"Dark," "gory" and "brutal" aren't the typical words that attract me to a game. I'd heard that The Darkness was all of those wonderful adjectives and more, which initially drove me away. Then a friend lent me the graphic novel that became the basis for the game, and I soon found a reason to explore the depths of The Darkness.

The demo for The Darkness is incredibly well-rounded and complete, giving an excellent view of the game in chapters one, three, and seven. The stats have been adjusted specifically for the demo, allowing a smooth experience despite the gaps. Each level had a very different feel. The game has a strong sense of narrative despite the limited dialogue; most of the story was told through the protagonist's actions.

I wasn't terribly impressed with the first level. It felt more like an amusement park ride than a game. My options were very limited; I only could rotate the camera. When I finally got a gun, I couldn't wait to fire it, but I had to sit and wait while my character loaded the gun at the pace of a sloth. Supposedly I wasn't allowed to fire until the guy in front of me was brutally killed, and I could take his place in the front seat. I finally did get to shoot a bit, but then the demo portion of chapter one ended. While being in a car chase is exciting, I would've enjoyed it more if I were able to take part in the gunfight earlier. Part of my annoyance with control of only the camera came from the fact that the animations were stiff and the character models were just so-so. After reading a comic with the fantastic art style of Top Cow, I had hoped for characters that looked more sophisticated. Instead, these mobsters appeared to be precariously perched on the edge of the uncanny valley.

Chapter three was frustrating in the beginning, and I died a few times trying to get out of the cemetery. It seemed as if the voices of the mobsters weren't coming from any particular direction, so I couldn't tell where my enemies were until I was shot by them. I had some trouble getting used to the shooting mechanics and trying to identify men in black suits against a very dark background. While I could crouch behind cover, it appeared as if I couldn't shoot while hidden and thus I had to expose myself to harm. After a few tries, however, I managed to run into a tunnel and take the men down one by one by shooting at them through a small window. Following that small victory, I gained the darkness power and the game became much, much easier.

As soon as I got the darkness, I began to enjoy the game. I could wear the demons like a suit of armor. I could summon a minion berserker and command him to kill those ahead of me. All I had to do was shoot out streetlights; the darkness only thrives in the absence of light. Perhaps one of the coolest abilities was the "creeping" darkness. One of the demons would creep away like a snake, suddenly making unreachable areas accessible. I used this mode to crawl through a vent, take out a fan, then slither through the opening to brutally murder a man for a key. If there's one thing the darkness ability does well, it's giving the player the power of a real badass.

By the time I played the demo portion of chapter seven, I was much more familiar with the game, my powers, and the controls. Fortunately, the designers had the foresight to balance chapter seven by adding the extra abilities that would be available at that point in the game. These included a new darkness ability (that allowed an darkness "arm" to lift and smash things) as well as two new types of minions (the gunner and kamikaze darklings). Although I would sometimes panic about a lack of ammo, the help from my summoned darklings soon proved to be more than a match for the various henchmen.

My main complaint regarding chapter seven would have to be the level design. There was a gate I wasn't sure how to pass in the beginning, yet there were many locked doors scattered around. Once inside the warehouse area, the actual layout was rather mazelike, and I found myself constantly retracing my steps, accidentally exiting, and getting rather confused in general. My objective was behind a door that I got open somehow, but only after much button-mashing and frustration. I'm still not sure how I finally got through that door.

Overall, I was quite impressed with the faithfulness of the adaptation of The Darkness graphic novel to the gameplay experience. The game chose a strong storyline to follow and did a fantastic job of allowing the player to explore the depths of the protagonist's very dark powers. The brutality of the game didn't bother me, but that was likely due to my exposure to such images in the comics already as well as my high tolerance for blood and guts. I'm not sure if those unfamiliar with the series would enjoy The Darkness as much as I did, but it's certainly worth playing the demo — if you're not afraid of the dark.