GS:Dark Matter is a side-scrolling survival horror game that cribs liberally from the likes of Dead Space, Aliens, and pretty much any other property that has pitted a lone protagonist against creepy crawlies on a derelict spacecraft. The familiarity doesn't stop there, though; with a gun-toting heroine to a 2.5D presentation, it has also got some strains of Metroid and Shadow Complex coursing through its veins. In borrowing from the best, Dark Matter delivers some convincing atmospheric touches, but a number of issues--from the mildly annoying to the downright frustrating--keep it from matching the quality of its many inspirations.
GG3 dives into the holiday spirit of sales by looking at the worst of the crop first. To ensure no one will ever need to go looking for these games pulled from Steam, some gameplay will be shown from both Ashes Cricket 2013 and Dark Matter. That last one is back on Valve's platform, but...just don't.
GIZORAMA - On paper, Dark Matter sounds great. A 2.5D shooter that attempts to blend the horror and atmosphere of titles like Dead Space with the exploration and structure of industry changers like Super Metroid is a recipe that sounds like it would yield nothing but a guaranteed success. However, despite some genuinely atmospheric elements, Dark Matter unfortunately fails on what it sets out to do at almost every turn leaving in its wake a mess of disappointment and frustration.
After being woken from Cryo-sleep by a seemingly sentient AI, your nameless female protagonist is given little to no back story. All that is shared is that you are some sort of engineer who has been kept alive by the ship in order to save it from an alien threat. Despite brimming with many genre clichés, the opening gambit is sold relatively well here. At first, you are interested in learning more about yourself and the world around you as well as the mysterious AI that seems to be your only companion amidst the isolation. Unfortunately however, you will soon realise that these questions will never be answered to a satisfactory level. It seems that this set up is more akin to a plot device than the origin of an interesting tale meaning any interest soon dissipates
Look, we realize the ending spurred controversy and bugs make their presence felt, yet there's a solid game here from InterWave.
