Eternal Darkness: Why I'm not so upset about "Celda"
Xcalibur327@aol.com
I
still am not a fan of "Celda." It doesn't matter how good the game is,
I'm upset that its being presented in such a childish fashion. I do not
monger good graphics, but I do demand a level of maturity from certain
games, and I will defend my posistion till the end. But you know what?
I'm not so angry anymore. My rage feels a little sedated. And you know
why? Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem. Folks, Nintendo's hit the big
time. This is THE must-own game on the GameCube. Everything about this
game has me enthralled, from its depth, maturity, and fantastic story
(by far the best and most encompassing I've ever seen in a game), to its
voice actors, sound effects, weaponry, 12 different characters, combat
mode, and sanity effects. I'm lost in this game, and I don't want to get
out. Here's the story, shortened. The Ancients were a race of beings on
Earth millenia before humanity. However, they were wiped out after geographical
and climate changes forced them back, and led to the rise of humanity.
For the last 2000 years or so, they've wanted Earth back. However, Fate
comes into play here. Chosen to stop the Ancients are a select groups
of unsuspecting heroes, who each play a role in this great tale, most
often against their will. Most of them will not survive their encounters
with the Darkness; but theirs is a needed sacrifice. You begin the game
as Alexandra Roivas, a young college girl, who has just found out that
her grandfather, Edward, has been murdered (although he is a major character
nonetheless). She searches her family's Rhode Island estate for clues,
and stumbles upon the Tome of Eternal Darkness. There, she reads pages
she finds throughout the house; the pages contain the levels. The first
character, Pious Augustus, a Roman centurion in 26 B.C. Persia, must make
a choice between three artifacts at the end of his level. The artifact
you choose will determine which Ancient you will fight throughout the
game: Red is Chattur'gha, the strongest; green is Xel'loath, who will
deplete your sanity the quickest; blue is Ul'layoth, who uses a lot of
"magick". The game ranges in time from 26 BC-2000 AD, with a dozen or
so stops in between. The story is enthralling, terrifying, depressing,
twisting, and anything else you could ask it to be. The biggest features
of this game are the much-hyped "sanity effects". And trust me, they live
up to the hype. Everything from bleeding walls, to knocking doors, to
bugs on your screen, to...I won't tell you the good ones...you have to
see them for yourselves. They are enough to do anything to you, from leaving
you scratching your head, to leaving you with your heart pounding with
suprise or shock. They're that good. You'll experience them the most if
you have Pious claim the green stone in the beginning (oh, as a note,
in order to get the best ending, beat the game three times, having our
centurion friend pick a different artifact each time). The controls and
camera are fine. Combat is fairly simple (but not easy!); it involves
holding down "R", and then pressing a direction (up, down, left, right);
each direction targets a different body part. And the quicker you can
finish off an enemy, the less sanity you'll lose. Also, there is a spell
system in the game revolving around collecting runes, as well as their
"codexes," which explain what they are and what they do. Along the way,
you'll learn how to make 3, 5, or 7 rune spells (note: magic can be replenished
with movement =) good thing!). One thing about this game sticks out, and
its part of why I love Nintendo and their second party companies like
Silicon Knights. The game has one FMV (the intro before the game), but
hours worth of cinema scenes within the game that use the game's graphics.
You'll notice that while the characters and settings are very well rendered
and detailed, they won't blow you away. And you know what? That's fine.
Silicon Knights and Nintendo worked very closely on this game, and they
both knew one thing: graphics don't make the game. They are a good thing
when used right; to make a proper mood, or to give a game depth, beauty,
and detail (like Ocrina of Time); they shouldn't just be good for the
sake of eye candy. And with the memory Silicon Knights saved by not going
overboard on graphics, there was more room for better sound, bigger levels,
better, well, everything. The game benefits. One more note: you've never
heard voice acting in a game like this before. Please, don't turn the
voice off and the subtitles on. Leave both on, so that you can hear the
great acting (by many video game voice veterans), as well as experience
the very refined script. This game is a 10. I was cynical at first: Nintendo's
just throwing bones at us gamers who don't like cartoony Zelda to keep
us happy; they think we just like graphics and blood! Well, Big N, you,
and Silicon Knights (a company who will play a big part in whether Nintendo
wins this "console war", you'll see), have proved me wrong. Eternal Darkness
is a brilliant game. If Resident Evil is Night of the Living Dead, then
this game is The Silence of the Lambs. This is video game art in the first
degree, and you will not regret owning it. It is the first of a wave of
great games GameCube has coming this year into the next, and it is a great
way to get started. But remember, its rated "M" for a good reason. So
turn down the lights, take a deep breath, and get ready to (literally)
lose your mind...
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