History VideoGame / DarkestOfDays

[[http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177919 A film adaptation was announced in early 2010]], but [[{{Vaporware}} nothing has been heard of it since.]]

The game was developed by Phantom EFX and released for [[UsefulNotes/IBMPersonalComputer PC]] on September 7th, 2009, with an UsefulNotes/Xbox360 port following three days later. Back then, it was most notable for its Marmoset engine, which (supposedly) allowed it to render hundreds of independent AI on screen fighting at one time.

* TheFaceless: Mother, the leader of [=KronoTek=], is only ever seen as a pair of vaguely creepy eyes on a giant viewscreen. Apparently, she thinks webcams are designed to be used about three inches from one's face. That, or the studio didn't want to lip-sync. Although the real reason is mostly likely to obscure TheReveal [[spoiler: regarding the ethnic makeup of the citizens of the future]].

* GreatEscape: [[spoiler: Breaking out of the concentration camp. Rather than digging out a tunnel, using any sort of ruse or staging a mass revolt, it involves a truly epic confrontation with guards once you have a chance to seize one of the guns]].

* HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct: You never see Hitler, though you do [[spoiler: lead a concentration camp breakout.]] It's stated multiple times that no-one should change history because things might change for the worse, no matter the intention. [[spoiler: Although the ending does call this into question, without providing an entirely clear answer, by revealing how truly shitty history really is.]]

* HumansAreWhite: The few Kronotek personnel you interact with are mostly white; however, they're recruits from the "past" like you who are displaced in time. [[spoiler: You have noticeably very little interaction with any Kronotek personnel from the "present", most likely to conceal the fact that in the future the White[=/=]European race has essentially gone the way of the Native Americans]].

* InvincibleMinorMinion: The enemy time-traveler Opposition Agents have futuristic armor and energy shields that are nearly invincible to your Civil War and WWI-period peashooters, so your only option is to run like hell. Later in the game you learn their shield frequency and are able to damage them easier (before then they're given four times as much health), but they're still extremely difficult to fight when all you're carrying is a musket-loading rifle.

* ShootTheShaggyDog: [[spoiler: After you rescue Dr. Koell at the end of the game he takes two bullets to the face from Strinko, the leader of the Opposition, and apparently your new boss.]]

* WhileRomeBurns: [[spoiler: When you find Dr. Koell, he's busy making a painting of Vesuvius' eruption and Pompeii burning. It makes it extremely hard to sympathise with him or his philosophy of leaving the history to itself]].

* ArmyOfTheAges: [=KronoteK=] primarily seems to recruit from people in wars or other events who would have died without their intervention; the player character is a US cavalryman who fought and would have died in the Battle of the Little Bighorn, and it's implied (though never outright stated) that Dexter was a firefighter who was responding to the September 11th attacks.

[[http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177919 A film adaptation was announced]], but [[{{Vaporware}} nothing has been heard of it since.]]

* ArmyOfTheAges: For starters, the player is a US cavalryman who fought (and, without [=KronoteK=]'s intervention, would have died) in the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

* CowboyCop: Your partner Dexter's approach to [=KronoTek=] missions. He has no qualms about taking risky, potentially history-altering actions to achieve your objectives, and is rather carefree about handing you 22nd Century super weapons to help you out of particularly sticky 19th and 20th century firefights. In one mission he even has you save and then immediately execute a "blue-aura" soldier (historically important individuals who you're supposed to spend the game saving) in order to attract the attention of Opposition Agents so you can capture one.

* GrayAndGreyMorality: There is constant debate about whether it should be acceptable to use time travel to alter history for the better, or if history should rather be preserved to prevent unforseen, potentially disasterous alterations to the timeline. The twist at the end of the game is that the historic event you spend the entire game preserving is [[spoiler: the global extermination of 99% of the White/European race (including Dexter's family) by a racial-selection virus engineered by Middle Eastern terrorists, and the resulting collapse of Western civilization, occuring some years after the September 11 World Trade Center attacks. The Opposition, whom you've spent the entire game battling, actually want to change history to prevent this global disaster, and the game ends with you and Dexter seemingly joining them to "[[SequelHook finish the fight]]".]]

* InvisibleWall: EVERYWHERE. It seems that the only way to actually get where you're going is to follow what your map considers a road.

* KickTheDog: You can see the Opposition massacring civilians during the endgame battle in Pompeii. Granted, they were all going to die anyway when the volcano explodes, but still...
* MadeOfExplodium: The [[UsefulNotes/{{Airships}} recon zeppellin]] you steal from Imperial German Army. Justified, since it's indeed full of hydrogen.

* OnlyAFleshWound: You're supposed to avoid killing "blue aura" soldiers, because historically they survived the battle and had significant descendants. Unfortunately, many of these guys are on the other side and will be happily shooting at you. One method of disabling them without killing them is to shoot them in the leg or arm. Granted, this is your least reliable option; the more reliable option are clusters of walnut-like stun grenades that you're given specifically to stun these guys. It gets ridiculous when you realize that melee attacks don't count as killing blue-aura soldiers, regardless of how your current weapon handles melee attacks, meaning you can ''stab them right in the face with a bayonet'' without altering history.
* PlayingBothSides: To keep things as close as possible to the historical outcome, Morris ends up supporting both sides of each battle he participates in, as his intrusion tend to lead to ahistorical tactical advantages of the side he's currently fighting for.

* RevolversAreJustBetter: Revolver is going to be your primary weapon in [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar the Civil War]] sections, as it's the only rapid firing gun with widely accessible ammunition and having [[HandCannon enough stopping power]] to be useful even without damage upgrades.

** This is subverted in the end of the game: [[spoiler:it is revealed that said individuals' descendants were responsible for developing technology that fell in the wrong hands and was used to create a bio-weapon that devastated the world's population. The Opposition is actually a future incarnation of [=KronoTek=] that decided to forgo their rule against changing history to prevent the disaster.]]

* WhileRomeBurns: [[spoiler: When you find Dr. Koell, he's busy making a painting of Vesuvius eruption and Pompeii burning. It makes it extremely hard to sympathise with him or his philosophy of leaving the history to itself]].

* TheWarOnTerror: [[spoiler:The racial-selection virus that wiped out the Caucasian race in the lead-up to the game's present was engineered by Middle Eastern terrorists some time after 9/11.]] Also, before he was recruited into [=KronoteK=], Dexter was apparently a firefighter who was [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything working in a damaged building that was starting to collapse over him]]; some fans naturally assume he was responding to the September 11th attacks.

In ''Darkest of Days'' (PC and Xbox 360, 2009), Alexander Morris is rescued from Custer's Last Stand by a [[TimeTravel time traveller]] and taken 300 years into the future by the time research/police organization [=KronoTek=]. The player, as Morris, must go back in time for various SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld scenarios. Time periods include AncientRome, UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Usually the player uses period weaponry, but occasionally gets a futuristic {{BFG}}.

The game is most notable for the Marmoset engine, which (supposedly) lets it render hundreds of independent AI on screen fighting at one time.

----

* WhileRomeBurns: [[spoiler: When you find Dr. Koell, he's busy making a painting of Vesuvius eruption and Pompeii burning. It's makes extremely hard to sympatise with him or his philosophy of leaving the history to itself]].

* GoodBadTranslation: If you can speak either fluent Russian or German, listening to the soldiers in battle can be quite fun.
** It doesn't require any knowledge of Russian to almost die laughing when Tzar-era soldiers shouts "Za Stalina!" during attacks, which means "For Stalin!"

* HumansAreWhite: The few Kronotek personnel you interact with are mostly white; however, they're recruits from the "past" like you who are displaced in time. You have noticeably very little interaction with any Kronotek personnel from the "present", most likely to conceal the fact that [[spoiler: in the future the White[=/=]European race has essentially gone the way of the Native Americans]].

* InstantDeathBullet: Averted, with lots of horrific imagery.

* ShootTheShaggyDog: After you rescue Dr. Koell at the end of the game [[spoiler: he takes two bullets to the face from Strinko, the leader of the Opposition, and apparently your new boss.]]

* TitleDrop: At the end of the game, Dr. Koell makes a final plea against using time-travel to alter history, stating that "Who am I, or anyone else, to play God? I'm all for helping those that suffer, but Dark Days teach valuable lessons. The events of the past define our present selves, and to meddle around is to court disaster". [[spoiler:He then takes two bullets to the face from Strinko, your apparent new boss, who disagrees.]]

In ''Darkest of Days'' (PC and XBox 360, 2009), Alexander Morris is rescued from Custer's Last Stand by a [[TimeTravel time traveller]] and taken 300 years into the future by the time research/police organization [=KronoTek=]. The player, as Morris, must go back in time for various SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld scenarios. Time periods include AncientRome, UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Usually the player uses period weaponry, but occasionally gets a futuristic {{BFG}}.

* GrayAndGreyMorality: There is constant debate about whether it should be acceptable to use time travel to alter history for the better, or if history should rather be preserved to prevent unforseen, potentially disasterous alterations to the timeline. The twist at the end of the game is that the historic event you spend the entire game preserving is [[spoiler: the global extermination of 99% of the White/European race (including Dexter's family) by a racial-selection virus engineered by Middle Eastern terrorists, and the resulting collapse of Western civilization, occuring some years after the September 11 World Trade Center attacks. The Opposition, whom you've spent the entire game battling, actually want to change history to prevent this global disaster, and the game ends with you and Dexter seemingly joining them to "[[Franchise/{{Halo}} finish the fight]]".]]

In ''Darkest of Days'' (PC and XBox 360), Alexander Morris is rescued from Custer's Last Stand by a [[TimeTravel time traveller]] and taken 300 years into the future by the time research/police organization [=KronoTek=]. The player, as Morris, must go back in time for various SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld scenarios. Time periods include AncientRome, UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Usually the player uses period weaponry, but occasionally gets a futuristic {{BFG}}.

''In Darkest of Days'' (PC and XBox 360), Alexander Morris is rescued from Custer's Last Stand by a [[TimeTravel time traveller]] and taken 300 years into the future by the time research/police organization [=KronoTek=]. The player, as Morris, must go back in time for various SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld scenarios. Time periods include AncientRome, UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Usually the player uses period weaponry, but occasionally gets a futuristic {{BFG}}.

In Darkest of Days (PC and XBox 360), Alexander Morris is rescued from Custer's Last Stand by a [[TimeTravel time traveller]] and taken 300 years into the future by the time research/police organization [=KronoTek=]. The player, as Morris, must go back in time for various SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld scenarios. Time periods include AncientRome, UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Usually the player uses period weaponry, but occasionally gets a futuristic {{BFG}}.

In Darkest of Days (PC and XBox 360), Alexander Morris is rescued from Custer's Last Stand by a [[TimeTravel time traveller]] and taken 300 years into the future by the time research/police organization [=KronoTek=]. The player, as Morris, must go back in time for various SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld scenarios. Time periods include AncientRome, UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne, and UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo. Usually the player uses period weaponry, but occasionally gets a futuristic {{BFG}}.

* ArmyOfTheAges: For starters, the player is a US cavalryman fighting in the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

* OnlyAFleshWound: You're supposed to avoid killing "blue aura" soldiers, because historically they survived the battle and had significant descendants. Unfortunately, many of these guys are on the other side and will be happily shooting at you. One method of disabling them without killing them is to shoot them in the leg or arm. Granted, this is your least reliable option; the more reliable option are clusters of walnut-like stun grenades that you're given specifically to stun these guys.
** It gets ridiculous when you realize that melee attacks don't count as killing blue-aura soldiers, regardless of how your current weapon handles melee attacks. This means you can ''stab them right in the face with a bayonet'' without altering history.

The game is most notable for the Marmoset engine, which (supposedly) lets it render hundreds of independent AIs on screen fighting at one time.

[[http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177919 A film adaptation was announced]] and since then, [[{{Vaporware}} nothing has been heard of it.]]

* ArtificialStupidity: like said above: "supposedly".
* ArmyOfTheAges
* {{BFG}}: Anything from 200 years in the future counts - especially when everyone else is using muskets. ESPECIALLY the FMG.

* CowboyCop: Your partner Dexter's approach to [=KronoTek=] missions. He has no qualms about taking risky, potentially history-altering actions to achieve your objectives, and is rather carefree about handing you 22nd Century super weapons to help you out of particularly sticky 19th and 20th century firefights. In one mission he even has you save then execute a "blue-aura" soldier (historically important individuals who you're supposed to spend the game saving) in order to attract the attention of Opposition Agents so you can capture one.

* GoodBadTranslation: If you can speak either fluent russian or german, listening to the soldiers in battle can be quite fun.
** It doesn't require any knowledge of Russian to almost die laughting when Tzar-era soldiers shouts "Za Stalina!" during attacks, which means "For Stalin!"

* HopelessBossFight: The first level starts you off as a soldier in Custer's calvary at the Battle of Little Big Horn. That ends about as well as you would expect.

* IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels: See TestosteronePoisoning below.

* InvincibleMinorMinion: The enemy time-traveler Opposition Agents have futuristic armor and energy shields that are invincible to your Civil War and WWI era period peashooters, so your only option is to run like hell. Later in the game you learn their shield frequency and are able to damage them, but they're still extremely difficult to fight when all you're carrying is a musket-loading rifle.
** You can kill them before knowing that frequency. They just have four times bigger health.
** Having any kind of pistol and emptying it's magazine or cylinder (bigger mags upgrade helps a lot) straight into where head will be during Opposition Agents teleportation can take one of them down before they are even there, giving time to simply grab brand new BFG from future. They rarely come more than two at given time if it's not scripted.
** And bolt-action rifles even without proper upgrades aren't peashooters at all. With those upgrades they are as good as future weapons, just semi-auto, not full-auto.

* MagikarpPower: Pistols after full upgrade. But it's still much wiser to focus on rifles, as you will be using them most of the time.

** It gets ridiculous when you realize that melee attacks don't count as killing blue-aura soldiers, regardless of your current weapon handles melee attacks. This means you can ''stab them in the face with a bayonet'' without altering history.

** This is subverted in the end of the game: [[spoiler:it is revealed that said individuals' descendants were responsible for developing technology that fell in the wrong hands and was used to create a bio-weapon that devastated the world's population. The Opposition is actually a future incarnation of [=KronoTek=] that decided to forgo their "Don't change history rule" to prevent the disaster.]]

* SnipingMission: With a 22nd century computer-aided sniper rifle. All you have to do is point the target - build-in computer will do the rest. Goes into ridicule when the bullets take angles to hit behind corners. And almost aim-bot accuracy doesn't make this mission any kind easier than the rest.
* TestosteronePoisoning: [[IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels The "Hard" difficulty in the game is called]] ''With Chest Hair''.
* TitleDrop: At the end of the game, Dr. Koell makes a final plea against using time-travel to alter history, stating that "Who am I, or anyone else, to play God? I'm all for helping those that suffer, but Dark Days teach valuable lessons. The events of the past define our present selves, and to meddle around is to court disaster". [[spoiler: he then takes two bullets to the face from Strinko, your apparent new boss, who disagrees.]]

* GrayAndGreyMorality: There is constant debate about whether it should be acceptable to use time travel to alter history for the better, or if history should rather be preserved to prevent unforseen, potentially disasterous alterations to the timeline. The twist at the end of the game is that the historic event you spend the entire game preserving is [[spoiler: the global extermination of 99% of the White/European race (including Dexter's family) by a racial-selection virus engineered by Middle Eastern terrorists, and the resulting collapse of Western civilization, occuring some years after the September 11 World Trade Center attacks. The Opposition, whom you've spent the entire game battling, actually want to change history to prevent this global disaster, and the game ends with you and Dexter seemingly joining them to "[[{{Halo}} finish the fight]]".]]

* FanNickname: The [[BigFreakingGun FMG]] is never named in dialogue, so it's called the "[[SayingSoundEffectsOutLoud Zohf]] Gun".
** Which is weird, because the name is written on the side of the barrel. It's [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Face Melting Gun]].