WAA - Alone in the Dark

Time for WAA! This week: Alone in the Dark.

The "One With Combat"Award: "Basic Combination"
Alone in the Dark features an item synthesis mechanic in which you take items that you find and combine them to make something else. Like say, combining a handkerchief with a bottle of alcohol to make a Molotov cocktail. For this Achievement, you just need to put some double sided tape on any kind of bottle, both of which are found in vast abundance throughout the game.

The "Mile High Club" Award: "Cockpit Addict"
There really aren't any difficult Achievements in Alone in the Dark, though there are a few that are somewhat tedious (see below). I did fail "Cockpit Addict" a few times though, so I guess it gets the award. One of the levels features a brief driving sequence through the city, and to get the award you have to complete it in Cockpit Mode, which is essentially driving the car in first person. The only challenge is that the low camera angle from that view prevents you from seeing very far down the road.

The "Seriously..." Award: "Blazing Roots"
About midway through the game you have to wander around Central Park burning these big, bizarre-looking roots. They're spread all over the place and usually guarded by a bunch of enemies. It gets old QUICKLY. Then just for kicks, the game decides that was so much fun that you have to do the exact same thing again later. If you can withstand the tedium of hunting down every one of the roots, this Achievement will be your reward.

The "Little Rocket Man" Award: "The Smart Fighter"
There are lots of ways to kill bad guys in this game - bullets, blunt trauma, hand-to-hand, run 'em over with a car, etc. But the most satisfying BY FAR is to use an aerosol spray can and your trusty lighter to create a makeshift flamethower...now that's entertainment!

The Scientist Gone Gamer Award: "Fisherman's Foe"
Oh I wish, I wish, I hadn't killed that fish...



Achievement Set Rating - 4
On the plus side, the set rewards you for trying all the different game mechanics and exploring a lot of different item combinations. However, there are some exceptionally tedious awards like burning all the roots and creating every possible combination of items in the game (I was mucking about with that for a while) that really drag the set down a notch. And the icons themselves are ugly and repetitive, which doesn't help matters.

Achievement Difficulty Rating - 3
The game isn't very long and a lot of the Achievements are gained for just completing all the levels and beating the game. If you play through without even specifically trying to farm awards you'll still end up with the majority of the points. Then it's just a matter of going back and grinding away on the last few to finish the set.