The Church in the Darkness is an action-adventure video game. It was originally announced in 2016 to ship in early 2017,[2] and was released in 2019 for Microsoft Windows,[2] macOS,[1] PlayStation 4,[3] and Xbox One.[2] It was designed by Richard Rouse III under the name Paranoid Productions.
| The Church in the Darkness | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Paranoid Productions |
| Publisher(s) | Fellow Traveller |
| Director(s) | Richard Rouse III |
| Designer(s) | Richard Rouse III |
| Programmer(s) | Richard Rouse III Carl Chavez Young Ben Young |
| Writer(s) | Richard Rouse III |
| Composer(s) | Ellen McLain John Patrick Lowrie |
| Engine | Unity |
| Platform(s) | macOS Microsoft Windows Nintendo Switch PlayStation 4 Xbox One |
| Release | August 2, 2019 |
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure, stealth[1] |
| Mode(s) | Single-player[1] |
Gameplay
editThe Church in the Darkness is an "action-infiltration" game[4] set inside a religious cult in the 1970s.[3] The game revolves around an ex-law enforcement officer named Vic who attempts to get inside an isolated religious colony called "Freedom Town" to check in on his sister's son, Alex.[4][3] The leaders, Isaac and Rebecca Walker of the "Collective Justice Mission", preach socialism and sustainable agricultural living in a Christian society. They are voiced by the couple, John Patrick Lowrie and Ellen McLain.[5][6] The story unfolds through Isaac and Rebecca's regular updates on the camp's public address system.[5]
Some elements of the game are procedurally generated, with each start changing people's allegiances, beliefs, and camp layout.[6]
Development
editThe game's premise arises from Rouse's lifelong fascination with cults. Rouse has been a fan of "open-narrative" games since the mid-'80s and he was "stunned" to see the many popular games of 2016 with fixed narratives.[7] The game has been said to have "very obvious echoes of Jonestown".[4] Rouse was particularly intrigued by the Source family, a spiritual commune in the late 1960s which was situated in the Hollywood Hills.[5]
Reception
edit| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | NS: 69/100[8] PC: 65/100[9] PS4: 58/100[10] XONE: 58/100[11] |
The game received "mixed or average" reception at Metacritic.[8][9][10][11]
Robin Burks wrote for Screen Rant, "the big ideas don't live up to the hype with a game that's so small and gives the player very little to do."[12]
References
edit- ^ a b c Store, Steam. "The Church in the Darkness on Steam". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ a b c O'Connor, James (28 February 2016). "The Church in the Darkness will let you infiltrate a cult next year". VG247. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ a b c Rouse III, Richard (26 February 2016). "The Church in the Darkness Coming to PS4". PlayStation.Blog. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ a b c Chalk, Andy (26 February 2016). "Infiltrate a 1970s religious cult in The Church in the Darkness". PC Gamer. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ a b c Conditt, Jessica. "Uncovering the glory and gore of a 1970s South American cult". Engadget. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
- ^ a b O'Connor, Alice (26 February 2016). "Procedural Cult Infiltration: The Church In The Darkness". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ Tach, Dave (15 March 2016). "The Church in the Darkness is about God and guns and socialism, but mostly it's about you". Polygon. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
- ^ a b "The Church in the Darkness for Switch Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
- ^ a b "The Church in the Darkness for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
- ^ a b "The Church in the Darkness for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
- ^ a b "The Church in the Darkness for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
- ^ Burks, Robin (August 5, 2019). "The Church in the Darkness Review: Infiltrating A Cult Isn't Fun". Screen Rant.