Deadlight - 2012 is year of the Zombie

Now, what can I say about a side scrolling stealth/action game set in the depressing, dark, dreary world of Post Apocalyptic Seattle? A LOT.

You play as Randyll, a man we know nothing about, apart from the fact he was with a group of survivors at the beginning and is now searching for his wife and two daughters in this zombie torn part of the country. We discover more about him through finding the missing pages of his diary through each mission.

The world of Deadlight is a bleak and depressing one, with little colour and only the brief interaction with people, who are mainly dead. The interaction with zombies or "shadows" as our mysterious protagonist calls them, are exciting and intense, even with only a few shadows on screen at one time, or even one I was getting the feeling of claustrophobia and metaphorically shitting myself at the sight of shadows walking towards me. Especially at one point where you career on to the top of a car after leaping from a roof over a barbed wire metal fence, setting of the alarm, and realising the full nature of your situation as about six zombies stoop, turn and walk towards you. Leaping from the car running for your life and swinging the fire axe like your life depended on it. Which it does. Seriously.

Randyll, don't make fun of his name.

This is a game that you will love to play and hate to lose, the linear nature of the game through its side scroller  
use is nostalgic for those who were young when Super Mario was still new to them. And emersive and new for those who have grown up with games like Duke Nukem and are now blitzing round the maps of games like Battlefield 3 and Borderlands 2.

Theres a lot of hanging around in Deadlight

The nature of the cutscenes through the comic book strip style is interesting and a new approach to the survival horror nature of the zombie genre. Even these are bleak and dreary keeping in context with the rest of the game.

The graphical side of the game stands out as well, opposite games like Dead Rising, The Walking Dead and Left 4 Dead, this is not colourful and gory. Its dark, sinister and frightening. Everything a game of this nature should be. But without being boring, the strokes of lightning flaring up in the background and the red glare of the zombies eyes, adding to the effect.

All in all I admit I enjoy playing this game and can't wait to finish, it has a nice central story with a character who is allowed to grow throughout the story, not the usual in your face character or enigmatic whos story is told purely through cutscenes.

I'd give this game a 9/10

Thanks for reading.

DarkTechnical