It’s hard not to be reminded of previous Summer of Arcade stars Limbo and Shadow Complex when you fire up Deadlight. Like its Xbox Live Arcade forebears, it’s a side-scrolling puzzle platformer, it emphasizes exploration, and it boasts breathtaking art direction. But is Deadlight as good as the Out of This Worlds and Flashbacks from which it clearly takes its inspiration? No, but it’s still one of the finest XBLA titles of the year. Deadlight is set in 1986 – a time when the absence of modern communication devices amplifies the sense of despair and isolation. Seattle-area resident Randall Wayne is a mess. His wife and young daughter are missing, he’s having painful flashbacks to when he lost his family, and, oh yeah – the city, country, and presumably world have been overrun by zombies.
“Zombies for the 7,369th time?” you ask with rolling eyes? Yes and no. Deadlight is no Left 4 Dead-style action game. It’s true that you do sometimes wield an axe or a gun and must, on occasion, liberate an infected person’s head from their undead body, but Randall progresses by running, jumping, rolling, and generally trying to avoid the red-eyed menace that hungers for the flesh of you and your missing family. You feel anything but empowered as everyman-Randall; it’s possible to mash the B button and shove off one zombie who gets a hold of you, but you can kiss your life goodbye if two or more get within grabbing distance. This ups the tension, often making you think quickly to figure out the ideal escape route from the area you’re in. Occasionally – and thrillingly – the noose that’s perpetually loose around your neck gets pulled a little tighter during the handful of straight-up run-for-your-life scenes as Randall’s chased by an overwhelming undead horde or a machinegun-firing helicopter.
Finding out why non-infected humans are shooting at you is one of Deadlight's fun mysteries. It’s the search for your wife and daughter that drives the surprisingly engaging narrative forward, and it takes you from the outskirts of the city, through an unexpected trip into the sewers, and into downtown to an alleged survivor safe haven. Naturally, things aren't what they seem, and the story’s numerous mini-twists – all told in graphic novel-esque stills narrated by Randall – paint a bleak picture about the state of humanity. The final, giant-sized plot twist was a shocker, and I appreciated the game all the more for successfully surprising me.
“Zombies for the 7,369th time?” you ask with rolling eyes? Yes and no. Deadlight is no Left 4 Dead-style action game. It’s true that you do sometimes wield an axe or a gun and must, on occasion, liberate an infected person’s head from their undead body, but Randall progresses by running, jumping, rolling, and generally trying to avoid the red-eyed menace that hungers for the flesh of you and your missing family. You feel anything but empowered as everyman-Randall; it’s possible to mash the B button and shove off one zombie who gets a hold of you, but you can kiss your life goodbye if two or more get within grabbing distance. This ups the tension, often making you think quickly to figure out the ideal escape route from the area you’re in. Occasionally – and thrillingly – the noose that’s perpetually loose around your neck gets pulled a little tighter during the handful of straight-up run-for-your-life scenes as Randall’s chased by an overwhelming undead horde or a machinegun-firing helicopter.
Finding out why non-infected humans are shooting at you is one of Deadlight's fun mysteries. It’s the search for your wife and daughter that drives the surprisingly engaging narrative forward, and it takes you from the outskirts of the city, through an unexpected trip into the sewers, and into downtown to an alleged survivor safe haven. Naturally, things aren't what they seem, and the story’s numerous mini-twists – all told in graphic novel-esque stills narrated by Randall – paint a bleak picture about the state of humanity. The final, giant-sized plot twist was a shocker, and I appreciated the game all the more for successfully surprising me.
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