The game is Rated M, but sadly my review is only PG-13 equivalent.

This game is going to scare you. There are no two ways about it; this little gem will spook you. I don't care who you are or how tough you claim to be there are no exceptions. For those who are reading this and haven't played, I can only utter one warning: You shall learn fear as I have.

As stated above, I will be revealing certain sanity effects and certain plot points, so, if you are one of those few who have you to play this magnificent game, shield thine eyes from this review. So, here goes: First, I was one of those lucky little sods who has a few connections and was able to play this game before it came out. From the minute I picked my little black controller to the minute I finished the game a day or two later, I had never stopped thinking about the game and how truly amazing and original it was. Never before had I played a game that immersed me more than Eternal Darkness. The game provided environments so real and enriched with their own little touches that you could almost imagine what it was like to be there. The Roivas mansion in Rhode Island, Cambodia, The Middle East; all so rich with their own appeal is part of what made the game the glory that it truly is. The environments and characters are the core of this game and their own individual plight helps make the game all the more real. Pious Augustus' sealing his fate, Dr. Maximillian Roivas' family troubles, Peter Edwards fight against evil during a time of upheaval and decay, and finally Alex's battle against the darkness are all what this game is about. This game makes the characters real, unlike any prior, and there are many characters to be made real. However, no character is quite as real as the 13th character- The player.

Graphics- Sadly, this is where the game was lacking. It was odd, though, how the graphics were. Certain things were absolutely amazing, whereas others looked downright bad. Without nitpicking each individual thing, I'll make the blanket statement that there was absolute extreme detail put into each environment and it's wear and tear over time. On the other hand, character's had some flaws. Sometimes they just didn't look right. Personally, I didn't think Pious' face looked quite right as a human, nor did his fellow centurions of the Roman Army. On the other hand, Ellia was almost perfect. The same for Peter, but Anthony and Edwin had some problems. Mostly there were problems, in my opinion, in the facial structures, but there were a few times when it looked like arms and legs became way to deformed to be real, and it wasn't a sanity effect. On the flip side of the two faced coin, I was utterly blown away by the detail put into facial expression. Unlike games such as Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and the DOA series, these characters faces were animate and lively. Maximillian's ranting and screaming from his cell is perfectly orchestrated through his expressions, and the way Roberto half snarls and half cringes when he swings his sword would make the dead spin in their graves from fright. Pious' eyes widening and appearance of shock when a torch pops make you want to cry. Silicon knights but sooooo much time into developing the characters that you just want to find Denis Dyack and give him a handshake and a big thank you. This area was really where my only complaints had lied, so, this was the brunt of my rage.

Contrary to populare belief, the dead can walk

Sound- Undoubtedly, this game had one of the top 10 best soundtracks and effects in any game. The whispering and crying, the music, everything about it added to the ambiance and the fear. The only, and I mean only, downside to the sound is that it lost a fair amount when not in a good surround sound system. Fortunately, I have a great surround sound system and this game scared the living daylights out of me. Playing this game late at night, no light, directly under a ceiling fan made me somewhat fearful of my own house. The music can become a little repetitive, but only if you have no clue where you're going. If you even think you might know what you're doing, the music always fits the mood and never truly gets annoying.

Control- The control was just right. Not too sluggish, not to quick. Some people felt that there were control problems; I felt they were just perfect. The targeting system was gloriously utilized to the fullest extent. Being able to slice off an arm or a head by moving the control stick while holding R is a wonderful thing.

The Sanity meter is quite a new and wonderful idea. As the sanity drops, the world around you changes. Camera angles change, voices and sounds start resonating, monsters appear in large numbers, your head falls off, your torso blows up, you're on the ceiling, and a few select other things happen when your sanity drops. As wonderful as the Sanity idea is, it will be used and ripped off in so many more games to come from other companies it will be a crying shame. The other meters need no explanation. Health is red, if you get hit it goes down- 'nuff said. Blue is magick, and when a spell is used and it depletes. I'll go off about the magick shortly, so, don't stop reading quite yet.

A gun in every hand and a cap in every ass

The magick system is pretty original and thought provoking. You find Runes, but you can't read them without a codec, and you can't use the runes with the codec unless you have the spell scroll. It's a vicious cycle. Combining different runes creates new spells. Then adding in more and more power (pargon) runes makes the spells more powerful as you collect circles of power. Each spell takes a different amount of magick, and depending on ancient alignment it can take a different amount of magick. That's the magic system in a nutshell.

The Ancients are rather interesting. Chattur'gha, the red alignment, is an alignment of power and strength. Xel'lotath, the green alignment is of sanity. Ulyaoth, the blue alignment is of magickal power. All have their own unique differences in the game. Green bonethieves have no heads, whereas the other alignments do have heads. Red zombies take far more hits and can regenerate lost body parts, unlike the others who are relatively weak. In addition, the Black Guardian and the cinema sequences are all remotely different depending on the alignment you select as Pious.

I've been wordy enough with this already, so, I'll shut up. Well, not really, I'll just keep it concise for a little while.

The game is easy to pick up and play. It's not advised for small children simply because it's so damn bloody. The game is scary, definitely scary. The game could have been slightly longer, but playing through 3 times to get the "uber-ending" allowed for quite a gaming experience. Puzzles were a little too easy. Difficulty could have been a hair higher. This game can never have a sequel or it would ruin the story. This is one of the best games I've ever played. If there is anything else you want to know about as far as my opinion goes, ask me via email at Kevin@wiicafe.com I can't promise I'll get back to you immediately, but you will get a response.

The Verdict: This game freakin' rocks. Silicon Knights gets a big "my hat is off to you" from myself. Never before had I truly been engaged in a game quite like this. The sanity effects fooled me sometimes, the sounds bugged me out, and the action was almost nonstop, This is everything a high quality game should be.