Iran’s video game industry had a golden period that gave birth to original titles such as Garshasp. For some reasons, one of which the android revolution and the emergence of casual gaming, the peaks reached back then remained the highest the industry has ever recorded in Iran. Titles of that time were perfectly fit for universal publishing and had a reasonable support community inside the country. Even today, many refer to the whole picture of video games in Iran by remembering those IPs. It is high time we went to cover one of those ‘gold’ products to recall some good old memories. This is the review of The Dark Phantom.
The physical version of the game was distributed back in 2014 and the digital version was available right after lunch. You can download the game from Steam. The team responsible for The Dark Phantom were not just developers; they had the support of some gamers, journalists, and even officials. Before lunch, the game won some awards and honors around the globe; it enjoyed a dramatic entrance. It has also a lot of fans in Iran. The core team members were few and they made everything in Iran but the outcome was nothing short of a good AA game. The physical lock on the DVD made it impossible for many Iranian gamers to replay this masterpiece but a couple of months back the problem was solved. This is why we are reviewing an older title.
Octopus in Vinas
The storyline follows a professional detective in search of finding the head of a drug-dealing gang. After finding enough clues, he enters the monster’s den but it turns out to be a trap. Here the story breaks and the rest of the way the player is in control of another character (probably the detective himself) looking for his identity and revenge. The protagonist is after getting information from some big heads around the town while being chased by the police. The story is straight but may take more than one playthrough to be better understood. Also, there are gaps and issues of cohesion, especially when it comes to plot. But the characters are not familiar, one-sided, or the well-known clichés of detective/revenge tales; they are not easy to crack. The game’s atmosphere is dark and reminiscent of Arkham City, yet with a distinguished character. It seems there was supposed to be a continuation of a sort for the game, but it never came to be.
One interesting feature in the narrative of The Dark Phantom is the action-packed cutscenes with little dialogue along with the ones that only reveal the plot with comic-style paintings. Not many Persian-made video games are like this. The Dark Phantom communicates the gravity of the situation with its serious and dramatic cutscenes, some of which are even interactive. The dialogues are deep, dark, and real. Overall, we are dealing with an innovative case of narrative (keeping the development/publication conditions in mind).
Pure 3rd-Person Shooter
Back then and in the older generations, there was more purity in genres and during each period there were some very popular ones; there was a period for RPGs, arcades, strategies, FPSs, and now the online multiplayers of different and mixed genres. The Dark Phantom belongs to the age of purity; 3rd person shooter similar to the first installment in the Max Payne series. In other words, from zero to 100, it is you, guns, bullets, and shooting enemies. There is no changeable outfit or any form of upgrade. You can only use your slow-mo power which was a very common superpower to be had back then. Interestingly, the game has some bosses, each distinguished from others in every manner. All the 3rd person shooter mechanics are fine-tuned and correct which makes the gunplay enjoyable.
Two issues that we wish did not exist:
- A very limited number of guns with no big difference, so much that changing guns in lower difficulties is not necessary at all.
- The difficulty of the enemies is not consistent and sometimes the gap between the player’s ability and the enemies’ power goes out of hand. Add to that the old-school system of checkpoints and imagine the impression of a current-gen gamer.
One Thing That Really Stands Out
- Enemy AI is surprisingly good in The Dark Phantom. They move and make you move and change your cover or they show some random behaviors that you were not expecting.
Graphics
The Dark Phantom’s visuals are all standard and ok (compared to the AA titles of the time). The highest point goes to location and architecture and environment design; maps are vast and spacious, filled with big and small items with HD texture and fine modeling. Animation is fine and the movements are surprisingly (compared to other Persian video games) smooth and continuous. The third ace of the graphics is lighting. Although it is not very artistic or extraordinary, it is correct and exact and you cannot find shaky or unreliable shadows in the environment. The biggest flaw in this part is the cloth texture which for reasons unknown (probably related to animation and movements) is terrible.
Sound and Music
The sound and music in The Dark Phantom are still fresh and thrilling, even after 7 years. The background tracks are beautiful and related to scenes and faithful to the overall dark and deep air of the game. Menu and cutscenes have exclusive tracks that might remain in your ear for some time. Facing each boss or entering new areas kicks off a fresh soundtrack that would save the moment with a unique character. Added to that, the voice acting is flawless. During the golden period of Iranian video games, the voice actings were top-notch; different actors for different characters.
The Dark Phantom is a good video game that fits the standards and is worthy of keeping a high place over many Persian PC titles. It would have been a dream come true if someone would do a remake of this masterpiece. Bazinegar recommends The Dark Phantom to every gamer around the globe, especially Iranians.
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