Operation Darkness demo hits Xbox Live

by Justin McElroy { Apr 24th 2008 at 2:55PM }

Upon first glance (and your second through seventh glances, admittedly) Operation Darkness seems like a game created by insane people. It's a squad based tactical game where you're fighting the "hidden battles of WWII," but the reason they were hidden is apparently because they were waged against skeletons. And and some point, one of those skeletons gets punched by a wolf man in a trench coat. See? Crazy.

We tell you all this, not as a lead-in to dispel your presumptions about the game's insanity, but to see if you'd play the new demo on Xbox Live for us and let us know how it is. Because frankly, we're a little freaked out.

Tags: atlus, demos, operation-darkness, xbox-live

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

predatorian234 @ Apr 24th 2008 3:00PM

Played it...weird...and slow...but alright I suppose.

Yuccadude @ Apr 25th 2008 1:17AM

What about Zombie Hitler dressed up in drag at the end of the video?

deaftly @ Apr 24th 2008 3:03PM

You can buy a new couch, watta my gonna do about mah legs!! DARKNESSES! DARKNESSES!

rivaldi22 @ Apr 24th 2008 3:05PM

My girlfriend's dad was the production designer for that show, so that couch is sitting in their livingroom.

It's not that nice, admittedly.

deaftly @ Apr 24th 2008 3:25PM

Thats pretty awesome actually.

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force) @ Apr 24th 2008 3:04PM

Well, I know the first demo I'll be hitting up once I reinvest in 360.

Zamzoph @ Apr 24th 2008 3:06PM

Ansem approves.

predatorian234 @ Apr 24th 2008 3:07PM

Is...is that Hitler being sniped at the end of the trailer?

rivaldi22 @ Apr 24th 2008 3:11PM

Maybe. I mean, we all know Hitler had great fashion sense. Look at that orange! So vibrant! So inappropriate!

Obie @ Apr 24th 2008 3:11PM

Holy crap that looks awesome! ( if today were 1996)

Jerk Face @ Apr 24th 2008 3:21PM

Quake called, it wants its ugly back.

moo @ Apr 24th 2008 3:12PM

wolfman morph? check.
magic-based anti-tank weapons? check.
vampire hitler? check.

fyreblazer @ Apr 24th 2008 4:03PM

Japanese anime magic wielding teens - check
skeleton nazis - check
american werewolf from paris - check
rocketlaunchers - check

Altairio @ Apr 24th 2008 5:30PM

Banned in Germany - check

Ben @ Apr 24th 2008 3:16PM

Sounds interesting. I think I'll check it out.

Dracula Jones @ Apr 24th 2008 3:18PM

No.... words.... should have sent a poet....

Shmil @ Apr 24th 2008 3:20PM

...what..the...fuck?

robert @ Apr 24th 2008 3:21PM

i really liked the ummmm.... blinking effect in the sniper scope, yeah that was cool.

Darayz @ Apr 24th 2008 3:23PM

I want to meet the guy who came up with this game ... and find out what kind of drugs he takes ... wow.

Spirit @ Apr 24th 2008 3:28PM

Japanese people don't need drugs to be crazy.

(I'm presuming it's Japanese-developed at least...)

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force) @ Apr 24th 2008 3:50PM

I want to know why when things like this happens in games nowadays, people gotta call it insane or drug induced.

Go back, play your NES for a weekend then come back to this.

Sometimes, games don't need to be reasonable or have explanations. Frankly, a Werewolf punching a Skeleton ranks about a 7.5 on my "awesometer" Throw in absurd "hidden war" of WWII and you have insane, yet highly enjoyable fun.

It's like you guys forgot all about the days when grabbing a hammer at the end of a bridge would drop bowser into Lava. It was stupid, insane, yet in a video game, made perfect sense.

Jared @ Apr 24th 2008 3:26PM

....

Lucky @ Apr 24th 2008 3:29PM

After watching the trailer I started downloading it.
=)

Tatical squad game? WWII? Wolf Man in trench coat punching a skeleton in the face?

What more could you ask for!?!?!?!

NATO_Duke @ Apr 24th 2008 3:33PM

I don't really care for this articles tone towards the history involved in this game.

My grandfather often sat with us to tell of the times he fought the vampire nazi brigades in Holland. Then there were the skeletons that protected Paris - he said that he took around 400 down with his Hammer of Might before one hit him with a freeze spell. Yet, he was a soldier damn it, and once he thawed he was right back out there!

Show some respect!

CynicalStrike @ Apr 24th 2008 3:43PM

You got that from the X 360 DVD didn't you? Don't lie...

NATO_Duke @ Apr 24th 2008 4:03PM

I don't even know what you mean....X 360 DVD? Whats that?

CynicalStrike @ Apr 24th 2008 4:22PM

Ah sorry, this UK xbox magazine does a free DVD where they do commentaries and make fun of crap games; they made a similar comment to yours on this game. My bad.

Stephen @ Apr 24th 2008 5:40PM

ha ha, i was gonna make a comment just like that until i saw you already made one.

Shogan @ Apr 24th 2008 3:38PM

This game looks truly awesome!

CynicalStrike @ Apr 24th 2008 3:41PM

I'm getting it. X 360 magazine had a trailer on their cover DVD where they just took the piss out of it for 5 minutes, pretty funny. Hitler riding a dragon around a battlefield? Hell Yeah. Doubt this one's gonna go down too well in Deutschland. Oh well.

NATO_Duke @ Apr 24th 2008 4:04PM

Oh, do you mean Official XBox Magazine? I don't read that, but I assume thats the one you mean.

deaftly @ Apr 24th 2008 3:44PM

Skeletons. Check
Teen wolf. Check
Awesome. Check.

T1mmae @ Apr 24th 2008 3:46PM

And and some point, one of those skeletons gets punched by a wolf man in a trench coat.

Best Line Ever!!!!

Yet, he was a soldier damn it, and once he thawed he was right back out there!

Classic!

Ameen @ Apr 24th 2008 3:52PM

Wow, a next gen game beyond doubt.. Maybe Infinity Ward can take cues from these guys and implement them in COD5..

All Sarcasm aside,
(WFT!!!!)^9999999999999...

Sounds interesting but then again, I just lost some precious minutes of my life.. Shyt!!

baby sea tuna @ Apr 24th 2008 3:52PM

Man, I can't see this videos here at work, but I'm based on the description, I'm so downloading this shit when I get home!

CynicalStrike @ Apr 24th 2008 4:01PM

I would have loved to have been in the office when this crap was pitched;
"So imagine WWII, but instead of fighting normal soldiers, you're fighting bulletproof vampire SS guys, a dragon-riding Hitler, thousands of skeletons and magic-powered tanks....and did I mention that you're a werewolf...with magic?"
"Say whaaaaaaaa??????"
"Man, I got the munchies...."

TRUE STORY.

Scott @ Apr 24th 2008 4:02PM

Werewolves and Dragons and Nazis, Oh My!
Werewolves and Dragons and Nazis, Oh My!
Werewolves and Dragons and Nazis, Oh My!

NukeAssault @ Apr 24th 2008 4:14PM

Pretty cool, but it was definitely too slow for me.

Toasty @ Apr 24th 2008 4:19PM

The Japanese are indisputable masters of revisionist history. Every time they make a game about WWII, they seem to be saying "So, yeah, you had your secret werewolf commandos, your SS vampires, people blowing up tanks with magic punches, some huge-eyed dayglo-haired special ops snipers, aaaaaaaand wewerealliedwiththeNazis. Any questions?"

double9s @ Apr 24th 2008 4:50PM

Awhile back, they mentioned this game was multiplayer. Anyone know any details? Is it playing the campaign in coop or just a battle mode? Is it local, like Gladius, or XBL only?

RDX @ Apr 24th 2008 4:55PM

Anyone else think the girl that throws the fireballs looks a lot like Charlotte from Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin?

CynicalStrike @ Apr 24th 2008 6:08PM

"Vincent, you're scaring me..." good game, especially when you unlock the sisters and Richter.

HPGR_Thrawn @ Apr 24th 2008 7:19PM

Downloaded the demo and it was actually pretty sweet.

Turn based squad tactical combat. You can customize everything your troops carry into battle, including weapons, skills, and health kits.

The demo is a standard "move in and kill all Nazis to capture objective" level, but I think it works very well.

Will definitely be keeping an eye on this!

CynicalStrike @ Apr 24th 2008 7:28PM

So it's like advance wars kinda?

Eggman @ Apr 24th 2008 9:37PM

It isn't turn-based. Turn-based would be that one entire side goes and then another side goes. This is closer to FFT in how it works out.

Because of cover move/attack/ambush, it's even more different from turn-based.

Eggman @ Apr 24th 2008 7:44PM

The cover mechanics in the game are an unbelievably good innovation for strategy games in general.

I kinda have to laugh that people call the game slow though. It just shows how little people know of the genre these days. This was probably one of the faster SRPGs I've tried out lately.