Packing it in. That's what the Swedish lunatics behind The Darkness have been doing. They've taken the original comic and remade it to make it more appropriate for next gen gaming. They've slapped in first and third-person elements. It's a gritty crime thriller. It's a supernatural horror game. It's got a tough, strong story but there's non-linear progression. And it's got a deliciously dark New York underbelly to explore, from the seedy sides of the Big Apple's subways, to its slums and its docks. And then there's central bloke, Jackie. Poor old Jackie.
On the occasion of most people's 21st birthday, it's par for the course to go out and get absolutely rubbered, fight your reflection in the mirror, ram a kebab down yer trap before taking a nap in the gutter. Let's face it, you're proper grown up now.
Unfortunately for Jackie Estacado, the moment he hits 21 the Darkness awakens. Which means he can unleash manifestations of his horror within by cannibalising the corpses of enemies and turning them into Darklings, appalling imps that simply love impaling, eating or exploding further victims. On the other hand, if he gets a girl pregnant, The Darkness will leave him, causing his very real, very brutal, very instant death. A tricky one then, but on balance (given that you've been sucked into the Mafia from the age of 14 and you've got to take back control of the family from Uncle Paulie, a sinister Soprano-type universally despised and eager to take you out), it's probably quite handy having these despicable powers at your beck and call. You'll also be too busy getting stuck into the mass slaughter of everyone in sight to take time out to make sweet, sweet love, anyway.
