Darkness is a point-and-click horror game designed by Lutgames, hosted on Kongregate.com. In all three episodes you play as a young lady that must elude strange, disturbing ghosts that will kill anyone that they get ahold of. If one of the ghosts catches her, then you have to mash the space bar to escape. Starting in Episode 2, you can hide from the ghost when it appears. In order to complete each episode, the young lady must search her environment for items to use in solving puzzles.
The games are notable for actually being scary, despite the humble production values. The game uses the Nothing Is Scarier trope to make the player feel truly alone. The use of jump scares is masterful. The first episode (taking place in the girl's house) is only a little scary, but Episode 2 (taking place in a hospital) shows a marked improvement in terms of High Octane and Paranoia Fuel, and slightly more complex puzzles.
The first episode is found here
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Not to be confused with any properties called The Darkness.
This series provides examples of:
- Abandoned Hospital: The second game opens with your character entering an abandoned, blood-stained operating room.
- All Just a Dream: At least, that's what the character is initially led to believe in the third game until the Egg MacGuffin from the second game appears in her pocket, right before the game begins.
- Anti-Frustration Features: Surprisingly, if you die, you can continue with your inventory and progress intact. However, you are returned to the start of the episode.
- Creepy Souvenir: The egg you find in the wall in the second game is carried over into the third game.
- Downer Ending: Each episode seems to end on one. In the first episode, the young lady appears to fall prey to the ghost. In the second, she gets stuck in the elevator as the ghost girl bangs on the doors. Oh, and the light's dead.
- The third game has two of these endings, depending on whether you manage to get off the train in time. If you manage to get off, the ghost is seen chasing you along the platform, with the lights still flickering. If you don't manage to get off, the only thing you can do is sit down and look at your feet...followed by a potential Ankle Drag.
- Ear Rape: If one of the ghosts kills her, you hear your character's horrified, ear-piercing scream.
- Expy: The heroine resembles an older Jennifer Simpson from ClockTower.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: Winding the music box enough in the third game results in a rapid slideshow of strange imagery, including a Q-&-A from the developer about the game series. It also triggers one of the train doors to open.
- Jump Scare: All over the place.
- Mirror Scare: Steaming the bathroom mirror and wiping it with the towel in the first game. Also, looking at the mirror in the music box, and using the mirror to look into the vent in the third game.
- Nightmare Face: The ghost girl, arguably. She's a lot scarier than the older, male ghost in Episode 1, nicknamed "Emperor Palpatine" by Kongregate members!
- Nothing Is Scarier: The series uses effective minimalism to make the more shocking parts stand out all the more.
- Oh, Crap!: Your reaction in Episode 2 when the incredibly ominous music indicating the ghost girl's appearance kicks in.
- Point-and-Click Game
- Press X to Not Die: Whenever a ghost catches you, mash the space bar to escape. In Episode 2, this seems to become more difficult if the ghost keeps catching up to you. You don't want that.
- Sinister Subway: The setting of episode three.
- Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl: The ghost in Episode 2 continues this proud tradition. And she is horrifying.
- Tears of Blood: The Stringy-Haired Ghost Girl has these. She doesn't look happy about it.
- Weaksauce Weakness: In episode three the protagonist manages to repel the ghost's powers using Mento's and a bottle of cola to cause an explosive fizzy stream of soda that keeps the darkness from reaching her. Really.
