One of the biggest strengths of The Darkside Detective was its outstanding soundtrack, and while the sequel certainly retains the same synth-heavy style of tunes, they’re nowhere near as memorable as those found in the first game.
Unfortunately of course, not everything works as well as the first game. Furthermore, the locations used in each case are tremendously well realised, and although the graphics are technically rather rudimentary, each and every location feels unique, and the game does a great job of making Twin Lakes feel like a very real - albeit very strange - place. How funny or entertaining you find the narrative and dialogue is obviously entirely subjective, but there’s no denying that the developers have poured their hearts into making each and every character feel like a part of the world. Where the original relied heavily on pop culture references, its sequel reins this in somewhat, focusing more on unique characters and situations. The biggest improvement comes with the writing. You’re consistently introduced to new characters and areas throughout each case, with each being just as interesting as the last. Occasionally, it does feel like some of the tasks Detective McQueen needs to complete have been included purely for the sake of artificially lengthening the narrative, but for the most part it flows reasonably well.
#The darkside detective a fumble in the dark review tv#
The first case - Missing, Presumed Darkside - takes place across several different locations throughout the city of Twin Lakes, including an auction house, a TV studio, a junk yard, and an apartment. The six cases within The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark feel much grander than those found in the first game. Thankfully, if you do ever want to speed up the cursor’s speed you can move the left and right analogue sticks together in unison. Selecting objects and moving between scenes is done via an in-game cursor, which feels slightly slower and smoother than the twitchy cursor found in the first game. Items you’ve collected can be used elsewhere to solve puzzles, and you’ll often need to combine different objects to make entirely new ones. The gameplay itself feels relatively unchanged from the first entry: in classic point-and-click style you move between static scenes, selecting various objects of interest and chatting with the locals inhabiting each area. The narrative tone of the game still feels very much like ‘Twin Peaks’ meets ‘Ghostbusters’, but the world feels far more fleshed out in comparison to the first game, with lengthier cases and a much larger cast of characters. In the first of six new cases, Detective McQueen is on a mission to locate his loyal, dim-witted partner, Officer Dooley, who has been missing and is presumed to be in the ‘Darkside’, a supernatural realm filled with ghosts and mysterious creatures. Taking place right after the first game ends, The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark sees the return of protagonist Detective Francis McQueen. Its sequel, The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark is certainly a bigger game in terms of scope and overall length, and with small quality-of-life changes and less reliance on referential narrative, we’d also say it’s better. Released back in 2017, The Darkside Detective was a surprise hit, boasting gorgeous pixelated visuals, a stellar soundtrack, and - if you’re of a certain age - hilarious pop culture references. Okay, if we’re being picky, they don’t necessarily need to be bigger, as such, but certainly better.
Sequels generally need to accomplish two things: they need to be bigger and better than their predecessors. Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
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