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Home DO WANT updates

Alone in the Dark 5 tech demo raises the survival horror bar to a new level

2:11 PM on 02.16.2008, Gameboi 72 comments

     DO WANT

Resident Evil and Silent Hill may be the most famous names associated with the genre, but when it comes to survival horror, one mustn't forget their roots. The name that planted the seed will soon be back -- and judging by this -- will be ready to show how much they have evolved for the better. 

Watch as Producer Nour Polloni walks you through some of the possibilities at your disposal, during this tech demo of Alone in the Dark 5. Who knew that a little two-sided tape and everyday items could do so much, in a post 1980's world? I'd say that the spirit of MacGyver is alive and well, and just maybe... Atari and Eden games have a potential hit on their hands.

With the shakiness that Atari has experienced over the past couple of years, you could say that they know a little about the genre, themselves. I hope this one pans out for them.


Next page: More Alone in the Dark stories




Gameboi's Avatar
Gameboi at 02/16/2008 14:16
The only thing that looks weird to me is the way you go about selecting inventory. Reminds me of a flasher. Now that's funny... and scary.
BlackDove's Avatar
BlackDove at 02/16/2008 14:16
As long as we can be NASTY.
Tricoden's Avatar
Tricoden at 02/16/2008 14:18
Hmm, I seem to have placed a comment without actually hitting a button. Odd.

Looks pretty damn cool though.
cbebop007's Avatar
cbebop007 at 02/16/2008 14:19
Wow. Not only does it look fucking terrifying but we're seeing actual gameplay!
Phntmbanana's Avatar
Phntmbanana at 02/16/2008 14:26
Looks really great can't wait to get my hands on this one
Impulsedaniel's Avatar
Impulsedaniel at 02/16/2008 14:26
looking good so far
Sam Spectre's Avatar
Sam Spectre at 02/16/2008 14:30
That's some sticky tape
Jordan Grim Devore's Avatar
Jordan Grim Devore at 02/16/2008 14:31
The lighting system is top notch. If anything the objects will be fun to mess around with.
ArrestedDeveloper's Avatar
ArrestedDeveloper at 02/16/2008 14:33
The game has at least twice as many graphics as the first game!
Wedge's Avatar
Wedge at 02/16/2008 14:33
But what about paperclips?

Seriously though, this sounds so fun, I hope it works out in gameplay.
Trowble's Avatar
Trowble at 02/16/2008 14:43
I've never seen a bag of blood or flammable liquid being thrown and leaving behind such a straight trail in my real world ruled life, but I'll stay tuned.
Cheeburga's Avatar
Cheeburga at 02/16/2008 14:48
STICKYTAPE
mix's Avatar
mix at 02/16/2008 14:48
Sticky tape FTW!

The first on one PS1 wasn't great, this one looks amazing! I think the survival horrors are one of my fav genre's.
DV2FOX's Avatar
DV2FOX at 02/16/2008 14:58
Game promises a lot...it's the next step after BIOSHOCK,dun ya think?...Sticky Tape madness too XD
Cutie Honey's Avatar
Cutie Honey at 02/16/2008 15:14
Next, we'll put some sticky tape to this jacket, and throw it up high on a ceiling so you can't get it back.
Justice's Avatar
Justice at 02/16/2008 15:18
The game looks pretty cool, it's like "Matlock in the Sewers- The Videogame".

Also lol @ Cutie Honey
saddack's Avatar
saddack at 02/16/2008 15:23
Well we know the game has sticky tape but what about non-sticky tape? Hmmmm.......
ohgr89's Avatar
ohgr89 at 02/16/2008 15:30
HEY LOOK DOOM. A GUN AND A FLASHLIGHT AT THE SAME TIME!
emotaku's Avatar
emotaku at 02/16/2008 15:30
alone in the sticky tape.
MistuhX's Avatar
MistuhX at 02/16/2008 15:35
hmmm...interesting
Teta's Avatar
Teta at 02/16/2008 15:37
Sounds really interesting.
But i see myself being more time in that jacket checking inventory than actually playing the game.
Luigi takes over's Avatar
Luigi takes over at 02/16/2008 15:44
I think this would be a great engine to do a 3rd person action batman game on.

Looks interesting
Kaspar's Avatar
Kaspar at 02/16/2008 15:45
Wow, sticky tape is useful
jackdoe's Avatar
jackdoe at 02/16/2008 15:49
Sigh. Atari will probably go bankrupt before they release the PS3 version of the game. TBA my ass.
Brock_Dainjer's Avatar
Brock_Dainjer at 02/16/2008 15:53
I was so jazzed from this that I grabbed all of the sticky tape and blood packets from my room that I could and then placed them on me so that the only way I could choose from them was by staring at my penis. Then I fought my roommates! Then I found out that they are not only not attracted to blood, they were not very happy about the blood trail. So I'm currently rethinking my tactis.
wonky360's Avatar
wonky360 at 02/16/2008 15:56
Can I use Blu Tack?
angusm's Avatar
angusm at 02/16/2008 16:08
Next we'll use sticky tape on our hands and feet.
Now you can crawl like a spider.
Scape's Avatar
Scape at 02/16/2008 16:14
I mean...or you could have used your gun to shoot the enemies instead of the dead body...just saying...

But in all honestly the game looks really interesting, hope it turns out well.
hypothetical's Avatar
hypothetical at 02/16/2008 16:14
Sticky tape is sticky.
KamikazeTutor's Avatar
KamikazeTutor at 02/16/2008 16:17
MacGyver meets survival horror. :3
brainderailment's Avatar
brainderailment at 02/16/2008 16:18
I saw this stuff on EG and was amazed at the complexity of this game. Guess I'm buying it on the pc. Beside Silent Hill, I don't like survival horror games at all.
Grocerspride's Avatar
Grocerspride at 02/16/2008 16:29
That's pretty cool. I hope they clean up the character animations because the guy in the tech demo looks a little stiff. But the whole combining inventory could be a lot of fun.
moonkid's Avatar
moonkid at 02/16/2008 16:33
It always takes me ages to find the end of my sticky tape so I'm guessing I'm going to die a lot in this game.
ZeroTolo's Avatar
ZeroTolo at 02/16/2008 16:34
So all this video proves to me is that sticky tape is the new bullets when it comes to survival horror. That shit better be rarer than a first edition Charizard.

B-Radicate's Avatar
B-Radicate at 02/16/2008 16:38
How much can a single jacket carry? Sheesh.

I think this definitely has potential, but as someone noted, it seems as though you may spend more time in your inventory combining objects than actually playing.

Here's hoping it takes a sort of RE4 meets Macguyver angle and still lets you just shoot enemies instead of having to manage your inventory so damned often.

Also, where are you gonna find more sticky tape when you run out? 'Cause I know in my house we can NEVER find any damn tape. Or batteries. Fuck...
MasterSauce's Avatar
MasterSauce at 02/16/2008 16:45
My only worry is that this will only work for certain types. I can't see people who spend three hours a night in COD4 or Halo 3 really digging this. Waiting around and combining this and that then throwing this at that so that you can light this or that...Just a very long sequence to kill five little, evil rodents.

Not that it doesn't look wicked sweet, but I don't think it's anything Atari should bet their last fifty cents on.
MechaMonkey's Avatar
MechaMonkey at 02/16/2008 16:55
Every time he threw something, in my head I heard the infantry from Company of Heroes yelling, "Sticky bomb!"
Syn's Avatar
Syn at 02/16/2008 17:11
It looks like it has the potential to be way cool, but I'm not sure how they're going to teach the gamer all the different possible combinations of items they can use, because I hope tape isn't the only thing that can be used with lots of items.
Capn Birdseye's Avatar
Capn Birdseye at 02/16/2008 17:11
I hope they allow a fluid control scheme and none of that jerky legacy shit that all survival horrors seem to want to force upon you ;)
manta's Avatar
manta at 02/16/2008 17:14
Looks promising, but I don't know. I've been disappointed by "Tech Demos" in the past...


I'm looking at you HL2. Where's my door blocking w/ tables? Where's my hydra?
Velt's Avatar
Velt at 02/16/2008 17:20
I like the concept and it make me feel like the firsts videos of half life 2 made me feel, warm.
But I want to see how all this interactivity is going to stick with the gameplay and the history.
youkilledmyguy's Avatar
youkilledmyguy at 02/16/2008 17:28
I don't know. I mean it looks cool at first, but then the more I think about it the more it seems as though it's not really about all these options you have. It seems needlessly complex to a point. I mean all that trouble of making a trail, stickying up the fuel, throwing it on an enemy... when just a minute before that they threw a can, shot it and made it explode. Which one seems easier?

I guess it could be a fun system to explore but I'd hope that I wouldn't have to go through all that bullshit the entire game just to pass a little hallway.
wardrox's Avatar
wardrox at 02/16/2008 17:30
ok, looks hot and if zombies didn't shit scare me, I'm sure I'd enjoy it.
ceark's Avatar
ceark at 02/16/2008 17:40
I'm really looking forward to this. I haven't had a good horror game to play in to long.
Jetsetlemming's Avatar
Jetsetlemming at 02/16/2008 17:41
The player movement looked clumsy, as did the jacket inventory menu.
I am indeed tempted by the promise of the world's strongest sticky tape, though.
-PL-'s Avatar
-PL- at 02/16/2008 17:44
You know... sticky tape isn't THAT sticky.
Pedro Blandino's Avatar
Pedro Blandino at 02/16/2008 17:55
at the end of the game the guy takes off his wig and reveals that he is macgyver.
also random music at the end.
zardoz's Avatar
zardoz at 02/16/2008 17:56
Looks nice, and technically very impressive, but in terms of actual game mechanics it is still using context sensitive gameplay, upping the amount of context sensitive scenarios and then calling it real world physics or whatever.

Whilst I love stuff like Alone In The dark, I wish more game developers would understand the difference between implementing more context sensitive options which are mere graphical recreations of real world actions, and creating an interactive world. A fully interactive virtual world will not be done in our lifetime. Even if you had a game which just took place in one room, the ability to create a fully interactive room for every conceivable personal interaction is way beyond any developer and will be for a long time.

What these developers are doing is just adding more options and detail through more money and time. Since time scale and budget will always be a problem, this attitude solves no real design problem. I'm not having a pop at the game, I will definitely get it, I'm just saying that many game developers have turned into Hollywood producers and have decided that chucking money into a project so that the audience can visually see that money, will solve everything.
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