Heart of Darkness (video game)

Plot

Andy, a boy with nyctophobia, is scolded by his teacher for sleeping in class and told to watch a solar eclipse. He takes his dog Whisky to the park, where shadowy spectres kidnap the dog. Andy builds a homemade spaceship and flies to the Darkland, where it crashes. He traverses canyons, swamps, underwater caves, and lava rivers, fighting shadow creatures and dark monsters.

He befriends a peaceful alien race called Amigos and gains magic powers from a meteor, the magic rock, which can destroy shadows. His plasma cannon is destroyed early, forcing reliance on the rock. The main antagonist is the Master of Darkness, who resembles Andy's teacher and wants to capture Andy. A secondary antagonist, the Vicious Servant, is a pink creature serving the Master.

Andy reaches the Master's lair, frees Whisky, and allies with the Servant to overthrow the Master using the magic rock to destroy a black hole. The Servant betrays Andy, kicking Whisky into the black hole and ambushing Andy. Andy fights off shadows, destroys the black hole, but falls into it along with the Master as the lair collapses.

Development and release

Development began in 1992 with the PC as lead platform, but the game faced many delays and platform changes. It was first shown at the March 1995 European Computer Trade Show, where developers said it was near completion. Versions were announced for the 3DO, Amiga CD32, Atari Jaguar CD, and Panasonic M2, but none were released. In 1996, Sega signed a deal for a Saturn exclusive, with a planned October 1996 release, later pushed to late 1997.

Sega Saturn Magazine criticized the delays, noting the game risked being outdated. The Saturn became commercially unviable by the game's finish. Virgin Interactive dropped funding in December 1996, but the team continued for nine months without pay, demoing the game at the September 1997 ECTS, leading Interplay to adopt it. Éric Chahi later called it one of his most difficult projects due to the shift from solo work to a team and the industry's move to CD-ROM and 3D.

Reception

The PlayStation version received favorable reviews, while the PC version received above-average reviews on GameRankings. CNET Gamecenter, Computer Games Strategy Plus, and Game Informer gave mixed to favorable reviews before the US release. Next Generation found the PlayStation version visually impressive but criticized the gameplay as uninteresting. GamePro called it a clever, whimsical game like Out of This World. Jason D'Aprile noted its age but praised the animation, music, graphics, and atmosphere. The game was a finalist for Outstanding Achievement in Sound and Music at the AIAS Interactive Achievement Awards, losing to Road Rash 3D.