Dark Train Demo

Sometimes puzzles game provide you with too many instructions, which ruins the whole challenge and makes you feel like the riddles are not worth the bother. On the other hand, it’s also not a good idea to be kept in the dark at all times, because frustration can cause you to quit playing as well. The whole thing is a delicate balancing act, so it’s no wonder very few puzzle games get it right.

Dark Train is an atmospheric puzzle game that challenges you to figure out all sorts of gameplay mechanics on your own, with no guidance at all. It’s a bit difficult to keep players engaged this way, but then again the mystery might just be enough to stay interested until the end. However, the lack of a tutorial or instructions is a pretty serious issue if you are a newcomer to the genre.

The story is fairly interesting as well, even if you have to read the official description in order to get it. Hence, it all revolves around a weird train that must be moved across town, which is no easy task. To make things even more difficult, some kind of mechanical monster with tentacles in charge of transportation, which makes even the simplest tasks a lot more difficult.

Each scene in the game features different gameplay mechanics, and there’s no way to understand them unless you use the trial and error approach. It can be a bit annoying sometimes, depending on your eagerness to learn new things, but then again that’s the beauty of a puzzle game. The atmosphere is a lot more exciting when you are not offered everything on a plate.

Speaking of which, the atmosphere is quite dark and haunting, mainly thanks to the graphics and the neat soundtrack playing in the background. The black landscapes look a lot like in a noir movie, so there’s no denying that you’ll feel a bit gloomy along the way. The controls are fairly weird throughout the game, but at least they are responsive and accurate.

In the end, Dark Train is not the most approachable puzzle game out there, but it’s certainly a challenging one, not to mention memorable if you stick with it. Hence, it’s worth the bother if you want to play something different for a change.