CONTROL Resonant
CONTROL Resonant
Game
Game2013
Dark Fall 2: Lights Out
Developer Darkling Room
Dark Fall II: Lights Out is a 2004 first-person psychological horror/adventure game developed by British studio XXv Productions and published by The Adventure Company for Microsoft Windows. In 2009, Darkling Room released a director's cut of the game in a limited "Pins & Needles" edition. Later that same year, Iceberg Interactive released the Director's Cut in both a stand-alone edition and as part of Adventures in… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
88 reactions from 2 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky) · newest Sep 4, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
74
Fresh
64 positive · 22 negative
95% range 64–82%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 64 | 22 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 0 | 0 | 0 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
2 newer reactions are still waiting for a label.
Steam's own rating
Mostly Positive
96 of 131 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What people are saying
Summary pending — the reactions are listed below.
Critics, per Wikipedia
Lights Out received "mixed or average reviews". It holds an aggregate score of 66 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on twenty reviews. Adventure Gamers' Dan Ravipinto scored the game 3.5 out of 5. He praised Boakes for trying new things, but felt some of them didn't work; "ultimately the game does not play out as well as the original with regards to both the story and the gameplay, but in the end, it's an admirable attempt." He was critical of both the time travel aspect of the story, and the science fiction elements introduced towards the end, although he praised the game's improved graphics. He concluded "ultimately, the new directions the game goes in dilute the qualities that made the…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 88 · most liked firstAfter completing Dark Fall: The Journal, I was very eager to try out Lights Out. This game did not disappoint. I was a little bit surprised at the science fiction tone that the game took near the end, but it did not spoil the overall experience. I really don't want to spoil the story. Suffice it to say, you begin in 1912, then travel to 2004, 2090 B.C., and finally 2040 A.D. to solve a mystery surrounding the lighthouse on Fetch Rock. I love the look of this game. My favorite parts of the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Dark Fall 2: Lights Out; Director's cut version is a spooky firstperson-point&click game. Warning: being an old-game, you NEED pen&paper to note the clues because THERE ISN'T diary, so no evidences or hints you'll discover or progress you'll make will be recorded! Also no maps, at all! So, unless you have the precious (and very enviable!) gift of an eidetic memory, you have to use the still reliable instruments of pen&paper to help you get to the end of this story! Warning2: it's a game of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As an adventure game coinneseur but also as someone that is terrible at adventure games I had a hard time after the first hour or so knowing what to do. The game's atmosphere is interesting but the gameplay is padded out since there is really only one location you spend all your time in, with differant time line scenarios. I found myself consulting a walkthrough with most of this game as I was sincerely frustrated throughout. Still, for the price it could be worth your time. I love…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →In theory this game could have been great. I really liked the different milieus and the genre shifts. There were moments when I was genuinely spooked although I knew there would be no jumpscares and no possibility of dying. The gameplay mechanics were however so frustrating that I can't recommend this game, even though I personally enjoyed it because of the story. Cons: - the disorienting and dizzying task of trying to find every possible viewpoint to find the one exact view with an essential…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Wonderfully atmospheric with a twist in the tail. Very much obvously descended from the original Dark Fall, but only a few minor references link the 2 story wise so it matters not which order you play them in. Its great atmsphere more than makes up for the 'slide show' graphics, as with the original. If you enjoy point and click adventure and atmospheric/suspense horror than it may well be your cup of tea. It is not visceral, or bloody or graphic, but it definitely sent shivers up my spine…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this game. First, there is no subtitles at all (strange, considering the #1, had them), and the talking, arguability little, use quite thick accents or are purposedely distorted, so it's very hard for a non-native english speaker to get what is said. Second, the game is really hard to complete without a walkthroug. I mean, I'm not a novice at adventure games, but often this one just doesn't give any hint at what to do next. The last 25/30% of the game can…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A bit better than Dark Fall 1 but still poorly conceived Read my review for Dark Fall 1 [url=steamcommunity.com/id/badhairqueen/recommended/260690/]here first. This game suffers from almost all the same faults, except the graphics are of a better resolution. Some things I hated - No opening sequence. Game just starts. - You are allowed to zoom in on stuff, only to find nothing there. - No item labels. No descriptions. Nothing. - Ugly conversation scene with a man at start of game. You see…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →(Please note that my time in-game doesn't reflect the actual amount of time in-game, as I played with someone else using their copy) Dark Fall 2: Lights Out is a horror game by Johnathan Boakes, and the sequel to the game Dark Fall: The Journal. In this game, you play as Benjamin Parker, a young cartographer in 1912 tasked with looking into the mysterious disappearance of the 3 keepers of the Fetch Rock lighthouse. Although there are a few small references to the first game, Dark Fall 2 is a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a good adventure with a very elaborate world. Although puzzles are quite simple, literally there are no puzzles, but search for clues, this game is still decent. Only one disappointment is the ending, it's a little abstract. And bug with starting/ending movies doesn't add any charm to the game, these movies are just absent. But this game is still worth your time.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →+ thrilling game with an interesting story - rought graphics, but that wasn't bothering me - at times a bit tricky and frustrating tasks
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The original Dark Fall came from a school of adventure gaming that really isn’t around anymore, the old Myst rendered-image hunts of yore. We’ve moved away from those for good reason, because they can be frustratingly obtuse and irritating to navigate, but that’s not to say they can’t be good games. Dark Fall 1 made a decent show of it in the limited realm of a haunted train station, and Dark Fall 2 tries to do the same with a haunted lighthouse. Unfortunately, the places where 2 tries to be…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game reminded me of the Tom Baker Doctor Who episodes of 'Horror of Fang Rock' (fetch/fang rock - similar?). The creators were obviously sci-fi fans as 'Sapphire and Steel' is one of the magazines when hunting around. Great game!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As a fan of point-and-click adventure games I really like this series. Dark Fall 2 was a great addition. Definitely easier and more straight forward than Dark Fall 1 but still left plenty of challenge to enjoy. The story wasnt quite as interesting as the first game but still kept you immersed. Definitely a must play if you enjoyed the first installment!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →First off, I really love darkling room's games! I've finished all of the games they have out except for this one. The writing was really bad, and was hard to take seriously. I understand the trope of "there are notes around, and that's how you're learning about the story" but with this one, the notes didn't make sense at all. Person A's note is in one room and person B's reply is in the next room, and person A's followup reply is in the next. All were clearly written in the room you found…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very fun point and click adventure that has a lot more than meets the eye to it. This is not some simple survival horror game. It's much more and a lot less about scaring or causing fear and more really about discovery and realization about what really is going on. Some difficult puzzles - try not to use a walkthru and really try your best at this one. It's good!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Darkfall 2 has a deep story, albeit quite sci-fi-heavy and at times confusing. Writing down notes is a must in this game because there's no in-game journal to help you keep track of the clues and information you find. Some of the game mechanics may not initially be clear and may require a glance at a walkthrough, but all the puzzles make sense which is what really matters. A great successor to Darkfall 1!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'm sure it was a decent point-and-click and puzzle indie game in its time, but in 2024, this game is just too old to play. I'm surprised this game was created in 2004, because the graphics, interface, resolution, controls, and gameplay actually scream mid-90's! Unless you're so desperate for a puzzle game, this antique game is not worth trying to play in 2024 because it just hasn't aged well.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What makes this one great is how non-linear it is, although it didn't seem that way at first. There's more to the old lighthouse than meets the eye, and there are a couple big surprises. I recommend against any walkthrus, as this game has some twists that could be spoiled easily if you like the thrill of discovery. The puzzles actually make sense in the context of the story or have documents that spell the solutions out, if you can find them. One solution in particular, towards the end of the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Horrible navigation like Myst, left the room, just going in circles with no direction. Unplayable.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Dark Fall 2: Lights Out is the sequel to Dark Fall 1: The Journal and mixes psychological horror with supernatural mystery. You play as Benjamin Parker, a cartographer who's looking into why lighthouse keepers keep disappearing on Fetch Rock Island. The game jumps around in time, taking you from 1912 to 2090 BC and even 2040 AD. There are sci-fi elements mixed with the horror this time around. Like the previous game, it doesn't have any combat or jump scares. You work with point-and-click…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →There are no subtitles available which makes the game a lot less understandable and enjoyable, esp. to non native English speakers. If you can not play without subtitles just skip this game and try different one from Dark Fall series. You need to manually download and install QuickTime otherwise intro and final cutscene will not play. I like how the plot is unravelled just through various letters, notes, clues etc. There are many places to explore and gather information to piece it all…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really like this game. The spooky atmosphere is done really well, exploring the abandoned lighthouse and learning about the strange disappearances. I love that the game is based on real life disappearances, and I love the poem that they reference a lot. Seeing the lighthouse in different ways was really interesting, and I liked it overall. I've played the original version as well as Steam's Director's Cut version. The Director's Cut does add and change quite a few things from the original,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game! I was so unprepared for how cool it was! It was not at all what I expected, but was better actually. I finished this game weeks ago and forgot to review immediately, but I've been thinking about it ever since I finished. Crazy concept. I actually started playing the Dark Fall games in an attempt to find something that could satiate the Nancy Drew game desire I have. These games are good, but not necessarily similar to Nancy. They have far less structure to them, which can be…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Dark Fall II: Lights Out is a quietly ambitious psychological horror adventure that builds on the foundations of the first Dark Fall while pushing its ideas in stranger and more cerebral directions. Developed by Darkling Room and published by THQ Nordic on Steam, the game embraces a deliberately slow, investigative pace, asking the player to engage with mystery, atmosphere, and abstract storytelling rather than overt scares or action. It is a game that demands patience and attention, rewarding…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Join me for some spooky Halloween gaming as we visit a haunted lighthouse and deal with my seeming inability to play a game with Dark Fall 2: Lights Out. youtu.be/cx_Gt_reCio
unlabelledView post →I'll just stop now, right at the beginning. This game feels wrong. Although it is the same engine and theme as the first, it is obtuse, cliché and boring. It feels like the bad rip off of dark fall 1 the journal. It's subtle but it's there. Everything that made Dark Fall 1 great, is gone. Everything that made Dark Fall 1 a pain, has been magnified a thousandfold. You played DF1 and got accustomed to the awful way of navigating because, at least, it suited the regular plant of the hotel? The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good old game. Don't feel bad resorting to a guide, this one is big and the next step is not always made clear. fun story though.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I grew up as a teenager playing the Dark Fall games - being an avid Myst / point n click game fan, and also delving into game design myself. It was cool to play games that were in that same style, and the wonderful aspect to Dark Fall is that it had the creepy ghost elements to them. Dark Fall 1 was fantastic in building the suspense and hair-standing-on-edge tingling feeling. In fact, causing my eyes to water, as it was having such an effect on me. This could be a combination of how the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Probably my favourite dark fall game, which is more archaic and similar to old school myst type adventure games.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a 15 year old point and click adventure game with a horror theme. Unfortunately the game runs at very low resolution, 4:3 aspect ratio and works very poorly on modern systems. Some games don't age well and this is one of them.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Darkling Room's sequel to Dark Fall: The Journal, Dark Fall: Light's Out ended up being quite disappointing compared to its predecessor. I wanted to like it, due to the fact I'm a massive fan of Dark Fall, and the Lost Crown also, but this game was very mediocre and I didn't enjoy it at all. As much as I loved the atmosphere and visuals, the story was uninteresting and the gameplay was too confusing. Overall I wouldn't recommend this, and would point you in the direction of Dark Fall: The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After having loved Dark Fall: The Journal, I waited a long time to play this one, but I finally dug in. Long story short: I liked it, and I can strongly recommend it. It wasn't all that I expected, though, and I have to say I liked The Journal a bit better. Warning: This is a point-and-click game, NOT survival horror. Thus, whether you can die or not is entirely irrelevant, as is replayability. So, within the genre: YES YES YES: + Artwork is fantastic, the atmosphere is eerie and creepy, but…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A mix of a sci-fi and horror, but more on the sci-fi part.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'd hate to say that it's simply more of the same, but it is. Still, it's a new scenario and freshens things up. If you do like the first game, which you should play first, this one just gives you more to sink your teeth into.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Really Enjoyed the game though it needs some real Horror
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very recommended. A good second entry in the Dark Fall series. It has a very good and compelling story with a good dark atmosphere. Brace yourself for a real challenge though, cause the game can get very cryptic at times and suffers from some of the issues and limitations of it's time. But if you like old school adventure games you'll enjoy this one.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →BE WARNED ALL YE WHO ENTER IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD 2025 AND BEYOND. Please be aware this is the DIRECTOR'S CUT and all written walkthroughs I could find DO NOT APPLY. I will explain as best I can without spoiling. This is a solid game and for $2, you cannot go wrong, but there are a few frustrating and unavoidable differences that make no sense, between the director's cut and the original. If you require a walkthough I recommend googling "Dark Fall 2 Lights Out Director's Cut" and finding…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The classic, and still working decades later!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Have you played Dark Fall : The Journal and Dark Fall 2: Lights Out? store.steampowered.com/app/260690/D... store.steampowered.com/app/260710/D...
unlabelledView post →alittle hard but awsome
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Not as scary/good as 1, but interesting with some surprise twists. DF storyline progresses.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Cant recommend this series of games enough! Totally absorbing
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Another terrific game by Mr Boakes, with a new mystery to solve. This time around the events take place in and around the troubled Fetch Rock Lighthouse. As usual, the story takes centre stage, as it is expertly told through several forms of communication. The graphics, sound, music and voicing are all very well done, and (mostly) brilliantly structured. The amount of detail is, again, incredible. It does take a little getting used to the mechanics of the game as there isn't a tutorial and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is very different from its predecessor, but I feel like that is a good thing. While the original Dark Fall will always be a revelation, I enjoyed exploring a different story in a different setting that had the same general feel; the lighthouse setting was very cool. Loved jumping through time and the eerie story & characters as well as the puzzles. I know the ending has been considered a bit of a letdown by some, but I actually thought it was quite interesting and not what I was…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Just like the first one its less interesting into a ruthless gang of blowing your cover top! I cant see why people seem to like these kinda games,maybe its the environment cause its very different and unnatural to some apple brigading extent! The horror is there but it never makes me want to continue on! Accidentally i go head to head on a multiplayer shooter then this blown up mess! Im sorry but its not recommended for me at least!!! PASS on this one and play a game called LISA love the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Worst of the three games but not by much its still got great atmosphere and good puzzles just not enough scares. Needs to be a better psychologicalness about it. So long as it stays below 5 pounds deffo a decent buy.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is good, but I cant recommend, sorry. I like the mistery, the artists are good, but the game engine from Macromedia is so terrible, is sooooooo baaaaaad, I keep skipping a number of puzzles just because the mouse icon dont change, and then I get stuck often and have to get the internet walkthrough. IF YOU NEED HELP ON A MISTERY NOVEL, THERE IS NO MISTERY. Just do this, then go here do that. The game as it is, it is NOT playable. Sorry, dont play this.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Couldn't even get on the boat, did everything said in walkthroughs to try and progress but couldn't.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I recommend this game - with caveats. I will preface my remarks with the comment I purchased Dark Fall I and 2 for the princely sum of 2 bucks. I say this because the amount to game play and entertainment certainly makes the purchase price a real bargain. That being said, there are definitely a few issues that I had with the game. Primarily it has to do with the navigation of the game play. To say it was quirky would be an understatement. There were times I was ready to throw the game…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →when this byotch polly slips me a map under the door, i'll come edit this review
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Poor unfortunate souls ^^ I love that studio ^^
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It may be old but its a classic ! A truly atmospheric blend of MR James style ghost story, with a Sci-fi time travel twist in which a certain Sapphire and Steel wouldn't be out of place. A perfect game for those long winter nights and an excellent sequel to the original Dark Fall. Every few years I have to come back and lose myself on Fetch Rock and it never fails to enthral. I for one cannot wait for the next instalment on a decaying pier. Come on Jonathan !
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Completed the game in just under 14 hours with VERY light walkthrough help, for reasons I will describe in the spoilers. Very much enjoyed the worldbuilding and general progress on top of the prior game-- certain transitions within the game from one environment to the next made my jaw drop and I'm very glad they happened when they did pacing-wise. Having played a fair number of adventure games I wanted to outline some "Riven doors" below: The top of the ladder in the lamproom in 2004 is above…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the most intriguing stories I've encountered in a point and click game that had me fixated the entire time
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very very neat mystery, creepy point&click puzzle game! involved and interesting story, and very neat environments.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was pretty disappointed in this game. So I started out with the Darkling Room games by playing The Lost Crown, and the rich atmosphere captivated me. I'm still thinking about it here and there, despite its issues - so much so, in fact, that when I saw Dark Fall 1 and 2 were on sale for the Lovecraft Fest, I figured I would give them a shot, because why not? Dark Fall 1 was unbelievably spellbinding, to the point that I still haven't figured out how to phrase my praise of it in a review. I…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I loved the first Dark Fall game but this one is a mess. several bugs prevented me from going further and the game just doesn't have the same amount of polish of the first one. I'm sad.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Liked: Good fun game with lots of intrigue and a good plot. Loved the creativity in the portals going to different scenes. Loved the play on time, probably best part of the game. The puzzles were generally good, some easy some harder and more complex. Disliked: I spent too much time on a key puzzle which was, in my opinion, illogical. I think those who have played know which one that is. It’s Drake’s closet puzzle. Without giving it away, think about it, developers should know that…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →An old, atmospheric mystery game. The biggest mystery about it is that Steam shows me having played it for 5 hours, but I don't recall even installing it yet. Huh, perhaps I'll reinstall it this Halloween and refresh my memory.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →While it's not quite as good as the excellent Dark Fall: The Journal - the puzzles are fewer, simpler, and more linear, and the environments are decidedly more difficult to navigate - Lights Out is still a solid entry in the series.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.