The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark

89%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,499 reviews
  • humor
  • story
  • music
The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark Game Cover
The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark is a must play game for anyone who loves point-and-click adventure games, especially with a supernatural mystery theme. If you enjoyed the first game you obviously must play this title!
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"The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark" is a comedy horror point-and-click adventure game. Players step back into the shoes of Detective McQueen and his partner, Officer Dolores Doherty, as they investigate a series of strange occurrences in a gloomy town. The game features distinctive pixel art style and humor-laden dialogue, providing a unique and entertaining experience.

  • Mac OS
  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Steam Deck
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Linux
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

89%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,499 reviews
humor506 positive mentions
grinding16 negative mentions
  • The game features clever writing and humor that keeps players engaged and entertained throughout.
  • Puzzles are well-designed, offering a good balance of challenge without being overly frustrating.
  • The pixel art style and charming characters create a nostalgic and enjoyable atmosphere.
  • Some puzzles can feel illogical or rely on 'moon logic', leading to moments of frustration.
  • The game can become tedious with lengthy dialogue and repetitive interactions.
  • A few players found the humor to be hit or miss, with some jokes feeling forced or overdone.
  • humor512 mentions

    The humor in "The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark" is widely praised for its clever writing, witty dialogue, and engaging character interactions, often eliciting genuine laughter from players. While many appreciate the blend of absurdity and charm, some critiques note that the humor can feel forced or overly reliant on meta-commentary, leading to mixed reactions depending on personal taste. Overall, the game maintains a fun and entertaining atmosphere, making it a delightful experience for fans of humorous point-and-click adventures.

    • “I always expected the Darkside Detective to be funny, but this sequel still surprised me with its spooky antics and laugh-out-loud moments.”
    • “Witty banter, actually funny jokes, and a lot of heart.”
    • “The humor is absolutely the best.”
    • “The jokes are just not funny at all and the plot is stupid.”
    • “From the straight-up denial (and extremely weird jokes about) the colonization of the Native Americans, to the complete misuse of the existence of the thunderbird, to the unnecessary and deeply unfunny ableism against Dooley, watching paint dry is not only more entertaining, but significantly less annoying.”
    • “Humor-wise, it has even more unfunny references and meta-humor than the last game, which is saying a lot.”
  • story254 mentions

    The story in "The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark" is generally praised for its humor, character development, and continuity from the first game, with many players enjoying the quirky and entertaining narrative. However, some critiques highlight issues with coherence and pacing, suggesting that while the episodic structure allows for fun individual cases, it can lead to a lack of overarching connection and immersion. Overall, the writing is considered clever and engaging, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of story-driven games.

    • “The darkside detective: a fumble in the dark is just as fun, just as unique, and just interesting as the first darkside detective game, but provides players with a larger story and more context for the world we are introduced to.”
    • “The story is quirky and interesting; the puzzles aren't too hard, but also not too easy, and the mini-games are fun and unique.”
    • “The episodic nature of telling the game through case files, each with their own distinct story, puzzles, and locations works really well, and the attention to detail is superb.”
    • “The story is bland, the puzzles don't make sense like they used to, and I find myself bored, which never happened with the first.”
    • “Each episode just comes across as arbitrary set dressing around a handful of puns and puzzles instead of an actual story.”
    • “I was hoping that they would tie together in some fashion for a 'grand' reveal or at least some connection between them to make a coherent story of some sort.”
  • music116 mentions

    The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its ability to enhance the atmosphere and complement the visuals, while others find it inappropriate or annoying. Many players appreciate the variety and quality of the soundtrack, noting its vintage and soothing qualities, though some feel it doesn't match the excellence of the first game's score. Overall, the music is seen as a significant aspect of the game's charm, despite a few criticisms regarding repetitiveness and composition.

    • “The art style is really cool, the music is suiting, and overall the game feels like there was a lot of love and thought put into it.”
    • “The music is very good with plenty of nice tracks to listen to.”
    • “The soundtrack is as great as ever, really building the atmosphere in each case.”
    • “A fumble in the dark is a perfectly cromulent adventure game, once you turn off the ghastly music.”
    • “Kept trying to play it, could never make it through more than an episode at a time because the music is literally painful to my ears.”
    • “- out of place annoying soundtrack with bad composition”
  • graphics103 mentions

    The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming retro pixel art style that many players find nostalgic and aesthetically pleasing, with vibrant colors and detailed designs. While some reviews note that the low resolution can make item interaction challenging, the overall consensus is that the visuals complement the witty writing and engaging puzzles, creating a fun and immersive experience. However, a few players expressed dissatisfaction with the graphics, feeling they were intentionally simplistic or poorly defined.

    • “The pixel graphic art style is still really good with plenty of great details and a great use of colors. Even the darker and somber colors have a nice sort of brightness to them. It’s all very well detailed and even better than the first game, and the first game's graphics were really good.”
    • “Very likable characters and engaging adventure-game logic that only rarely strays into monkey wrench territory, combined with lovely pixel graphics and some surprisingly excellent music, make the game come alive.”
    • “The unique, hand-crafted pixel art style makes this game special.”
    • “Graphics are intentionally very bad.”
    • “I don't mind pixel graphics, but in this game, they are so low resolution it can be hard to pick out what parts of the screen are items that you can interact with.”
    • “Didn't like the graphics in this game.”
  • gameplay45 mentions

    The gameplay is characterized as a standard point-and-click adventure, featuring item collection, puzzle-solving, and exploration, with an emphasis on humor and witty writing. While some players appreciate the engaging puzzles and expanded areas compared to the original, others find the mechanics basic and lacking innovation. Overall, it offers a fun and relaxing experience, appealing to fans of the genre, though it may not captivate everyone.

    • “The gameplay is still pretty fun; it's your standard point-and-click game with picking up items and combining them, but there's also plenty of good and well-balanced puzzles with a nice sense of exploration.”
    • “The humor is fast and punny, the cases are unique and interesting, and the gameplay is a mixture of timeless point-and-click shenanigans and a couple of fun mini-games along the way.”
    • “With its bigger areas and more challenging puzzles, the game is more engaging gameplay-wise than the original.”
    • “The whole gameplay was not intriguing to me, so I stopped playing after only a short time.”
    • “No new mechanics, no new user interface, almost no new characters.”
    • “Gameplay is the standard point and click adventure fare.”
  • grinding16 mentions

    Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is characterized by tedious puzzles and lengthy scenarios, leading to frustration for some players. While the humor and art style are appreciated, many find the repetitive nature of the gameplay to be a significant downgrade from the first installment, with some opting to uninstall the game early due to its monotonous elements. Overall, the grinding experience is seen as overly drawn out and lacking in challenge.

    • “Its proposition is 'more of the same but longer and twice as tedious!', so no thanks.”
    • “A downgrade from the first game, although this is just like the first one, the long scenarios, puzzles, and large amounts of text are hugely tedious.”
    • “You have to move them over each other - which is not at all hard to do, just extremely tedious.”
  • emotional14 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by its wholesome and heartwarming narrative, featuring humorous and absurd moments that resonate with players. However, some reviewers note a lack of real stakes and conflict, which can diminish the sense of impact from player actions. Overall, it offers a delightful experience that is both funny and touching, particularly in its portrayal of characters.

    • “A really enjoyable, heartwarming adventure game.”
    • “It's strange how it can move so swiftly between funny, absurd, and incredibly heartfelt.”
    • “As with the first Darkside Detective game, it's a funny, heartfelt point & click adventure about police work in a moderately-cursed city.”
  • atmosphere8 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is generally well-received, with praise for its engaging pixel art and effective soundtrack that enhances the experience. However, some users noted instances of inappropriate music that detracted from the intended ambiance. Overall, the combination of humor and puzzle design contributes positively to the game's atmosphere.

    • “The soundtrack is as great as ever, really building the atmosphere in each case.”
    • “Nice atmosphere, some humor, puzzles with solutions that sometimes make sense - what more would you want from a point-and-click adventure?”
    • “The pixel art is awesome and the atmosphere was interesting overall.”
    • “The music is completely inappropriate for the atmosphere the game is trying to convey.”
    • “The soundtrack feels mismatched and detracts from the intended atmosphere of the game.”
    • “The choice of music undermines the overall atmosphere, making it hard to immerse myself in the game.”
  • replayability4 mentions

    The game offers strong replayability, particularly due to its humor and balanced difficulty, making it an appealing choice for fans of the point-and-click adventure genre. Players are likely to return for the jokes and engaging gameplay, enhancing its overall charm.

    • “A very worthy sequel with plenty of replayability for the jokes alone.”
    • “While its humor may not suit all tastes, its balanced difficulty and replayability make it a charming addition to the point-and-click adventure genre.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

85% average critic score

Buy The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark

Play time

15hMedian play time
15hAverage play time
15-15hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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