Into The Darkness Hands-On: Promising Physics Action With A Long Way To Go

Into The Darkness is the latest story-driven, physics-based game to come to PC VR, entering Early Access on Steam last week.

After generating some considerable hype following the successful playtests some months ago, comparisons to giants like Boneworks have been inevitable. As such, Into The Darkness lands under the weight of high expectations. However, it’s worth stating clearly up front: this is an Early Access title, and it very much plays like one, so you should approach it with that in mind. For all the potential that the game possesses, it also has equal parts jank thrown in for good measure.

Set in a not-too-distant future, Into The Darkness casts players as an agent working for a corporate entity, sent to infiltrate a snowbound facility and extract critical data. Upon arrival, you quickly discover that the base's robotic service droids have gone rogue and the mission becomes a tense, combat-driven mystery. This narrative setup does an adequate job of establishing an uneasy atmosphere and foreboding that loom over the player throughout the early stages of the game.

At launch, Into The Darkness has three levels, with the published roadmap stating that the full release will include six. Based on my experience, the levels take anywhere from 40 to 60 minutes, depending on how successful you are at your mission. That said, thanks to some issues with a particularly annoying boss, my playtime in the first level was considerably longer.

The early access release also offers a Sandbox mode where you can have fun experimenting with custom combat scenarios. Although this is fairly rudimentary in its current state, the developers mention planned improvements to this mode, as well as the addition of an “arcade mode,” in its list of upcoming features.

Into The Darkness is definitely a physics-forward game, and as such the physics engine shows flashes of brilliance (leaving trails through the deep snow is a nice touch) but it also exposes the limits of the game’s interactivity. Half the fun of most physics-lead games is messing about with the items and environment, but Into The Darkness is surprisingly shallow in this regard.

For the most part, objects you’d expect to pick up are simply static props which, for a game that leans so heavily into its physics system, is somewhat of a letdown. Worse, these limitations don’t seem to come with performance gains. Despite running on capable hardware, I had to drop the graphical settings to low to maintain a stable frame rate.

The combat is where the physics system shines and the early encounters will see players punching, stabbing and shooting through a small array of mechanical meanies.  Enemies can even be torn apart in a way that makes one think someone on the team asked, “What if Robo Recall, but also Boneworks?”

It’s quite satisfying when it works, thanks in no small part to the excellent sound design that contributes as much to the combat’s satisfying weight as the physics system. However, fluidity isn’t always there when engaging in melee, as enemies have a tendency to clump together in a way that feels like prototype AI behavior that’s somehow stayed in the game.

Gunplay is fairly solid, again thanks to chunky audio design that makes each shot feel impactful, particularly headshots which have a delightfully pleasing clonk. That said, aiming can sometimes feel inconsistent and holstering weapons is so diabolically unreliable that any sense of fluid action hero flow is drowned out in the staccato of enforced deliberacy.

Unfortunately, Into The Darkness in its current state is weighed down by a raft of technical problems. In the four hours I spent with the game, the first 90 minutes were sacrificed to a cursed run that was so bugged that I decided to abort and start fresh.

Despite my second attempt being a considerably more solid experience, both saves saw their fair share of glitches. From broken rope physics that turned a simple hand over hand climb into a nightmarish Bucking Bronco, to puzzles that loaded in missing key items, Into The Darkness wears its Early Access status on its sleeve.

There were also broken mantling mechanics that stopped me from progressing after a climb, moments where I clipped through the environment and plummeted to my death, not to mention corrupted saves that saw me restart without my weapons.

Presently, there's a solid foundation and a clear vision with a promising roadmap outlining upcoming features, levels, and much-needed fixes. If development follows this path, Into The Darkness may one day take its place among the pantheon of fantastic physics-first games. However, it is currently very tough to recommend. VR enthusiasts who like supporting promising projects or enjoy watching a game evolve in real-time might find enjoyment here. But for most players seeking a finished product, it’s worth waiting a little while longer.

Into The Darkness is out now on Steam Early Access.