New Nightmare's portable campaign isn't particularly exciting, either. You might wonder why the developers even bothered including this weapon in the first place. However, even at close range, the shotgun dishes out negligible damage, and its shot rate is far below that of your pistol. Earlier in the campaign, the ghost of character named Fiske recommends using the shotgun to vanquish the forces of darkness, particularly Morton. Unfortunately, even when you manage to create a sizable gap, Morton still deals considerable damage. Then you realize that Carnby's movements are too sluggish, which prevents him from being able to put a fair distance between himself and his nemesis. With some rudimentary aiming and button mashing, those beasts fall with little effort.Ĭombat difficulty doesn't step up much until you fight Richard Morton. If you pause the game and squint your eyes just right, they kind of resemble dogs. Ammo litters the area and turd-like creatures creep out of dark corners of the battlefield.

Now and then, Carnby warns you to be careful as the game segues into an isometric shooter mode. Instead, they spawn during random encounters. Monsters no longer stalk the premises as they once did. The house's creepy vibe vanishes steadily with each chamber you access, as each location brings another mess of earthy tones and drab colors. You'll encounter hallways and rooms found in the console edition, here reduced to grainy pictures and lacking any sense of atmosphere or tension. Doors, decor and lavish touches like columns and libraries lie underneath piles of pixels. However, once you enter the mansion, the hideousness begins. For instance, the forest path you enter at the beginning of your quest appears spooky and is decently rendered. I will admit that at times, New Nightmare's visuals don't look horrible. Now, replace the polygonal character models in your mental image with splotches of pixels, reduce the color palette to 32,000-ish, and imagine the scene as if it were painted by a four-year-old. Meanwhile, Carnby plugs a few bullets into it.

The flesh-eating pooch charges down a dusty, pre-rendered hallway and leaps at our hero. Imagine Carnby shining his flashlight on a demonic dog.

Let those horrifying ramifications sink in for a minute. In 2001, developer Pocket Studios produced a pint-sized version Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare for Game Boy Color. I didn't think the Alone in the Dark franchise could get any worse than its third installment. No, this is not an image from a Something Awful Photoshop contest. 'Now you can take crushing disappointment anywhere you go!' Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (Game Boy Color) review

Nightmare in the dark artwork