Operation Darkness Review X360

Sometimes, a game concept seems to be both too crazy to work, yet too awesome not to work. Operation Darkness is one of those games. It is a strategy RPG set in an alternate World War II where Hitler has armies of vampires, zombies, and worse at his command along with his normal troops and weapons. The gameplay and presentation don’t quite match up to the lofty ambitions of the setting, but Operation Darkness is a solid SRPG that fans of the genre will enjoy.Quick Hits Title: Operation Darkness Platform: Xbox 360 Publisher: Atlus Developer: Success ESRB Rating: “M” For Mature Genre: Strategy RPG Pros: Zombies, vampires, werewolves, oh my!; solid gameplay Cons: Outdated graphics; bad camera; buying items one at a time

In Operation Darkness, you control a British SAS team during World War II. As you progress through the game, you learn that not only is Hitler using the undead, but your teammates also have unexpected powers as well, such as the ability to revive the dead, turn into a werewolf, and more. It is a pretty wild concept that is undeniably successful here. The single-player game spans around 40 hours or so, and it is wonderfully addictive once you learn the intricacies of combat and start getting attached to the characters. There is also an Xbox Live mode where you and three friends can build a custom team and play co-op missions.

Gameplay

The ultimate success of Operation Darkness comes from the deep and addictive gameplay. It is a strategy RPG, which means you move around the battlefield on a grid and how far you can move varies between characters due to a number of factors. Unlike other SRPGs where one entire team moves and then the other team moves, in OD the action order is determined by each character’s speed (similar to Final Fantasy X, for example), so some characters will get a lot more turns than others.

Those issues aside, however, Operation Darkness is a very fun and satisfying SRPG. It offers surprisingly deep combat as well as some nice strategy in terms of what weapons you outfit your characters with and then how you deploy them on the battlefield. It will likely prove overwhelming if it is your first SRPG, but fans of the genre will love it and should appreciate the little tweaks and changes that set OD apart from other games in the genre.

Graphics and Sound

One area where Operation Darkness falls pretty short is the graphics. This is not a pretty game by any means. Outside of battle you are just navigating menus. But out on the battlefield, the game is pretty bland looking with dull looking environments and only so-so looking characters. This is probably the ugliest looking game on the 360, I’m sad to say.

The sound is pretty average. The voice actors did a fairly good job with the script they were given. The music is okay. The sound effects are okay. This game isn't going to blow you away with its presentation.

View the original article here