one4review | On 21, Aug 2024

Darkfield’s Arcade offers a fascinating and unique immersive experience, but it may not be for everyone. Set within a completely dark shipping container, you navigate a world reminiscent of 1980s arcade games, making choices that shape your journey. However, while the premise is intriguing, the execution may leave some participants feeling unsatisfied. The 3-star rating reflects the mixed outcomes; your experience can range from thrilling to frustrating depending on the path you take and the decisions you make. For some, the journey might feel incomplete, with key elements missing, while others may emerge feeling victorious.

The interactive element, where you receive coins to use in decision-making, adds a tactile layer to the experience. However, the choices don’t always feel well-informed, leading to a sense of randomness rather than strategy. For instance, you press a button to say ‘yes’ and refrain to say ‘no,’ but the results can feel like guesswork. I left with an experience that felt unfinished. There were moments when I felt I had missed out on the more exciting elements, like when I bought a gun but was never given the opportunity to use it. Conversations with others afterward confirmed that some participants had more engaging experiences, while others, like myself, felt they had missed the best parts.

For those who enjoy similar narrative-driven video games, Arcade might remind you of titles like The Stanley Parable, Until Dawn, or Detroit: Become Human. These games also offer branching paths and decisions that can drastically alter the outcome, but with the significant difference that you can replay them as many times as you like to explore all the possible endings. In contrast, Arcade’s one-time playthrough may leave you wishing for more chances to discover what you missed. The limitation of just one go might be unsatisfying for those who enjoy mastering a game through repeated attempts.

It’s hard to definitively say whether Arcade is a good or bad time because it largely depends on the choices you make and the experience that unfolds as a result. It can be the best 20 minutes you’ve spent in the dark, or it can feel like you’ve missed out on the real excitement. If you’ve never tried a Darkfield production before, I still recommend giving it a go for the novelty of the experience, but manage your expectations, your journey through Arcade might not deliver everything you hoped for.

***
Reviewed by Matthew
Summerhall – The Terrace
Various Times
Until 26 August