Control:  
Though thought of by some as a Resident Evil clone, I can tell you one thing it doesn't mimic, and that's the controls. Christ, every time I wanted to play a Resident Evil game, I nearly shivered due to the horrible control scheme. It was as bad as Tomb Raider, just without the excellent rack. Anywho, all the standard button layouts for Eternal Darkness work well and effectively. I never had to look down once at my hands to figure out button combos. Assigning spells to quick spell buttons (D-pad and Y) is easy and effortless.

While playing, your fingers will never be tired; it's comfortable and actually fun to control the characters. The directional stick is fully functioning, your character moves wherever you point the stick. So no 4-way movement this time, you don't walk like you have your underwear in a bunch. I think one thing Eternal Darkness COULD have had was a 180 degree quick turn, like Resident Evil. That’s the only thing good worth mentioning in a Resident Evil game, control-wise, and it would have been a nice addition here.

Gameplay:  
Let it be immediately known: Eternal Darkness is an absolute blast. From the opening with an excerpt of Edgar Allen Poe, to the insanely wicked ending, it's a great play. Of course, the best parts of Eternal Darkness are the various insanity effects that happen when you start to lose your sanity. As the sanity meter decreases, you start seeing some very creepy stuff.

**SPOILERS** (for those who haven't played yet -- otherwise, scroll down)


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At one time, the walls bled, and then the room turned upside-down. In another instance, about 10 zombies came and attacked me, and the "controller not working" sign came up. I actually stopped and checked the GameCube to see if the controller was still plugged in! Various noises occur, and your character will try and convince his or her self that "this is not happening!!" One of my favorites is when you walk into a room, nonchalantly, and then BOOM your body explodes...heh heh. There are so many, and you might be tempted to just loose your sanity so you can see all the good ones.

What gives the game a lot of replay value is the ability to choose your path near the start of the game. As Pious, at the ending of his chapter, you choose one of three artifacts. Choosing red, which stands for Health, means the enemies you fight will be harder on your life force and will be stronger, and the god that is worshiped by evil Zombie Pious (He gets changed to evil no matter which one you choose) is Chutter'gha. If you go with blue, you have enemies that zap magic, and they worship the deity Ulyaoth. Lastly, green makes enemies lower your sanity meter more, and they follow the essence of Xel'lathoth. Accordingly, each color is also a difficulty level. (In order) Green being recommended for first timers, Red for medium, and Blue for extra spicy.

After finishing the game once, I wanted to go back and kick some more demon ass. Eternal Darkness is that fun and amazing that you just can't put it down. Congrats, Silicon Knights, you sure done us proud.

Multiplayer:
None

Sound:
With Dolby Pro Logic II enabled, you know the audiophiles are loving this game. True, the sound does rock majorly with a nice set up, as I experienced firsthand at my friend's house. But are those who aren't able to have access to expensive audio equipment left alone to suffer bad sound? Of course not, my crappy speaker set up STILL made Eternal Darkness sound great. The effects, the shuffling of zombies, monster noises, everything works great. The voices of the gods when you use spells are totally intriguing. Believe me -- turn off the lights, crank up the noise...and you'll experience Eternal Darkness with pants-wetting excitement.

OVERALL:
This game is highly, highly recommended. Never was there a dull moment. Extreme action, salivating graphics, solid control scheme, and kick ass sound all combine to deliver a creepy psychological thriller that will be hard to match for years to come. So all of you Nintendo bashers, who say there aren't enough "mature" games for the GameCube, go play this, and come back to me with a real opinion. Now...stop reading and go play!

 

The Lowdown on  Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem Aesthetics: Awesome Control: Very Good Gameplay: Awesome Multiplayer: Sound: Awesome Innovation: 5/6 Lasting Appeal: 4/6 Rating Explanation Overall: Awesome! "Top of the Genre"