Uncle Paulie shows shades of this but Shrote easily takes the cake as it takes him all of two seconds to figure out that the Darkness is vulnerable to light. From then on he sets up ambushes using floodlights and knocks Jackie out with flashbangs. Bonus points for making sure Jackie had multiple lights shining on him while he was interrogating him and stops his [[Mooks]] from indulging in [[Just Between You and Me]]. Paulie on the other hand just straps some floodlights to the front of his secret hideout and calls it good.

* [[Dirty Cop]]: Tons of 'em. Jackie has disdain for said cops as well as for the mobsters who partner with them, since it dirties both of them.

* [[Downer Ending]]: {{spoiler|Both games end very, ''very'' badly for Jackie.}}

* [[Easter Egg]]: Unlockable concept art and full issues of the comic.

* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]: Jackie and the old-school mobsters really hate partnering with dirty cops, drug money, and other bottom-of-the-barrel underworld stuff.

** The old-school mobsters are particularly disgusted when Paulie bombs an orphanage, while at the same time you can overhear Paulie's minions laughing about it.

* [[Forced to Watch]]: The Darkness holds Jackie helpless while {{spoiler|Paulie shoots Jenny in the head}}.

* [[For Inconvenience Press One]]: One of the collectible phone numbers.

* [[Good Hurts Evil]]: Good ''irritates'' evil. The Darkness refuses to manifest itself around the subway stations full of normal people, and if you try it'll complain that it finds the people too boring to attack; the Darkness is attracted to darkness, and even the metaphorical darkness of the heart is preferable to it. When meeting Jenny for the first time:

* [[Good Old Ways]]: Jackie receives aid [[Badass Grandpa|from the]] [[Cool Old Guy|old]] [[Cool Old Lady|guard]] [[Retired Badass|of the]] [[Retired Monster|Mafia]].

* [[Good Thing You Can Heal]]

* [[Have a Nice Death]]: Depending on when and where you die in the game, you're treated to a series of warped, distorted images of the next location in the game while the Darkness hisses something cryptic, usually about how it's not going to let you die.

* [[Hell Is War]]: The Otherworld in the first game is a nightmarish, unending version of [[World War I]] that Anthony Estacado is stuck in.

* [[Hollywood Darkness]]: Averted in the first game; areas without light can go completely pitch-black (but using your powers lets you see in the dark.) Played straight in the sequel; "dark" areas are so well-lit it's sometimes hard to figure out where the lights are at a glance.

* [[Hyperspace Arsenal]]: Jackie does not reload his pistols or SMGs. He drops them and pulls out new ones. This is shown when you notice different types of pistols in his hands, or when one of your SMGs suddenly has a silencer. This trope is played straight when you realize that each "clip" in your arsenal is actually a different ''gun'', and you can hold more than 2 dozen pistols and SMGs ''in your coat''.

** Then again, it's most likely justified here, as Jackie may well be keeping the Darkness under his coat, providing him with an actual pocket dimension to store said guns.

* [[I'm a Humanitarian]]: You can recharge by letting the Darkness rip out and feed upon the hearts of your enemies.

* {{spoiler|[[Kill the Cutie]]: Jenny}}

* [[Large Ham]]: The Darkness itself, dear ''God''. Fittingly, the second game has it literally [[Chewing the Scenery]] on occasion (figuratively...all the time). The (cockney?) British Darkling as well, though not ''quite'' as much.

* [[Mad Bomber]]: The Kamikaze Darkling.

** The game subverts this to some degree in that the [[Mooks]] generally will still try to shoot you, but the dialogue that goes along with most scenarios consists of panicky yelling about what you are and how to get rid of you (or get away from you). In one scripted scene, dozens of them are screaming in terror and trying to run away while Jackie in [[Convenient Eclipse|fully-powered]] [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge|Darkness]] [[Unstoppable Rage|mode]] hunts them down and brutally eviscerates them.

* [[Swirly Energy Thingy]]: The Black Hole power.

* [[The Tape Knew You Would Say That]]: Strange version. Jackie has several flashbacks of himself and little Jenny in the orphanage, but at least once, Jenny seems to be aware that they're being watched...

* [[They Were Holding You Back]]

* [[Video Game Caring Potential]]: On the other hand, the game lets you retrieve an elderly woman's wedding ring off the subway tracks, deliver a long-lost memento to a widow, and watch a movie with your girlfriend.

* [[Video Game Cruelty Potential]]: But you can also go around being a [[Kick the Dog|dog-kicking]] asshole [[For the Evulz|slaughtering civilians]], and the only thing that changes peoples reaction to you is whether or not you're in Darkness mode... which is to say, random people in the subway will always be nice to you even if you've killed most of [[Big Applesauce|New York City]] in incredibly brutal ways, as long as you don't have [[Combat Tentacles]] sprouting from your back and shoulders. [[Somebody Else's Problem|Which may, in fact, be accurate]].

* [[World War I]]: Whenever Jackie {{spoiler|commits suicide on Holy Ground}}, he goes here - or at least to a hellish domain inspired by it, with immortal British soldiers condemned to die over and over again and German zombies who are little more than snarling beasts in uniform. One of the Brits suggests that none of them are actually real.

* [[Year Inside, Hour Outside]]: In the hell that Jackie finds himself, the Brits have been fighting World War I for ''centuries''.

** [[Fridge Logic|Somehow]] inverted at the same time, as Jackie's segments there take minutes-hours of gameplay when days pass in the real world.

 

 

* [[Actionized Sequel]]: Not that the first game was lacking in action, but the second game is not nearly as subtle as the first.

* [[Affectionate Nickname]]: The Darkling calls Jackie "Monkey".

* [[Armor Is Useless]]: Subverted. Armored Brotherhood agents and especially shielded ones can take more punishment than ones with no armor, though sufficient upgrades can decrease its efficiency greatly.

* [[Art Shift]]: The first game used a more-realistic art style; the sequel uses [[Cel Shading]] for a more comic-like look.

* [[Badass Bookworm]]: [[Witch Doctor|J.P. Dummond]].

* [[Benevolent Boss]]: The second game shows Jackie to be this to the Franchetti crime family, taking the time to talk to his hitmen and getting to know them. He even offers his condolences when a hitman loses someone.

* [[Cold-Blooded Torture]]: The Brotherhood's attempts at getting Jackie to surrender the Darkness involve a lot of this: the first time , they crucify him and then force him to watch {{spoiler|as one of his friends is executed.}} The second time, they shove him into an iron maiden; once {{spoiler|they succeed in extracting the Darkness}}, they light a fire under the iron maiden and try to ''cook Jackie alive.''

* [[Dangerously Genre Savvy]]: {{spoiler|The Angelus. It appears to have chosen Jenny as its host well before Jackie manifested the Darkness. Jenny's death in the first game and Jackie's subsequent drive to save her from the Darkness in the second game lead Jackie to unwillingly condemn himself to Hell. It doesn't even bother to fight him. Jackie, for his part, wasn't planning to fight her ''anyway'', because he's kinda savvy himself.}}

* [[Demoted to Extra]]: Butcher Joyce barely gets screen time and only optional dialogue, whereas he had a mission devoted to him in the original game.

* [[Downer Ending]]: In the end, {{spoiler|Jackie goes to Hell to save Jenny's soul. And in doing so, releases the Angelus, the force of light opposed to the Darkness which needs a female host. Specifically, Jenny. And both Jenny and the Angelus agree that Jackie needs to be left in Hell, and proceed to do so.}}

* [[Evil Cripple]]: Victor, leader of The Brotherhood. Despite the fact that he walks with leg-braces, he can simply [[Flash Step]] with the power of The Darkness.

* [[Evil Sounds Deep]]: As in the original.

** [[The Lancer]]: Inugami, master swordsman and part of an entire bloodline of [[The Atoner|Atoners.]]

** [[The Smart Guy]]: J.P. Dummond; physician, [[Witch Doctor]], Darkness Scholar, and wielder of the [[Magic Staff|Midnight Stick]]. For good measure, he's one of the more eloquent team-members.

** Jackie and his lieutenants also function as this, for the most part:

*** [[The Hero|The]] ([[Anti-Hero|Anti-]]) [[The Hero|Hero]]: Again, Jackie.

* [[Hypocrite]]: If you kill {{spoiler|Eddie}} for the [[Sadistic Choice]], his last words are to call you a son of a bitch. Kill the other guy, and he'll spend the rest of the game telling you [[Survivor Guilt|that you should've picked him]].

* [[I'm a Humanitarian]]: You can heal by letting the Darkness rip out and feed upon the hearts of your enemies.

* [[Ironic Echo]]: If you kill {{spoiler|Frank}} in the [[Sadistic Choice]], his last words are "This is not your fault,"- the same last words as {{spoiler|Jenny}}. [[Big Bad|Brother Victor]] lampshades this.

* [[King Mook]]: Most of the bosses in the Vendetta co-op mode are versions of regular enemies with lots more health.

* [[Large Ham]]: The Darkness itself, dear ''God''. Fittingly, the second game has it literally [[Chewing the Scenery]] on occasion (figuratively...all the time). The (cockney?) British Darkling as well, though not ''quite'' as much.

** The Vendettas characters definitely qualify, with lines such as: "This pain tastes... sweet", "THE HOUND FEELS NO PAIN!!" and "YOU MEN AND YOUR LITTLE TOYS!!", among others.

* [[Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me]]: Finding yourself something to use as a shield, be it [[Super Strength|a torn off car door]], a street sign, or an actual combat shield, is useful in gameplay for a few extra hits. Then again, there's also the fact that [[Throwing Your Shield Always Works]] if you get a good hit.

* [[Mad Bomber]]: Dolpho. In the co-op campaign, he always provides the explosives needed for the missions. For good measure, there's a good chance he's legitimatly insane, given that he spends his free time taking potshots at pigeons, and Jackie won't allow him out of the house.

* [[Magical Realism]]: Dropped in the sequel by the introduction of numerous characters using magic or magical artefacts, the Siphon being the most obvious example. The game also introduces {{spoiler|the Angelus, the Darkness' light counterpart.}}

* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: In the second game, {{spoiler|by freeing Jenny's soul from the Darkness, the Angelus has possessed her and leaves Jackie behind in Hell.}}

* [[Nightmare Fetishist]]: Johnny Powell seems truly fascinated by some of the relics that Jackie brings back to the penthouse, calling the soul-destroying [[Artifact of Doom|Abysmal Maw]] "dark magic at it's sexiest," referring to the Dark Man statue as "[[Sarcasm Mode|this sexy guy]]," and upon seeing the Sister of Light, he remarks that Jackie always brings him the nicest things. That said, he does get a little bit agitated around some of the more visceral artefacts, and sounds quite disgusted when he reveals that the Reliquary of the Blessed Blood is supposed to contain {{spoiler|Jesus' foreskin}} but in reality, it contains {{spoiler|the foreskin of a guy named Miles from South Hammingtonshire.}}

* [[One Bullet Clips]]: Played straight, as opposed to the first game.

* [[Open Secret]]: In the sequel, the fact that Jackie is a [[Humanoid Abomination]] is known by most of his crew, though they usually dance around the issue by calling it "his thing" or similar in front of the boss.

* [[Sadistic Choice]]: Between {{spoiler|Frank and Eddie. Take too long deciding, and the game automatically kills Eddie (although you do get an achievement for refusing to take part in the Sadistic Choice, and Frank tells you that you did the right thing in refusing to play Victor's sick game)}}.

* [[Scary Impractical Armor]]: Most Brotherhood soldiers wear Darkness armor that covers their face and ''only'' their face. It makes them look scary and does protect against headshots, but does absolutely nothing to prevent them from being shot anywhere else in the body. About the only thing it's good for is giving you a lower kill score by making it harder to get headshots.

* [[Shout-Out]]:

** Jimmy the Grape states that Jackie reminds him of a guy named Vito who he knew back in the 50's who was really good at stealing cars, a pretty clear reference to ''[[Mafia II]]'', another game published by 2K games.

* [[Suicidal Overconfidence]]: Played straight by melee enemies. Brotherhood cultists, using supernatural armor and axe-like weapons coupled with a religious fervor make sense. But the mafioso with the baseball bats?

* [[Those Two Guys]]: Frank and Eddie. And you have to {{spoiler|decide which of them dies}}.

** J.P. Dummond has a [[Magic Staff|Midnight Stick]].

** Shoshanna has [[Hand Cannon|Arm of the Night]].

* [[Year Outside, Hour Inside]]: Each asylum segment takes only a few minutes, but varying amounts of time pass in the real world while he's there. He's once there for four days.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Licensed Game]]

[[Category:Video Game]]