History Trivia / EternalDarkness

* DevelopmentHell: Not ''Eternal Darkness'', but the attempt to create a spiritual sequel have undergone this. After Creator/SiliconKnights went under, taking the deal with Nintendo to produce ''Eternal Darkness 2'' along with it, Dyack created a new studio in 2013 called Precursor Games in order to crowdfund a SerialNumbersFiledOff version called ''Shadow of the Eternals'', planned to be a 12-part {{episodic game}} for Platform/WiiU and PC. The studio launched two crowdfunding campaigns asking for around $1.5 million CAD each, only to cancel them both a month later (with only 10% of funding meet), refunding donors and aiming to relaunch their efforts after re-evaluating what they wanted the game to be. Shortly after, the studio's co-founder and ''Eternal Darkness'' co-designer Kenneth [=McCulloch=] was arrested on child pornography charges. Precursor cut ties with him and would launch a new crowdfunding campaign the following month with a smaller $750,000 goal this time, the game now billed a single, ten-hour game. This version also failed to meet it's funding goal and so the game was put on indefinite hold... only for Dyack to come back the following year with another new company (Quantum Entanglement Entertainment) with the goal of both restarting development ''and'' producing a tie-in film or television project, both of which died alongside the company in 2018. This project would ultimately be recycled into ''Deadhaus Sonata'', an action RPG that Dyack is making with yet another new studio and has being showing its own prolonged issues with development.

* AcclaimedFlop: Well, it was an M rated [[Creator/HPLovecraft Lovecraft]]-inspired horror game released exclusively on the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube. It received rave reviews and even won quite a few industry awards for its innovations in storytelling, but it only sold a little under 500,000 copies, not enough to recuperate its development costs.

* DevelopmentHell: Not ''Eternal Darkness'', but the attempt to create a spiritual sequel have undergone this. After Creator/SiliconKnights went under, taking the deal with Nintendo to produce ''Eternal Darkness 2'' along with it, Dyack created a new studio in 2013 called Precursor Games in order to crowdfund a SerialNumbersFiledOff version called ''Shadow of the Eternals'', planned to be a 12-part {{episodic game}} for UsefulNotes/WiiU and PC. The studio launched two crowdfunding campaigns asking for around $1.5 million CAD each, only to cancel them both a month later (with only 10% of funding meet), refunding donors and aiming to relaunch their efforts after re-evaluating what they wanted the game to be. Shortly after, the studio's co-founder and ''Eternal Darkness'' co-designer Kenneth [=McCulloch=] was arrested on child pornography charges. Precursor cut ties with him and would launch a new crowdfunding campaign the following month with a smaller $750,000 goal this time, the game now billed a single, ten-hour game. This version also failed to meet it's funding goal and so the game was put on indefinite hold... only for Dyack to come back the following year with another new company (Quantum Entanglement Entertainment) with the goal of both restarting development ''and'' producing a tie-in film or television project, both of which died alongside the company in 2018. This project would ultimately be recycled into ''Deadhaus Sonata'', an action RPG that Dyack is making with yet another new studio and has being showing its own prolonged issues with development.

* MovedToTheNextConsole: The game was [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVh_yJvsQKs originally developed]] for the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64.

* DevelopmentHell: Not ''Eternal Darkness'', but the attempt to create a spiritual sequel have undergone this. After Creator/SiliconKnights went under, taking the deal with Nintendo to produce ''Eternal Darkness 2'' along with it, Dyack created a new studio in 2013 called Precursor Games in order to crowdfund a SerialNumbersFiledOff version called ''Shadow of the Eternals'', planned to be a 12-part {{episodic game}} for UsefulNotes/WiiU and PC. The studio launched two crowdfunding campaigns asking for around $1.5 million CAD each, only to cancel them both a month later (with only 10% of funding meet), refunding donors and aiming to relaunch their efforts after re-evaluating what they wanted the game to be. Shortly after, the studio's co-founder and ''Eternal Darkness'' co-designer Kenneth [=McCulloch=] was arrested on child pornography charges. Precursor cut ties with him and would launch a new crowdfunding campaign the following month with a smaller $750,000 goal this time, the game now billed a single, ten-hour game. This version also failed to meet it's funding goal and so the game was put on indefinite hold... only for Dyack to come back the following year with another new company (Quantum Entanglement Entertainment) with the goal of both restarting development ''and'' producing a tie-in film or television project, both of which died alongside the company in 2018. As of 2023, whatever was left of this project has been seemingly recycled into ''Deadhaus Sonata'', an action RPG that Dyack is making with yet new studio and is has being showing its own prolonged issues with development.

* AcclaimedFlop: Well, it was an M rated [[Creator/HPLovecraft Lovecraft]]-inspired horror game released exclusively on the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube. It received rave reviews and even won quite a few industry awards for its innovations in storytelling, but it only sold a little under 500,000 copies, not enough to recuperate its development costs. At least a part of it that its release date meant it got pitted against the ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil1'' remake.

* CreatorDrivenSuccessor: ''Shadow of the Eternals'' was supposed to be ''Eternal Darkness 2'' but for various reasons it never came to be.

* DevelopmentHell:
** The sequel. ''Eternal Darkness'' is one of Creator/SiliconKnights' most well-received [=IPs=], and they've wanted to do a new game for a while. But the UsefulNotes/{{GameCube}}, UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}, and even UsefulNotes/WiiU have all come and gone, and ''VideoGame/TooHuman'' was an expensive flop. After the failure of ''VideoGame/XMenDestiny'', a prototype for a sequel to ''Eternal Darkness'' that never got off of the ground and a lawsuit from Creator/EpicGames, things aren't looking any more hopeful. If a sequel ever does get made, it likely will not involve any of the original team.
** The spiritual sequel is faring no better because it has the unfortunate position of being in a hefty Catch22Dilemma. A lot of fans refuse to support it financially because a lot of the original team is not involved, but among those who ''are'' is creative lead Denis Dyack who is also causing a lack of support on account of being accused of shady business deals. He can't step down as he was one of the masterminds of ''Eternal Darkness'' and is deeply integrated into Precursor Games' work on ''Shadow of the Eternals'', but he would have to in order to appease the vocal majority.

* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: The game has never been re-released, and is unlikely to be so, given the falling-out between Dennis Dyack and Nintendo (who own the rights).

* NoPortForYou: It's easy to speculate as to why, mainly concerning its status as a Silicon Knights project, but ''Eternal Darkness'' is thus far one of the few Nintendo-published games to remain tied to its home console despite both yearning from fans for a rerelease and Nintendo themselves not using the trademark they keep renewing.

** As originally pitched to Nintendo, the game would allow you to obtain and experience the chapter pages in ''any'' order; Nintendo mandated the final product's more linear structure. ''Shadow of the Eternals'' was planned to go back to using the original model.

* TheWikiRule: [[http://eternaldarkness.wikia.com/wiki/Eternal_Darkness_Wiki The Eternal Darkness Wiki]].

* FollowTheLeader: When showcasing the game as a classic favorite of his, [[WebVideo/TheSpoonyExperiment Spoony]] actually expressed surprise its novel combat system ''[[{{Averted|Trope}} wasn't]]'' copied in future titles (though WebVideo/TwoBestFriendsPlay argued the reason is probably that there is no reason to ''not'' aim for the head).

* ActingForTwo: Most of the playable characters' actors also voice major or supporting parts in the story.

* TalkingToHimself:
** Pious and Ulyaoth, as both were voiced by Richard Doyle.
** Alex and Xel'lotath were both voiced by Jennifer Hale.

* ActorAllusion: This isn't the first time Greg Eagles voices an expert on explosives: he also voiced Peter Stillman in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty''.

* TechnologyMarchesOn: Some of the sanity effects fake things happening with your TV, such as the volume muting or the system turning off, showing a black screen with "VIDEO" in the corner. Upon the widespread adoption of high-definition televisions a few years later, TV brands started using a wider variety of graphic interface designs and abandoned [[UnintentionalPeriodPiece some widespread elements from previous decades]] (such as volume always being represented by a series of horizontal green rectangles on the bottom half of the screen), making all such effects much less convincing.

* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: The game has never been re-released, and is unlikely to be so, given the falling-out between Dennis Dyack and Nintendo (who own the rights.)

* ExecutiveMeddling: [[http://kotaku.com/5955223/what-went-wrong-with-silicon-knights-x+men-destiny A positive example.]] The companies attitude towards design and management is and was rather draconian, and it was only due to Creator/{{Nintendo}} demanding and enforcing a product that was up to the brand name's standards that the game was as good as it is.

* TheDanza: Paul Luther who was voiced by Creator/PaulEiding.

[[/folder]]

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: Some of the FissionMailed-styled meta jumpscares have UI elements that [=TVs=] don't have anymore, like big, green volume bars, or a blue screen for the inputs.

* AllStarCast: A lot of big name voice talent is present in the game such as Creator/JenniferHale, Creator/CamClarke, Creator/MichaelBell, Creator/GregEagles, Creator/PaulEiding, Creator/KimMaiGuest, Creator/RinoRomano, Richard Doyle, Neil Ross. Even Creator/DavidHayter has a bit part as a Roman Legionnaire!

* FollowTheLeader:
** When showcasing the game as a classic favorite of his, [[WebVideo/TheSpoonyExperiment Spoony]] actually expressed surprise its novel combat system ''[[{{Averted|Trope}} wasn't]]'' copied in future titles.
** WebVideo/TwoBestFriendsPlay argued there is no reason to not aim for the head, but it must be noted that a number of creatures are more inconvenienced by a lost head than anything else.

* TheOtherMarty: An interesting case with Maximilian as in gameplay and the story he's voiced by Creator/MichaelBell, but his autopsy journals are narrated by William Hootkins.

[[AC:General Trivia]]

*** 4. "You don't even know your own destiny..." Michael's chapter, a few rooms before his escape from the Forbidden City.

[[AC:Trivia Tropes]]
* AcclaimedFlop: Well, it was an M rated [[Creator/HPLovecraft Lovecraft]]-inspired horror game released exclusively on the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube.

* AcclaimedFlop: Well, it was a [[Creator/HPLovecraft Lovecraft]]-inspired horror game released exclusively on the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube.

*** 4. "You don't even know your own destiny..." Michael's chapter, a few rooms before his escape from the Forbidden City.

----

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: Some of the FissionMailed-styled meta jumpscares have UI elements that TVs don't have anymore, like big, green volume bars, or a blue screen for the inputs.

** The sequel. ''Eternal Darkness'' is one of Creator/SiliconKnights' most well-received [=IPs=], and they've wanted to do a new game for a while. But the UsefulNotes/{{GameCube}}, UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}, and even UsefulNotes/WiiU have all come and gone, and ''VideoGame/TooHuman'' was an expensive flop. After the failure of ''VideoGame/XMenDestiny'', a prototype for a sequel to ''Eternal Darkness'' that never got off of the ground and a lawsuit from Creator/EpicGames, things aren't looking any more hopeful.