In 1992, the original Alone in the Dark wowed gamers with its innovative 3D graphics and effectively gave birth to the survival/horror genre, spawning numerous sequels and copycats. In 2008, this seminal survival/horror series has been reinvented by Eden Games and while it once again innovates, this innovation comes at a cost. How does the saying go? 'You can't polish a turd, but you can roll it in glitter.'

Set in present day New York City, Alone in the Dark tells the story of Edward Carnby (the protagonist from the original series), a paranormal investigator who mysteriously awakes with amnesia in a time he should not belong. Not only is the time wrong but the blood on the floor and the gun to his back suggests that the place is also less than ideal. That becomes even more apparent when demonic fissures open all around him and Central Park is transformed into a dark and twisted Hell on Earth.

Beginning in a first person view and eventually allowing the player to switch between first and third person viewpoints at will, Alone in the Dark aims for a cinematic feel right from the start. The third person camera jumps between an over-the-shoulder perspective and fixed dramatic viewpoints depending on the players location. The fixed camera viewpoint was the trademark of the original series and was later copied by many games including genre heavyweights such as Resident Evil.

These set camera angles do succeed in creating a cinematic feel but Alone in the Dark is a game, not a film. The story is interesting and the voice acting a little corny but for a game that is supposed to be frightening, it was not very scary. Watch the woeful Uwe Boll directed Alone in the Dark film (2005) if you really want to see something scary!

Unfortunately, the annoyances of a switching fixed viewpoint camera have not disappeared in the last 16 years. Direction control reorientates based on the viewpoint, so depending on the camera changes, walking in a straight line for example may involve more than just pushing the left thumbstick in the desired direction. This problem disappears when in the first person view but the game snaps the player back to a third person viewpoint at certain predetermined moments.

General control is a massive issue in Alone in the Dark and one of the basic areas in which the game fails. All movement is controlled by the Left Thumbstick and turning is a laborious effort at best. It is noticeably easier and faster in the first person view but as mentioned above the game snaps you out of this view regularly. The movement controls are bearable for exploration purposes but really fall down during the more agile demands of combat. A quick 180 degree turn action is included but this really does not compensate for the overall sluggish controls.

The control woes are not limited to the on foot sections either as the driving set pieces and general driving physics are simply atrocious. The driving sequences in Alone in the Dark must rate as some of the most painful, poorly designed and implemented sequences in gaming history. Don't forget that Eden brought us Test Drive Unlimited, so they do know how to make a decent driving game. Mere words alone fail to communicate the idiotic thought process that the designers must have gone through to create such rubbish. I can guarantee that the phrase 'Play Tester for Alone in the Dark' will never appear on the resume of any Play Tester hoping to find future employment in the industry.

The bad news does not end there as combat controls are equally as bad as those for movement. Combat takes the form of swinging a melee weapon, firing a handgun, throwing items or using an aerosol can/cigarette lighter combination. Certain volatile items found in the game can be thrown through the air and made to explode on queue with a well aimed gunshot. Firing the handgun is straight forward and is assisted with a rather strong auto aim correction. Again, using the first person view makes this a relatively easy task.

Melee combat on the other hand is a different story. Eden have tried to map the movements of the Right Thumbstick to the currently equipped weapon, but instead of a fluid mechanic the action feels poorly implemented with a series of flicks left, right, up or down yielding the desired movements. These attacking actions are often awkward and difficult to time with little help afforded by the cameras lock-on feature.

Smaller enemies can be dispatched with a hit from a melee weapon or gunshot but humanoid and larger enemies require the use of fire to finish them off. Fire is a key gameplay device in Alone in the Dark and can usually be found when required. All flammable items can be set alight and even an almost useless stick can become a super weapon once on fire. In fact, arguably the best weapon in the game is combining an aerosol can with a cigarette lighter to produce a makeshift flamethrower.

Combining inventory items to create useful amalgamations is an innovative new feature of this latest incarnation of Alone in the Dark. Some allowable combinations are realistic such as adding a handkerchief to a bottle of flammable liquid to make a Molotov Cocktail, whilst others are completely fantastical such as combining the same flammable liquid with your handgun to create flaming bullets!

This MacGyver like ingenuity and for that matter all inventory management, is presented in a neat looking 3D view of the inside of the main characters jacket. When you open the inventory your viewpoint looks down and your coat opens like a depraved flasher, revealing an array of pockets and clips to hold your items. Unfortunately, the action of selecting, equipping, dropping and combining inventory items is a cumbersome mix of button and directional presses. Couple this with the fact that the game does not pause when viewing your inventory and that you have to constantly drop items to make room for new ones and you end up with system that looks nice but is painful to use.

Alone in the Dark has a unique way of visually representing the health of your character as when Carnby is injured a wound will appear on his body. This wound can be treated with a health spray or if it is haemorrhaging, with bandages. Players must physically spray or bandage each wound to heal Carnby and in the case of a haemorrhaging wound, prevent him from bleeding to death. This system is a novel replacement for the standard health bar device, but coupled with the inventory system mentioned above it aggravates more than innovates.

Alone in the Dark is not a complete loss however as the game does have a few interesting features that work and occasionally shows hints of brilliance. The soundtrack for instance is outstanding. The mix of gothic chanting, thumping percussion and rousing horns suit the game perfectly and enhance the games atmosphere more than any other design aspect. Alone in the Dark easily has one of the best soundtracks every composed for a game which would be equally suitable for a big budget Hollywood film.

The visual design is also striking and original. The set pieces in particular stand out as one of the high points of the game and although linear for the most part, they do present the player with a visual feast. This design transcends pure cosmetics as the environmental puzzles are also more grounded in reality and physics than the cryptic brain teasers of the past. In most instances, if you look at the puzzles and your environment logically you will quickly work out the solution. This creates a far greater sense of achievement than combining random objects to solve puzzles as in adventure games of the past.

One of my favourite features of Alone in the Dark is the games episodic presentation. Each episode or chapter is bookended by a recap of past action and a teaser of events to come. This is great for catching up on your progress if you play the game intermittently or for encouraging you to play on for longer. Additionally, each chapter unfolds in a familiar mix of story development and character exposition, ending with an obligatory cliff hanger.

Not only is the game presented in this cool television show episodic style, but the player can actually skip to (or over) any section of each chapter (except during the final chapter). This is done with a DVD style system of buttons including 'play', 'fast forward' and 'skip' or through the chapter selection menu. This is a great feature to ensure that everyone who plays the game will have an opportunity to experience most of the content that the developers created. However, skipping does result in you loosing all of your consumable items, so be prepared to do some scavenging in the next section.

I am sceptical that this feature may have been added to offset the frequent occurrences of particularly frustrating game design. I personally found it quite disappointing when I had to resort to skipping driving sequences for example, because I found them too broken to complete as intended. That said, I am glad that I had the ability to skip them as my controller would be firmly lodged in my television had I not been able to do so. Regardless of developers intentions, it is a shame that this feature will be mainly used to skip over terrible game design than for any other reason.

Alone in the Dark is broken into eight chapters which would offer the average gamer at least 10 hours worth of gameplay in total. The game does have the ability to 'free roam' around Central Park in places and this and the games skip feature will either extend or shorten the games overall lifespan.