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Alone in the Dark | 
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| From: Atari Inc. Category: Video Games
List Price: $29.99 Buy Used: $18.93 You Save: $11.06 (37%)
New (28) Used (17) from $18.93
Avg. Customer Rating: 4 reviews Sales Rank: 5690
Platform: Playstation2 ESRB: Rating Pending Media: Video Game Autographed: No Memorabilia: No Running Time: 99 Batteries Included: No Operating System: Playstation 2 Shipping Weight (lbs): 2 Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6
MPN: 27628 UPC: 742725276284 EAN: 0742725276284 ASIN: B00113NYIA
Release Date: June 24, 2008 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | A New Inventory System Players utilize the pockets of protagonist Edward Carnby to hold items which they can view, switch and combine without leaving the game. | | • | Narrative intensity Taking its cues from blockbuster TV dramas, the story is told in a TV season style narrative structure based around episodes that deliver maximum intensity throughout and keep the player hooked. | | • | A Captivating Story Centered in iconic Central Park long-time series protagonist and paranormal specialist Edward Carnby returns to delve into the frightening events occurring in the Big Apple. | | • | Real World Rules In-Game movement has been designed to allow players to do almost anything that is physically possible in the real world. | | • | Photographic Rendering Game developer Edens Propriety Twilight technology creates a lavishly detailed game world with highly realistic and advanced cinematographic effects. |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com There's something strange and frightening happening in the middle of New York City's Central Park; something whispered to have been intentionally kept secret; something that players are compelled to explore in Alone in the Dark.Known today as a safe haven for New Yorkers yearning for relief from the stresses of their chaotic metropolis, history records that Central Park was built on a useless swamp, yet as the New York City skyline hurtled towards the sky over the last 150 years, making the city the most expensive real estate in the world, the park has remained untouched. Why? Civic pride? Perhaps, but the recent strange happenings in and around the park are casting doubt on that, doubts that require investigating.
The return of an iconic series |
 Paranormal PI Edward Carnby. View larger. |  Stunningly spooky views of NYC. View larger. |  The odd wildlife of Central Park. View larger. |  A whole new inventory system. View larger. | Enter Edward Carnby, Paranormal Investigator Despite the title, Alone in the Dark is actually the fifth game in a series that dates back to 1992 and centers around the experiences of Edward "the reptile" Carnby. A paranormal investigator by trade, Carnby is looking for answers to the strange events and horrific creatures reported in and around the park, but gets more than he bargained for when all the mysteries and terrors of the park spill out over the course of one apocalyptic night. It's the player's task to avoid the new frightening dangers of the park as you search for the answers to what these supernatural occurrences mean and why they are happening.Gameplay Based on Full Player Immersion Packed full of action and vivid in its realism Alone in the Dark goes to the extreme to keep players engaged and immersed by plunging them into the heart of the action in real-time at every turn and challenging them to survive using full movement control. The goal here is to allow players to do or at least feel that they can do more or less whatever is possible in real life, within the game.Need to avoid a blast of steam or an eruption of fire that has shot up in your path? You can simply side-step it or you can handle the obstacle with a little more panache by using the environment around you, for example by swinging around it using reachable pipes or wires. In another situation you may be challenged by attacking monsters. No problem. You can take the path of least resistance, again by side-stepping them or placing an obstacle between yourself and them, but if you are feeling like taking out a little aggression you can pick up a board, chair, box, etc. and have at it. Nearly anything that you come across that would be usable in real life is usable in game and can be wielded in several different ways.In addition, game developer Eden Studios has done away with a few in-game conventions in favor of real life upgrades. Instead of old-fashioned health bars Alone in the Dark uses realistic body damage and physiological effects to show players how much damage has been done to Carnby by the new dangerous nightlife of Central Park. Basically this means if Carnby has been taking a licking he's going to be a little bloody. Monsters use sensory perception of all kinds to find their victims, so players need to keep aware of Carnby's physical state, as well as the impact he has on his surroundings. Also gone are traditional inventory systems that take players out of the game while you switch or check items in your possession, replaced by an in-game inventory system where items are carried in the folds of Carnby's trench coat. This allows you to stay in the action the whole time. Sticking with the realism theme, the number of items that Carnby can carry is limited, but since ingenuity is built into the system, items can be combined or their uses altered, mostly with tape, so players can adjust as challenges arise.TV Style Intensity That Keeps You Hooked Built around a unique television style episodic narrative game structure, the storyline of Alone in the Dark is split into a number of distinct 30-40 minute episodes, doled out one at a time as you play. This new way to progress through the storyline ensures that players can enjoy the game regardless of the amount of time they have available without ever feeling lost. Each time a saved game is launched, the episode will begin with a video summary of the previous episode to quickly re-immerse the player in the story, removing the need to remember where you were or what you were doing at the end of your last play session. In addition, every episode will also close with a nail-biting, cliff-hanger ending to rattle players' nerves. And when you choose to leave the game, a video teaser of the next episode will play to leave players always wanting more.Vivid Photographic Rendering Even on a bad day, and this will be a bad one, Central Park and New York City are something to see. With Game developer Eden's proprietary Twilight technology and rendering engine, players can expect to see everything from the City's famous landmarks to the manifestations of the evil that have been festering in Central Park come to life as if you were there. This lavishly detailed game world takes advantage of highly realistic and advanced cinematographic effects including depth of field, camera focus, numerous light sources, moisture, reflections and High Dynamic Range effects.Whether it's the innovative game play, the unique episodic game structure, the advanced physics or the return of a ground-breaking protagonist recast in the modern era, Alone in the Dark holds something for players willing to take on the mysteries and dangers at the heart of Central Park.
Product Description Uncover the earth-shattering secret hidden in New York's iconic Central Park in Alone In The Dark. History records that Central Park was built on a useless swamp, yet as the New York City skyline hurtled towards the sky over the last 150 years, making the city the most expensive real estate in the world, the park has remained untouched. Why? Civic pride? Perhaps, but the recent strange happenings in and around the park are casting doubt on that, doubts that require investigating. Edward Carnby, Paranormal Investigator is looking for answers to the strange events and horrific creatures reported in and around the park, but gets more than he bargained for when all the mysteries and terrors of the park spill out over the course of one apocalyptic night. It's your task to avoid the new frightening dangers of the park as you search for the answers to what these supernatural occurrences mean and why they are happening.
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| Customer Reviews:
Alone In The Dark Left Me Alone In The Dark August 10, 2008 I have been a gamer for years... 36 years to be exact and this game was filled with innovative promise. I don't even know where to begin on how bad this game is. Woulda given it half to no star but that was not possible.
The concept is there... the gameplay, controls etc. is not. Even the storyline is a bit lack luster. I have worked for gaming companies and know what goes into making a single game... A LOT from start to finish.
Perhaps Atari needs to revamp their development teams or pack it up, go out of biz and take a vacation...
This is the worst game for the PS2 I have ever played and if it were possible to get my money back, I would. I might even ship it back to Atari.
Don't buy it.
A forever gamer, till the day I die.
Pretty BAD July 12, 2008 2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Oh dear...this is the lowest score I have given to a PS2 game for a long time. Alone In The Dark on the PS2 fails really glaringly in many ways, and provides a thoroughly unsatisfying game experience.
The game is a kind of action/survival horror story, with you playing as Edward Carnby, trapped in a collapsing and monster-filled New York. Right from the start the controls will baffle you, and they conspire against you having any decent fun at every single opportunity.
Yes it's that bad. The game is almost unplayable due to the terrible, unresponsive and sometimes downright un-useable control system. Nothing works well. In several chapters, Carnby has to climb up and down ropes and swing about to reach ledges. The implementation of this makes it impossible to judge when to let go. Then there are the car driving sections...awful cars that don;'t even drive in a straight line even when you don't push the L-stick at all, and which spin off into instant death at the slightest clipping of any obstacle. Then there's the fighting...a gun that can only be fired in 1st person. Melee weapons that can only be swung in 3rd person. And both with a real time lag. Then there's the camera, constantly wobbling and bouncing around behind Carnby's head. You can't see the scenery or anything very clearly, let alone where you are running. Thank heavens the 3rd person viewpoint actually keeps still. Then there's the inventory...all in your pockets which you have to look in and pick things out of. Then there's the first aid packs and general healing. How does this work? I don't even know. And then there is...eyes-closed mode. Oh my god. Words fail me when trying to describe how terrible this is. You try keeping the R3 button held down without actually tipping it from side to side. And right at the end of the game theres a perilous twisting catwalk with instant death drops at each side to traverse, that you can only SEE in eyes-closed mode. I can guarantee you will be screaming. Screaming for your money back, probably. I'll say this though, the game designers have been fiendish in making you work out exactly what you have to do. There are no clues. Walk into a museum with a couple of monsters in it and there is no way out. Not a single clue. Walk into a factory where the floor is covered with deadly slime. "Use the spotlights" some helpful dame says. How? The panel has no instructions on it. And worst of all is the saving...save spots are at set points, and if you die somehow you often have to go back and do some tortuous skill-based action sequence over and over again, as many of the set-pieces are trial and error based. Hideous.
Now that just leaves the graphics, and these are no champions either. Characters are blocky and awkward. Carnby has this awful gaunt square-jawed hero face that looks really ugly. I have seen better graphics on PS2 games from five years ago! The collision detection is awful, and Carnby was forever teetering on invisible cliff edges or falling off when he should have been standing safely.
But I persevered and played it right to the end, bracing myself for a very uncomfortable finale...but let me tell you though, I was gobsmacked by the feeble winding up of the game. I actually thought I had got the "bad" ending and had missed out an entire final level. But no...a final nail in the coffin. Oh well at least I was happy that I could stop playing it.
Sorry folks, but this game is a stinker. Games are supposed to be about fuin, and with everything that's wrong here. Alone in the Dark is no fun at all.
RENT IT FIRST, BUT DONT BUY!!!!!!!!!! July 10, 2008 LIKE I SAID, DONT BUY THIS GAME! IT TOTALLY SUCKS. I WAS ALL HYPED UP AND WAITING FOR THE RELEASE OF THIS GAME BUT I WAS TRULY DISSAPOINTED! THE CONTROLS ARE SO DIFFICULT TO GET USED TO AND THERE ARE SOME PARTS IN THE GAME WHERE IT GETS FRUSTRATING. I THOUGHT IT WAS GONNA HAVE CONTROLS LIKE THE ORIGINAL GAME RELEASED ON THE PLAYSTATION 1. THE CAMERA ANGLES ARE ALSO HORRIBLE. SO PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM THIS GAME OR IF U WISH TO CHECK IT OUT, RENT IT AND SEE FOR YOURESELF. DONT THROW 40.00 DOWN THE DRAIN LIKE I DID AND I WISH I WOULD HAVE NEVER PURCHASED THIS CAUSE THERES NO REFUNDS FOR OPENED GAMES!
Could have been spectacular, but marred by technical issues July 5, 2008 3 out of 3 found this review helpful
The Alone in the Dark series goes back a long way (even pre-dating the Resident Evil franchise) in terms of pioneering the survival horror genre, with this new installment kind of being a re-boot for the series. Once again filling the shoes of paranormal investigator Edward Carnby, Alone in the Dark finds Carnby caught in the middle of an apocalyptic event while investigating strange happenings in Central Park. The first thing you'll notice is that Alone in the Dark boasts some wonderfully creepy and spooky environments that drip with eerie atmosphere. In fact, the areas are so well designed (even for the PS2 version) that you'll often find yourself admiring your surroundings while dodging demons and beasts. The game looks good in general as well, despite a few graphical glitches that occur, while the game's solid score adds to the overall survival horror atmosphere. What's really sad about Alone in the Dark is that the game's potential to be something special is marred by technical issues. Namely, just moving around can be a chore. The control issues that present themselves during combat and puzzle solving only add layers of frustration to the game, which is a crying shame, and the game's schizophrenic camera doesn't help make matters any better either. Despite it's flaws, Alone in the Dark does present some innovation in terms of it's item inventory use and some dramatic moments that will jolt you out of your chair. The game's story is intriguing, and there are some great lighting effects too. All in all, Alone in the Dark is a worthwhile trip that could have been something truly great, but in the end is brought down thanks to it's technical issues. Still, for survival horror fans, Alone in the Dark is definitely worth a look.
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