Dark Fall: Lights Out (2002)

In the world of movies and books, sequels are seldom as original or enjoyable as the first installment. The same can be said of video games...

You are a cartographer in 1912 sent to map out a piece of dangerous coastline. Finding a lighthouse nearby, you become wrapped up in an investigation to find out why lighthouse keepers have been disappearing over the years... and you must find the answer before you become the next one to vanish after the lights go out...

This is the second game in the "Dark Fall" series- with "Dark Fall: The Journal" being the first. You can't really call this game a sequel, since there is no real connection to "The Journal". The only connection is that the female paranormal investigator that went missing in "The Journal" makes an appearance.

There is a vast difference between the graphics in this game, and the original. In "The Journal," the artwork is more drawn and moody, while "Lights Out" has a crisper, more 3D look to it. It looks nice, but I didn't get the same sense of gloom and erriness from "Lights Out". The sets just looked... sterile to me.

The music was as good in this one as the first one. I would love to get the music on CD.

The gameplay is pretty basic for a Point & Click Adventure, as are the puzzles- which this game mostly consists of. I had a hard time at points wondering what the puzzles had to do with the storyline... which I had issues with as well.

The premise (as always) was good, but the execution fell short. I was looking forward to a spooky paranormal adventure, but wound up being disappointed by the introduction of time travel aspect of the story, and the rather weak sci-fi ending to the game.

There is a third game in the series- "Dark Fall: Lost Souls," that returns to the setting of "The Journal". I'm hoping that it can recapture the atmosphere and creepiness of the series that this game failed to deliver. I'm putting "Dark Fall: Lights" in The Ugly.

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