ETERNAL DARKNESS: SANITY'S REQUIEM

Genre: Action/adventure
Christian Rating: 2 of 5
   (offensive)
Gameplay: 5 of 5
   (excellent)
Violence: 2 of 5
   (heavy)
Adult Content: 4 of 5
   (barely present)

The game's plot spans thousands of years, from the time of the great Roman Empire to the Middle Ages all the way to modern day. Your mission in the game is to stop an evil force from dominating the Earth. This evil, known as the Ancients, has been in hiding for tens of thousands of years, waiting and watching for the right time for their return to power of Earth. For, you see, the Ancients were the dominant species long before we humans were and now they want their world back.

The games' most interesting and original feature is the sanity meter. Just like a health meter, this little do-hicky decreases any time you encounter an enemy, because, since they are so horrific and gruesome, your fragile human mind has trouble comprehending their existence. When your meter gets too low, strange things will happen. You will hear unnatural sounds eminating from something that isn't there and walk into rooms and find yourself standing on the ceiling! You will even see blood run from the walls, statues move, and your own character explode for no apparent reason (this can be a little gory). While the insanity effects aren't really scary, they are inventive and very fun to watch.

From a Christian standpoint, there is a lot to find offensive in this game. First off, the game has and tells of humanity's existence without telling of God or Satan, but rather by creating a race known as the Ancients which somewhat takes the place of Satan. Besides creating an alternate take on religion, the game is quite violent, with blood spewing all over after each sword thrust or gun blast. In the game's defense though, all the violence is toward the Ancients, an evil zombie looking race. So none of the violence is directed at fellow humans. Also, the game has many subtle occult references, which are strewn throughout the entire game. One corrupted monk even practices an evil religion in secret. The spell casting can also presents another offensive concept in the game, although none of the spells are really that bad. If you want to get picky, one female character wears some skimpy clothes, which don't cover much of her legs, but besides that, there is little in this game in the form of sexuality or adult content. Overall, the whole game has a very evil and foreboding tone to it, which might offend some Christians.

The most commendable element of the whole game is that, while it is laden with the occult, all of the characters you play as try to combat evil and are basically on the side of good. The extreme evil in the game only adds contrast to the great sacrifices and risks the good guys take. Little else is commendable in the game besides heightening your sense of sound and improving your reflexes.

Year of Release—2002

Review supplied by Christian Spotlight™ Guide2Games™, a ministry of Films for Christ®. Copyright © Films for Christ®. Spotlight's URL: http://ChristianSpotlight.com E-mail us • Mailing address: PO Box 200, Gilbert AZ 85299, USA • “Christian Spotlight’s Guide to Games” and “Guide2Games” are trademarks of Films for Christ®.