Dark Light

Dark Light draws numerous inspirations from games like metroidvania and souls-like. It consists in exploring a destroyed, cyberpunk world, controlled by creatures hiding in dark corners of ruined cities. Mirari&Co. studio is responsible for the production of the game, specializing in animation and creating promotional materials for companies. Dark Light is their debut when it comes to developing games. Before the actual launch, it was made available for testing in early access.

Plot

The protagonist of the game is a man who belongs to the Dark Hunters group. He has gone into a merciless world in which he must find and defend the last hope for a declining humanity. Survival in this area is possible thanks to specialized equipment, powered by energy obtained from the supernatural beings ruling the areas we explore. Some of them cannot be seen with the naked eye, so during the game we are constantly accompanied by a special drone - its light makes the creatures visible and vulnerable to attack.

Mechanics

The action of the game is observed from the side, in a way typical for metroidvania. The world consists of numerous platforms, movable and static, on which we jump, run and fight our enemies. They form complex labyrinths full of hidden places, giving the player the freedom to explore and allowing them to choose their own unique path to the goal. A special jet pack can help us jump between them, extending the distances covered by the hero. Some areas are in total darkness, so the visibility around the hero is limited to the light emitted by the drone. The robot allows you to see selected masked enemies, and unlocks some of the hidden paths with additional items to collect.

We have several weapons at our disposal. We can use equipment for hand-to-hand combat (swords, hammers, truncheons), for distance (firearms) or for throwing. Each weapon can be upgraded several times with material collected in the game world, increasing one of four statistics defining its parameters: damage, energy consumption, attack speed and critical damage. By improving the equipment, we also develop the skills of the main hero, who by using specific equipment develops corresponding abilities. In addition to the usual opponents, we also meet powerful bosses in the game, requiring us to use the right tactics and optimal use of available equipment. Some enemies are preparing traps and attacking us by surprise, creating a sense of omnipresent danger - but it may happen that the drone accompanying the hero will detect the danger and warn us of it in time.

Technical aspects

Dark Light graphic design was at a decent level when it was released. The developers paid a lot of attention to fine-tuning the lighting effects in order to deepen the impression of wandering through dark areas where every light source is of importance to gold. The animations of the characters are a tribute to the old games of this type, not connecting smoothly and putting on more responsiveness than realism.