Dark and Darker is a game about escaping dungeons. And there is a problem with that – or there should be. Dungeons are so common in fantasy games that it’s hard to pay too much attention to them. We’ve all seen them before, we know what they do. But when was the last time we really re-examined what it would be like to be in one? Dark and Darker does this, and it does it brilliantly well.
Technically it’s a PvPvE extraction game, which means you go into a dungeon with and against other people and monsters and have to find a way out. When you die, you leave with nothing but the experience points you’ve earned. If you take too long, you’ll be rushed and eventually killed by an earthquake or a deadly snowstorm. The point is busy. You know, even before you start, you’ll never be safe. You will have to move, but where?
It is dark. So dark that you can’t even see the coffins next to you unless you light a torch. You also won’t see any platforms or the missing parts of platforms. When you’re close, you don’t see traps on the floor or the piles of bones that form skeletons. In terms of setting, Dark and Darker lives up to its name. Light in the game is therefore valuable. But torches also mark you to everyone nearby, and they occupy the sword arm you hold them with. They pose a risk.
And so quiet. There is no atmospheric music to fill the experience; it’s just you and the sounds around you. And because you can’t see very far or very clearly, what you hear has more meaning. It tells you what is happening around you and what dangers you may face. Do you hear the flapping of wings or the muttering of a goblin? Can you hear the bony creak of a skeleton? You can audibly build up an image of what is nearby. Even silence speaks volumes, for perhaps there is a hidden enemy nearby. And if you hear footsteps on the other side of a door and the thump! of a weapon or the flumpf! of a spell: it could be what you feared all along: another player. Sound is important.
Dark and Darker makes you painfully aware of the sounds you are also make. I don’t think I’ve played an RPG before where my own footsteps seemed so unbearably loud. I don’t think I’ve played an RPG where I winced at the sound of a broken vase or crate. Never before have I paid so much attention to the sounds I make. This in turn leads to a natural kind of stealth. Not stealth in the sense of a coded mechanic, where you turn and sneak around translucently. Stealth in the sense of staying in the shadows and crouching to muffle footsteps. Stealth in the sense that armor choices are important because heavier armor makes more noise. Monsters may not notice, but other players will. The threat of it is always there.
Underlying and reinforcing these systems is the game’s inherent sense of difficulty. Those creaking skeletons and muttering goblins are just as capable of killing you as they are other players. They are not food like they often are in other games. Especially to start with, monsters will be a bigger hurdle than other players, so you’ll want to know where they are. But this is a game of careful exploration and seeking every advantage you can gain. Rushing forward almost always ends in death.
I’ve sworn by Dark and Darker a lot, but it reminds me of a Souls game in the way it values perseverance. At first it feels very unfair, but every time you bump into it there are small moments of progress. You die, but now you know how a certain enemy attacks. You die, but now you know how to cast spells – with so little information you start (the tutorial is in development; it’s an Early Access release). Little by little you build understanding. It’s satisfying, it’s a sign of pride, and it prepares you for what will inevitably come next: playing with other people.
There’s a feature in the game where you can ask for help from a ‘knight’, and pressing it will redirect you to the Dark and Darker Discord. There your request will be registered with experienced community members who have taken on the role of ‘knight’ in the game – knight of the community, basically. They group with you and teach you how to play. There is a queue, so I didn’t experience it myself, but I did form a group with someone who had and who shared his knowledge from it. It helped a lot. This developer-encouraged attitude seems to have spread to the wider community as well, as as soon as I shared my frustrations about my lack of progress, people were immediately in the chat cheering me on. It’s as if an example has been set that everyone wants to follow. It’s fun.
Since there is no in-game matchmaking or multiplayer lobby, Discord fulfills this function as well. You have to ask for a group – it’s not automatic – but in my experience it’s quick and easy to find one. People seem willing to experience the game together; there is a sense of support in the air. Maybe it’s there because it’s needed and missing from the game itself. Don’t know. What I do know is that Dark and Darker, played together, transform. I struggled alone. I was making progress with someone else. I had my first breathless dungeon escape. I was introduced to fighting other players on purpose and winning for the first time. I felt the magic of Dark and Darker, and I liked it. There is nothing else like this.