Darkest Fear

Darkest Fear – If you weren’t afraid of the dark before... you will be now!

It’s not often you find a game that truly scares the wits out of you. Sure you have the F.E.A.R. titles and a few other eerie Silent Hill style games which creep you out but this is harder to achieve when immersing yourself into a mobile phone game... until now!

Darkest Fear is not your average action game, in actuality it’s much more of a puzzle solving game than anything else. You start by entering a hospital in the search for your family only to discover they’re missing and you must follow a trail of shadowy corridors and mysterious characters. To help you in your quest you must use the various objects along the way to solve the various puzzles in your way.

The most obvious thing to say is that you must stay in the light and avoid the dark as much as possible as nasty things lurk in the shadows. To do this you may find lanterns, torches, windows and even the odd light switch to ensure that these nasty creatures don’t kill you! It then becomes a question of strategically placing these sources of light in the appropriate place (and direction) to ensure what lurks in the shade, stays in the shade!

All this does sound quite easy doesn’t it? In fact, this is just the tip of a rather big iceberg! In actuality, you have to not just solve the lighting issue but also move objects in a way to clear a path to the next room and ultimately to the next level.

I do admit the challenges get a little repetitive but nonetheless enthralling and totally spine-chilling. Every level gets a little more complex and more and more devious in its way. Without realising it, you’ll probably find yourself totally bamboozled at one stage or another and falling foul to the horrifying creatures which will hurt you.

If what you’re after is a gun-slinging zombie-blasting guts and gore fest, then you’ll maybe find this isn’t quite the right title for you – although this poses a challenge in another way and definitely appeals to the atmospheric game player most of all. If however, you like playing challenging puzzles and seek something a little less twee and frilly, this game is definitely a must for your game collection.

Rating 88%

Positives:

Dark and atmospheric game which is totally captivating

Puzzle genre with a nice twist

Challenging and rewarding in equal measure

Great graphics and animated scenes with a good story

Negatives:

A bit repetitive

You die all too easy but get re-spawned