Heart of Darkness – 26 Years Later |

Publisher: Interplay Interactive

Developer: Amazing Studio

Release Date: 09/08/1998

Available On

In the early to mid-90s, FMV games were all the rage, but they never really panned out, and almost all of them were bad in their own spectacular ways. There was a refinement to the genre in terms of cartoony and claymation FMV games that were mostly adventure titles, but Heart of Darkness took pre-rendered animations and scenes, so it felt like you were playing a 3D cartoon, and added a new spin. While the graphics are pretty bad, the art style is whimsical and indicative of what could have been a great 3D movie for kids.

You portray a little boy who is full of imagination. In the beginning scene, you get a bunch of sweeping camera angles, whimsical adventure music, and what seems like an invasion by a dark evil lord and his minions. Of course, all of this is happening in the boy’s mind as he plays in his treehouse, but that’s not the main focus. The story progresses as you decide to save a tribe of flying creatures from this evil lord, who is turning them into shadow creatures. There are a good number of FMV sequences, some ranging from 30 seconds to a few seconds. There isn’t a significant amount of voice acting, and what is present is difficult to discern. The FMV videos are very low quality and run at what seems like sub-24 fps.

The only gameplay is jumping, running, and shooting, which are too difficult. The sluggish controls and unresponsive animations artificially inflate the game’s difficulty. When you possess a gun or firepower, a plethora of creatures flood the screen. The opening scene alone could deter many players, as it leaves them uncertain about whether they should run or shoot. Many background pieces blend in, and it’s hard to tell what is interactive and what is not. Trial and error is key to this game, as is saving frequently. I have to admit that at least the checkpoint system is mostly fair. I rarely regressed too much, but when I did, it was a particularly challenging section that I had to repeatedly complete. A lot of times, traps and enemies will pop up on screen before you can even take in what is going on. This is a screen-to-screen game with no smooth scrolling. I would run to the next screen and immediately die. The placement of these traps and enemies is unfair and not necessary. It feels like there was little to no playtesting involved.

You can shoot in eight directions, but it can be challenging to align shots precisely. Certain sections and puzzles involve swimming, and defeating enemies necessitates a specific strategy, which also applies to you. Contact with enemies often results in instant death. A health bar would have been nice, especially during the final boss fight, which was aggravating. Jumping also requires precise timing, as there’s a little hop, a running jump, and a regular jump. Each one is a pre-canned animation, and you can’t interrupt it. There’s also an issue with ledges seemingly needing to be pixel-perfect to jump off of, as some platforms are exactly the right amount of pixels apart. I also disliked having to wait for a slight pause to load between platforms when switching screens.

Despite all of that, the game does possess its own unique charm. The puzzles are the strongest aspect of the game. When you are just walking around pushing buttons and climbing ladders with no danger involved, the game shines. If the combat had been cut, I could even deal with the platforming woes, but the combat seriously drags the game down, as the animations and controls aren’t responsive enough for something like this. The game can be completed in a couple of hours, but due to the constant trial and error you will spend a full afternoon on this game. It’s worth it for the charm alone, but just be prepared to repeat sections over and over again.