I love horror games, but the latest release left me feeling more bored than scared

It’s arguable that horror games are better than ever before, with recent titles being released to critical acclaim.

Both Resident Evil 4 and Alan Wake 2 were nominated for Game of the Year at gaming’s biggest awards ceremony, The Game Awards.

With the popularity of horror games increasing, it makes sense that a new classic horror series would make a comeback.

Alone in the Dark was originally released in 1992 and was seen as a genre-defining moment in gaming.

While you look at it now and wonder what all the fuss was about, remember that games were very simple back then.

Now we have a lot more memory to work with and so many technological advances have been made that now seems like the right time.

The story is split between Emily (Jodie Comer) and Edward Carnby (David Harbour), a detective hired to find Emily’s missing uncle.

As they independently explore every part of the haunted house, they soon realize that something supernatural is going on.

The main game stays true to the original in terms of story and also by staying close to the original gameplay.

Alone in the Dark was a point-and-click adventure, a popular genre at the time, where players collect objects to solve puzzles and explore the environment.

However, in updating it to modern times, it has fallen foul of the usual horror tropes that hinder its originality.

Given the success of the Resident Evil series, there are some third-person shooter sections that feel like filler.

These are not fun to play through and hold the tension, making it feel generic.

If it had stuck to what Alone in the Dark does best, instead of trying to emulate other games of the genre, it would have come out stronger.

Comer and Harbor’s performances improve this remake of the original alongside the modern graphics, but the shooting sections feel unnecessary.

The puzzles and environments are just as exciting as they were 30 years ago, and nothing extra was needed to make the game special.

While it’s understandable that the team would want to add a little more to a game this old, the uniqueness and innovation of the original was lost here.

It’s not a bad horror game and will give you some great moments. We just wanted the director’s cut without all the boring fighting.

If you’d like to read more about the latest game releases, check out our Rise of the Ronin preview.

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