Eternal Darkness, a sleeper hit by Silicon Knights, was famous for both it's novelty sanity effects that broke the fourth wall, and it's deep chronological storyline that was based off inspired by H.P. Lovecraft's psychological horror novels. In the game, there are moments in the story where, despite being the heroic protagonist, characters found themselves in various situations that made them the source of the problem. Made them do the wrong thing.



In the beginning, you're Pious Augustus, an honorable Centurion whose objective is to explore a local tomb and retrieve an artifact for the Roman empire. At first, it seems like the typical conquest mission, however, the further you go into the tomb, the stranger this mission gets. Battling through zombies is a relatively simple but weird chore with puzzles in between. You then reach the end of the tomb and are given a choice of three distinctly colored (Red, Blue or Green) artifacts. At the time, the choice seems quite simple... what harm could picking a color do? Upon choosing however, your handsome centurion transforms into a zombie-like slave for the God you choose.





Congratulations. You've caused a great cataclysm between ancients that will cause destruction in the universe for the next few centuries. You've also created the antagonist for the rest of the game. The rest of the game you play as numerous characters, using the power of Mantorok, an ancient who is weak, and an ancient stronger than Augustus's ancient to fight this antagonist and destory his chosen god.



Later on in the game, you take the role of Maximilian Roivas, the ancestor of the two protagonists Alex and Edward. He has recently inherited a mansion from his dead father... it just so happens this mansion in Rhode Island is the breeding ground for the ancients. With this not so subtle location, you slowly see your servants become possessed by creatures serving the ancients under your home... and these creatures are not be fucked with. With more servants roaming around your mansion becoming possessed, you're given a choice: will you kill your servants ensuring your safety? Or will you spare them, risking your life as well as the universe itself? According to the story, you choose the first. In doing so, you sometimes yield success, but other times, your killings yield no result and you just killed an innocent person caught in an unfortunate event. Was it for the greater good? Maybe, but despite his best efforts at defeating the darkness, Max Rovias is sent to an insane asylum for his massacre of his (not so) innocent cleaning crew.



While these examples are good, both of them are not as definitive of doing the wrong thing as this final one. If you're truly dedicated to Eternal Darkness and the Rovias' goal, you can play through the game three times with Augustus picking a different ancient each time. In doing so, three alternative time dimensions are created, each with an ancient defeating the other in what seems to be a large scale game of rock-paper-scissors. You've defeated the three ancients of destruction and darkness and have achieved peace for the universe with Mantorok right?



Not exactly. Because of your actions, Mantorok, the true eternal darkness, is no longer opposed by Chattur'gua, Xel'lotah or Ulyaoth, the original three ancients that enslaved Augustus. While you were fighting against Augustus, a slave for the ancients, you in turn became a slave of the most evil ancient. And now it's plotting it's own destruction of the universe unopposed. Once again, congratulations :D

That's a pretty serious and dark ending. Eternal Darkness is a pretty dark game. While it is kind of a bummer to see how the events in the game unfold, the twists and turns that cause such events are a refreshing and another reason why Eternal Darkness is an unforgettable classic.

In this issue of DtWT, I wanted to explore a less evil decision that lies more on the side of selfishness. One that involves the unwilling sacrifice of another for the world, your survival and... your saved game.

I was Solid Snake, the morally neutral, but obligated protagonist of Metal Gear Solid. Snake has had no real connection with the outside world since the operation on Zanibar. No family. No friends. Just huskies.

Around the beginning part of my struggles through Shadow Moses, I encountered Meryl Silverburgh, the naïve but loyal soldier who was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Nevertheless, she plans to fight as hard as I have against the terrorists who overran FoxHound and the nuclear facility, even if it means being a complete bitch to me at the beginning.



Through some hardships and troubles, I reconnect with her once again in order to get closer to Liquid and disabling Metal Gear. During this time, I found out more about Meryl's past. How her blind admiration for me and her father led her to become a soldier. How she is a rookie who thought she understood war, but was only recently facing the harsh reality. How, despite the fact that she's a rookie, she'll do anything to make sure I succeeded, even going as far as to say “you can shoot me.” if she even slows me down in the slightest. Her humbleness and selflessness shows what her character is: a hard-ass with compassion. I could not help but feel sympathy for her, her nativity and her misfortunate.

Despite this emotional connection blossoming, the mission had to go on. We fought Psycho Mantis together, and while I almost thought I lost her, a few stun grenades and FAMAS bullets helped me pull through as the victor. After a little encounter with some wolves, who by the way loved Meryl, we trekked on expecting a tag team strong enough to take down the greatest of foes.

Then, the unexpected happened...



Bullet after bullet went through her like butter. I was in disbelief: why did they made me so connected with this character if this was going to happen to her? How could Kojima take this away from me? The only chance I had of saving her was backtracking to get a weapon powerful enough to fight Sniper Wolf. Despite getting to the armory and obtain the PSG-1 as fast as possible, I returned to area to see Meryl gone, and Sniper Wolf still being a Cunty McBitch.

After a hectic, but satisfying battle, my next priority was to find Meryl. Being stupid enough not to save for a while and just running ahead, I put myself in quite a compromising position. Captured by the enemy, they could do anything to me. And they did. I was left with a decision...


...fight for my life or ensure my survival and sacrifice Meryl.



The rules of this “game” were cut-and-dry. Survive torture or die. If I couldn't hold my strength and got myself killed, there were no continues. Literally. And my last saved give was a long ways back. Were they really going to kill her if I gave up? It was a question that I kept asking myself. Young girls shouldn't be faced with a dilemma like that ><

Not taking any chance, I tried to endure the torture. At the time, it was harder than I thought. Watching my health dwindle farther and farther had me panicking like no one's business. Thinking about all the backtracking I had to do didn't help either. Knowing that there was absolutely NO way I could possibly get through this, a tick of selfishness kicked in.

I mean, the woman did say if I slowed her down, I could shoot her. How could this be any different? Was I really being evil or was I just being efficient? She knew what she was getting herself into when she signed up for this. Hmm... maybe she didn't. These questions were ones I kept asking myself when deciding whether to submit or endure death and massive repeating. Time was running out.

As my health bar dwindled to bits, I finally choked. Fuck that bitch. I pressed the Select button and saved my own life at the expense of another. I've got a mission to do and I didn't want any thing to get in my way, no matter how much it meant to me. Sure, I probably cut the only human connection my character has had for years, but even he looked like he didn't want to endure anymore pain. It was selfish. It was somewhat immoral, but fuck it... I wanted to live.



The consequences for this action aren't truly felt until the end of the game, when I realized that Snake was fighting not for the world anymore, but for Meryl, which was in vain, as Liquid and Ocelot ended her life before I could even see her again. It was depressing yes, but I knew what I choose and what it might lead to. I also made me realize the how the effect of one intense moment can completely change consequences in the future, no matter how simple the decision might be.

I'm not gonna lie – this might be the least morally ambiguous game in this Monthly Musing's, but for me, this moment was the first encounter with a real moral decision in a video game. It made the emotion transcend from the game and into the gamer who struggled to press Circle, but was too weak and gave up. Although we learned that she survived the Shadow's Moses incident, at the time, the consequences will left somewhat unknown. By breaking the action hero into a human, who is forced to make a human decision with human consequences, Kojima once again displays the genius of his storytelling and the emotions it can provoke. While the franchise has taken in turn for the crazy and hasn't made gamers make such decisions again, the one choice during the torture scene is an unforgettable moment among many that have made MGS the classic it is today.

I ask myself that question every time I see a "[insert survival horror series]'s New Horrific Transition to the Next-Gen!" The reason I figure we get excited such things is because we expect the same thrills that scared us in the past to reoccur with more realism, more immersion, and most of all, more stained pants. However, despite having a huge technical advantages over their predecessors, such games have yet to have the same effect, leaving gamers disappointed, and me to examine why.

One could start by blaming the overall direction that has been taken by the more famous survival horror series in the past few years. The most famous transition was Resident Evil. Capcom decided to replace the cheesy but suspenseful horror for the past few games and focused on a mainstream action approach. This change began in Resident Evil 4 -- so did the numerous critics complaining that the game "wasn't scary enough". By the time Resident Evil 5 was released, gamers realized that this game was not meant to make us soil ourselves. Although they still retain their zombie-based plot through rail-shooters, the series has still failed to bring us moments like "The First Zombie", "The Dog" and the Nemesis walking through that damn door. And sure, the gameplay for the series has made vast improvements since the days of fixed-camera angles, but was that radical change really worth the novelty fears the original games provided?

A similar, more significant transition for a survival horror series happened to Silent Hill. Given the Japanese series to them by Konami, The Collective, an American developer, compromised the disturbing ambiguity, isolation and symbolism for a more direct, action-oriented game. In an attempt to be more appealing, or dare I say it? Westernized, the game removed everything that made characters like Pyramid Head and zombie nurses so damn scary.

This may be somewhat of a stretch here, but maybe current-gen games aren't that scary because well... we do not get so scared anymore. Being a kid playing Resident Evil was a novelty experience -- having that childish suspension of disbelief made even the most subtle of moments scary. As time and people grow, this novelty wears out. I can't say that the Resident Evil 5 put jeers in me, but seeing the area I grew up in get bombed really brought some nightmares.

Maybe this problem is a combination of all problems listed. Although it's coming out on the Wii, maybe Silent Hill: Shattered Memories and Fatal Frame IV (if it's released in the US) will change this pattern. I'm not completely sure, but I do know one thing: my pants are way too clean right now.

I mean, I don't know. Other than the fingerprint ridden case, it was in mint condition. Maybe this was Gamestop's error or something. I might be the only surprised one here but this is the first time I've seen something like this.

The best part about college is finally finding those who find similar interests of yours. For me, this is having a DDR machine with so much Pendulum that you're constantly finding the need to "Hold Your Colour" (lol, get because... Pendulum?... nevermind..)


DO YOU GET IT NAO!?

Hidden in the back of the dining hall/academic building, aptly named Festival, lies a modified Dance Dance Revolution: Supernova machine running on a lonely tower. Last year, a group Math and Computer Science majors, dissatisfied with the limits of the Supernova machine, decided to put their skills to work. With JMU's approval, this group removed the current system running the machine and added an old Dell desktop running StepMania on an In The Groove UI. Although it had a rough start with constant patches, hardware upgrades and rewrites to the .bat files, the team considered it a success.

Today, this Supernova machine holds over 2500 songs, (including artists like Freezepop, Infected Mushroom, Justice, DMX... I mean, shit, even songs from Lazytown), and runs at a smooth 60 frames per second. The machine is slowly but surely becoming a landmark for the eastern end of campus, leaving freshman and prospective students curious and asking themselves, "is it really free?"

The machine has also brought a small but sure sense of community for all types of gamers. The machine has led to other gaming events to Festival, such as Smash Bros. tournaments and DJ Hero premieres. The players/programmers are all in a tight-knit group, constantly finding ways to improve the cabinet. Hell, thanks to the machine, friendships have grown stronger, romantic relationships have blossomed and the a new culture of gamers has become a dominant force in the east side of JMU.

Despite being a freshman (these days they call us "freshman bait"), I'm pretty damn proud of being part of the crowd that supports this fine piece of arcade goodness. For me, it brought new life into the rhythm game genre and, as much as I hate to admit it, made me want to go to this school.


Hot pole raping action.


Freshman enjoying the joy of a ridiculous Expert step chart.

During the early ages of the Gamecube's lifecycle, before the golden age of Resident Evil 4 and its precedent on the horror genre, there were only a few games that were reaching out to that 'mature horror audience'. Really, there were only three games that I can recall: the Resident Evil remake, Luigi's Mansion (if you that type of person) and Eternal Darkness. Unfortunately that last game is indeed 'last' and didn't grab the attention it should've to the gaming audience. In fact, the only reason I know about Eternal Darkness is because it was the most interesting looking game in the clearance bin at the local Gamestop.

Even though its a horror based video game, one really can't compare Eternal Darkness to games like Silent Hill or Resident Evil, nor could one really fit it into that Survival Horror genre. Some would rather put it in a sort of Action Horror genre, considering there is no Item Boxes to be found and the objective is to kill as many monsters as possible with various (mostly melee) weapons rather than avoid enemies and conserve bullets.

The story is also very different from that of most horror games. Its a hybrid of mythological fiction and psychological horror derived from authors such as H.P. Lovecraft. It begins in a modern day setting in the shoes of Alex Rovias, a twenty something year old trying to uncover the mystery behind the brutal murder of her grandfather. The only real clue she finds is an old Tome. Unknown to her, the mystery and the tome span all the way from the beginning of time itself and puts more than just the Rovias family at stake. Its filled with interesting, and mostly engaging characters who ultimately meet their doom in the same way her grandfather did. While the story isn't groundbreaking or award winning, it certainly is able to tie the player in and motivate them to help Alex find the resolution of her grandfather and maybe even save the world.

Both the graphics and gameplay were solid, however it was also somewhat simple and (not to discredit Nintendo) what you'd expect from an early Gamecube title. However, even with this setback, Eternal Darkness manages to use an original aspect to keep the game interesting and horrifying. This aspect is called the 'Sanity Meter'. Everytime your character alarms a monster of some kind or you do something insane such as kill a human NPC, the game punishes you by taking some of your character's sanity. They farther their sanity goes down, the higher the risk you run of dealing with a Sanity Effect. This is where the game really stands out. Any game that chooses to break the fourth wall gains a new level of intrigue and respect from me. This game not only breaks the fourth wall with these sanity effects, but does it exceptionally well. From heads/body parts blowing off randomly to TV screens going blank during intense boss battles, Eternal Darkness manages to give player a while new type of gaming horror experience as well as a new brown lump in their pants.

Even though the sanity meter was the main selling point of Eternal Darkness, there was much more behind the gimmick than most realize. Unfortunately, few were able to see any of the game at all and it failed commercially, further perpetuating Nintendo's kiddie stereotype and making Eternal Darkness one of the most underrated games of the generation. Whats even worse is that its developers, Silicon Knights had actually planned a trilogy, but this is now out of the question since Nintendo owns the rights to the sequels, dropped it's exclusive rights with Silicon Knights. There's also the fact that SK has decided to move on to other projects, such as Too Human for the Xbox 360. I can only hope those companies work something out and we finally see a sequel to this amazing game.

As a huge fan of this game, I've only found a few who share the same love for the game. Maybe this blog might attract the fans =P