Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare (GBC)

You take the role of detective Edward Carnby as he searches Shadow Island for an ancient Indian statue that has been stolen from archaeologist Aline Cedrac. She accompanies Edward to the island and begins the game working on ancient translations that might help Edward as he hunts for the statue.

Your first job, as Edward, is to find a way into the island's mansion--but beware as there are beasties waiting to thwart your progress. Good shooting skills will be vital to your success as you'll have to get through a number of combat sequences. As you progress in the game you'll need to solve puzzles too--and remember to check the walkie-talkie to keep in contact with Aline. Regular saving will also be vital to your success.

Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare is published on several platforms and the Game Boy version is to an extent limited by the format. For example, in the PlayStation version you can choose to play as either Aline or Edward while here you have to play Edward. The sound and visuals are also more limited of course but nonetheless there's a surprising amount of atmosphere on tap, particularly inside the gloomy mansion.

Despite the limitations of the format, Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare works well and makes for an engaging experience. --Sandra Vogel