Man, where to begin. So, “The Darkest Files.” This game does something crazy, right? Like jumps headfirst into post-war Germany. And you? You’re this young prosecutor named Esther Katz, trying to nail Nazis in court. Heavy stuff, right? Definitely not your typical Sunday afternoon chill. But let’s not get distracted, because this game is a weird mix of absolute brilliance and frustrating bugs. Yeah, you read that right.
The storytelling? Oh, that’s where it shines—like, really shines. It grabs these real post-WWII investigations and doesn’t shy away from the messy truths. No puzzle-solving for fun here; you’re piecing together nightmares buried in red tape. Real stakes, man. And they were smart enough to use German voice actors in the English version. Keeps it real, y’know? It feels like they respect what they’re working with.
Visually, it’s got this graphic novel thing going. Cel-shaded look, noir comic vibes with muted blues and yellows that just work. Imagine pulling a look straight from a political cartoon. It’s got style without screaming “look at me!” Fits perfectly with the whole theme, if you ask me.
Game mechanics? Classic investigative drama cliché. Gather evidence, chat with survivors, draw lines between dots, and then—bam!—bring the bad guys to justice. So, no courtroom shouting matches like in those other games. Nah, this one’s more about connecting little details. It moves slower, but weirdly, that pace kinda fits.
Now about the length—or lack thereof. This game wraps up quicker than I finish a bag of chips. Just two full cases, and you’re done in six hours, tops. Leaves you hanging, wanting more. Really wish there’d be a DLC to dive deeper, y’know?
Oh, and let me tell you about the interface. So clunky. Like shifting through messy paperwork that won’t stay put. Buggy too, with pages hiding when they’re clearly supposed to be visible. Super annoying, actually. There’s a bookmark feature, which should help, but it feels more like a tangled mess because of those hidden pages.
Despite all the hiccups and the occasional “what the heck is happening” moments, this game just does something rare. It educates, entertains, and makes you squirm a bit with history. Asks you to think about justice in a way most games don’t even bother with. In my opinion, more games should try to do that.
So yeah, “The Darkest Files” is this intense historical courtroom thriller with killer storytelling, cool comic-book visuals, solid voice work. It’s got its flaws, like manual-transmission-level clunky UI and the short playtime with just two cases. But hey, it’s not like every game out there tries to do something real and meaningful. If deep narrative games are your jam, maybe give this one a shot.
