We (ok, I) frequently bitch and moan about the lack of attention paid to story and characterization in games. So often, it’s the graphics that get all the love, and the potentially most important element of an interactive experience–the story–gets short shrift. We all have suffered those titles where mediocre voice “talent” destroys the game; even professional actors often sleepwalk their way through the gig. So, let’s celebrate The Darkness, which hits all the right notes when it comes to characters (interesting, multi-dimensional), story (mature, disturbing, effectively plotted), and voice acting (nuanced, believable, committed). We like to talk about games as “interactive movies” and usually that means there are a lot of cut scenes and precious little action, but here I think the description is accurate and for all the right reasons. Sure, the graphic novel provides strong source material, but good source material does not a good game guarantee. So, huge props to Starbreeze (the studio from which came Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, another strongly-voiced game) and if you care about character, story, and acting, I highly recommend The Darkness. (Technical issues: there have been lots of complaints about (and I myself experienced) lockups and disc errors in this game. One poster suggested playing the game on the hard setting, and this actually seemed to help. Also, the technical issues are mostly in the first few sections–I think–but not having finished it yet I may retract that later on. Hopefully there will be a patch. It’s a smudge on an otherwise exceptional experience.)