History VideoGame / ADarkRoom

awake. head throbbing. vision blurry.

* TheAtoner: The old wanderer in the swamp says that his time there is "his penance" [[spoiler: for leading wanderer fleets to destroy worlds]].

* MagikarpPower: Your fists. As first they're the weakest weapon in the game. Use them in battle enough times, and... they'll become as strong as the second-weakest weapon in the game. However, if you persist, they'll eventually become stronger than any other weapon and will have a faster cooldown time as well; see BoringButPractical, above.

* AfterTheEnd: The entire game turns out to be set in a [[spoiler: post-apocalyptic wasteland]].

* AlternateEnding: One can be achieved in the first game by not building any huts, forcing the player to vollect all of the vital resources themselves.

* TheComputerShallTauntYou: The Red Text in ''The Ensign''. It pops up and mocks you [[{{PunctuatedForEmphasis}} Every. Single. Time. You die.]]

* TheComputerShallTauntYou: The Red Text in ''The Ensign''. It pops and mocks you [[{{PunctuatedForEmphasis}} Every. Single. Time. You die.]]

* Determinator: the protagonist in both games, but especially in the prequel, as one of the buttons you have to press to restart after each death is titled, "never give up!"

* Determinatior: the protagonist in both games, but especially in the prequel, as one of the buttons you have to press to restart after each death is titled, "never give up!"

* TheComputerShallTauntYou: The Red Text in "The Ensign". It pops and mocks you [[{{PunctuatedForEmphasis}} Every. Single. Time. You die.]]

* AlternateEnding: One can be achieved in the first game by not building any huts.

* MagikarpPower: Your fists. As first they're the weakest weapon in the game. Use them in battle enough times, and... they'll become as strong as the second-weakest weapon in the game. However, if you persist, they'll eventually become stronger than any other weapon and will have a slower cooldown time as well; see BoringButPractical, above.

''The Ensign'', is an ''insanely'' NintendoHard prequel which fleshes out the backstory.

'The Ensign'', is an ''insanely'' NintendoHard prequel which fleshes out the backstory.

Note: Much of the impact of this game comes from the way it slowly reveals the setting and plot as you go, and it is impossible to discuss the game without spoiling major plot points. It is recommended you play through the game yourself at least once before reading this page to preserve the gameplay experience.

A free browser game developed by Doublespeak Games. Play it [[http://adarkroom.doublespeakgames.com here]].

* [[spoiler:AfterTheEnd]]: The entire game turns out to be set in a [[spoiler: post-apocalyptic wasteland]].
* [[spoiler:AliensAndMonsters]]: Plenty of the latter, remains of the former. Or so you think, until you [[spoiler:realise "wanderer" means "alien".]]

* AwesomeButImpractical: If you choose to wield weapons instead of using unarmed combat, and find (and carry) all multi-use weapons available, you can turn yourself into a flurry of spiky, slashy, shooty, stabby, explodey death and easily overcome most types of enemies available. Then again, carrying all the weapons to acheive this will cut your carrying capacity down quite a deal.

* [[spoiler:CoolStarship]]: You get one by the end.

* [[spoiler:ImAHumanitarian]]: You can set up traps in the woods to catch creatures. The fact that you can find cloth from the traps alongside meat and teeth would point toward the conclusion that you and your village have no need to [[spoiler:separate animal flesh from human or wanderer flesh]]. The spoils from your Dusty Trail kills can also point that way.

* [[spoiler:TomatoSurprise]]: As the game progresses, you start to wonder why [[spoiler: you can wield six or more weapons simultaneously, and why the entire military attacks you on sight...]] and then you find [[spoiler: your own old spaceship]], with the message: [[spoiler: "lucky that the natives can't work the mechanisms"]]. This was made more explicit from version 2 onwards, as many gamers just didn't notice.

* WhamLine: the trap contains [[spoiler: some cloth and a charm.]] can be if you realize just what it means the first time you see it.

* HermitGuru: The wanderer in the old cabin, [[spoiler: the former leader of your expedition]]. From the description and his sorrowful words, it's highly likely he's [[spoiler: the protagonist of each previous session]]. This was more obvious in the game's first version, which after completion [[spoiler: reset right back to the dark room]].

* ArcWord: [[spoiler:wanderer.]] Used many times casually, to the effect that a first-time player won't notice [[spoiler: you and everyone you work with are aliens.]]

* [[spoiler:AliensAndMonsters]]: Plenty of the latter, remains of the former. [[spoiler:Or so you think, until you realize "wanderer" means "alien".]]

* HermitGuru: The wanderer in the old cabin, [[spoiler: the former leader of your expedition]]. From the description and his sorrowful words, it's highly likely he's [[spoiler: the protagonist of each previous session]].

* MagikarpPower: Your fists. As first they're the weakest weapon in the game. Use them in battle enough times, and...they'll become as strong as the second-weakest weapon in the game. However, if you persist, they'll eventually become stronger than any other weapon and will have a slower cooldown time as well; see BoringButPractical, above.

* [[spoiler:TomatoSurprise]]: As the game progresses, you start to wonder why [[spoiler: you can wield six or more weapons simultaneously, and why the entire military attacks you on sight...]] and then you find [[spoiler: your own old spaceship]], with the message: [[spoiler: "lucky that the natives can't work the mechanisms"]].
** One of the first hints you get is when you find a specific item for the first time: "beneath the wanderer's rags, clutched in [[spoiler:one of its many]] hands"...

** One of the first hints you get is when you find your first [[spoiler:rifle]], "beneath the wanderer's rags, clutched in one of its [[spoiler:many]] hands"...

* MoneyForNothing: Everything except cured meat and OrganDrops (furs, scales, teeth) are practically useless to the in-game economy, as they're only used for a few buildings/objects and nothing else. You can't even sell them for different resources. Scales and teeth are needed in the dozens and hundreds to buy some weapons that you cannot make yourself, and although fur can be traded for scales and teeth, it takes a ''whole lot'' of idling with all your villagers hunting to get enough furs to get any meaningful amount of the better OrganDrop currency.