Of Light and Darkness is a somber first-person adventure game featuring the surreal work of award-winning artist Gil Bruvel. The story centers on Mike and Serin, brother and sister, who are visiting a Beverly Hills mansion for a private showing of a mysterious artist's work. While observing one particularly engrossing painting titled Avant-Garde, Serin is supernaturally and unceremoniously yanked into the artwork's universe. Mike, who apparently never had the time to watch even a single episode of the '70s TV show Night Gallery, pounds his fists against the abductive painting, only to find himself also transported into the illusory universe beyond the canvas. As the game begins, Mike - and you, the player - stand looking back through the painting at the horrified faces of the other gallery-goers as they stare, aghast and unbelieving.
Of Light and Darkness mixes computer-modeled speaking characters, live actors presented via full-motion video segments, and attractive, brooding 3-D graphics. The goal is to find and rescue Serin from the surreal dangers of Bruvel's artwork and, if all goes well, to re-enter reality. Along the way, players explore the various realms of the French artist's delirium (without giving away too much: the Murmur Room, the region known as Mechanos, and the rather frighteningly named Euclidean Terror Chamber). Of Light and Darkness also showcases a graphics engine that allows players to examine, pick up, and use items in fully rendered surroundings. Objects and environments within the game react to each other in accurate light/shading effects including reflective surfaces, multiple light sources, and realistic shadows. Of Light and Darkness is, at its core, a game about and filled with art, with a subtle - and perhaps unintentional - message about the ghostly line between muse and madness.
Of Light and Darkness: US$49.95 (estimated). Interplay Productions: (800) 468 3775, +1 (714) 553 6678.
STREET CRED
Mmmm, DigiliciousSee Hear
Light Shines Darkly
