Description of Dark Seed II
A "more of the same" sequel to Cyberdreams' atmospheric Dark Seed, Dark Seed II features better graphics and more stunning, nightmarish artwork from Alien designer H.R.
Giger, but a much less interesting plot and more banal puzzles than its predecessor. One year after events chronicled in Dark Seed, Mike Dawson is back, still suffering from headaches and nightmares. He returns to his hometown to recuperate, only to find that he's a prime suspect of murdering Rita Scanlon, his ex-girlfriend. The problem for Mike, naturally, is that he cannot remember what happened on that night.. the night that he may have been the last person to see Rita alive. Anyone who has played Dark Seed will be familiar with what happens next: you must travel once more through the portal that links your world to the nightmarish Dark World to confront your old enemies, the evil 'Ancients,' who are busy hatching the Behemoth that will soon be able to cross over to destroy Mike's world.
As in Dark Seed, Giger's 'biomechanical' artwork is used to contrast the bleak, alien Dark World with the mundane realities of Mike's hometown. With SVGA palette this time around, the effect is even more striking and truly brings Giger's fantastic visions to life. Unfortunately, they are used merely as static background pictures that quickly lose the "wow" appeal after you see it several times. What makes Dark Seed II a more inferior game than its predecessor is the severely linear gameplay that makes puzzle-solving a frustrating affair. You will often not be able to pick up an item you know you need, simply because the egghead Mike Dawson hasn't talked to enough people, or done something else that would make make the item's use painfully obvious.
Similarly, you cannot go to many locations until you have performed all the correct sequences-- even though the relationship between those actions and the locations is unclear. This extreme linearity is all the more frustrating because, in contrast to Dark Seed, there is no clock ticking away in the background that signal your progress. Fortunately, most puzzles are quite mundane and even boring, and simply involve a lot of travelling between the two worlds. The designers even throw in one dreadful maze, although you only need to navigate it twice in the entire game.
In conclusion, I find Dark Seed II a step backward from its predecessor. The plot, which starts out promising enough, quickly degenerates into another boring save-the-world-from-alien plot, thus never achieves the same spine-tingling, look-behind-your-back effect that the first game does as a psychological thriller. Giger's artwork, while characteristically horrific and fascinating, is merely a static backdrop that never truly comes alive.
Review By HOTUD
External links
Captures and Snapshots
Comments and reviews
Old pc gamer 2023-12-16 -1 point Windows 3.x version
Eu consegui rodar esse jogo no magic dosbox
Oifan 2020-11-21 2 points Windows 3.x version
@GLITCH Try using this 7-zip archive: https://mega.nz/file/6BNEBJrK#hbTzAr75t_BXt48MgAKxiw5eaqHI595tx_mBNNfTaMk
Or if you like installation packages, you can try this: https://collectionchamber.blogspot.com/2016/10/dark-seed-2.html
Jimmy Rompeolas 2020-08-23 1 point Windows 3.x version
@GLITCH: Same happens here, any solution?
gLitch 2019-09-12 1 point Windows 3.x version
Anybody knows why it freezes after first cutscene ? I've instaled it on win 3.11 using Dosbox
OS Insanity 2019-05-28 2 points Windows 3.x version
EFE: DOS and Windows 7 are different operating systems so games designed for one won't work in the other. DOSbox is a DOS emulator. This game wasn't written for DOS so it won't work in DOSbox. Windows 3.x was a program designed to work like an operating system that ran IN DOS. However, a game written for Windows 3.x will ONLY run in Windows 3.x.
The only way to emulate an environment for this game on a modern machine is to install Windows 3.x in DOSBox, then install this game from within Windows 3.x. It's a pain, but I have done this successfully with other games.
RPA 2019-04-04 1 point
. . . and now this summer’s (2019) third season of ‘Stranger Things’ will feature a town carnival and climactic scene in a hall of mirrors. Uh-huh . . . The Dark Seed parallels continue. ;-)
RPA 2018-05-05 6 points Windows 3.x version
Hey Prof, Here you go...
Found blog site: collectionchamber. The owner has created a complete Win10-friendly game package for DS2 – manuals and patches included – that downloads safely and works like a charm! (Note: During the quick 'Install' process, my computer appeared to freeze at 75%, but I clicked on a non-active part of the screen and the DL resumed to completion in another 30-60 secs. Enjoy your own 90's trip to H.R. Giger's 'Upside Down' world. ;-)
Prof 2018-04-06 2 points Windows 3.x version
Darkseed was such a great game. The graphics of Darkseed II are a[parently even better. It seems such a pity the second version is not playable on Win 10 64 bit unless soenody eould updsater the game.
Best Regards
RPA 2018-02-22 2 points
'Stranger Things' anyone? As soon as I started watching the brilliant Netflix series, I knew the Duffer brothers had to have played these Dark Seed games when they were younger. Even the menacing synth pace in the original game must be an influence on the TV show's sound during visits to the nether, 'Upside Down' world.
Thanks for offering this classic game series so we can - as adults! - again sojourn awhile among the surreal landscapes of the late Swiss master, H.R. Giger.
Efe 2017-03-30 1 point
Hello! Thanks a lot for this game. Question, does anybody know how to make it work on Windows 7? Or DOSBox
Misterschmoo 2013-05-05 1 point
I bought this game, I think it was in a bargain bin at the time, but I had to buy it as I had the same name as the main character, it is a silly game but still I enjoyed it.
Triacom 2011-11-02 -2 points
HORRIBLE GAME. Bad voice acting, hidden items, nonsense puzzles, a pushover main character, instant death, a horrible ending and delayed game overs make this a title to be missed.
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Windows 3.x Version
27 MB
186 MBMac Version
- Year: 1996
- Publisher: Cyberdreams, Inc.
- Developer: Cyberdreams, Inc., Destiny Software Productions, Inc.
SEGA Saturn ROM
- Year: 1997
- Publisher: B-Factory Co., Ltd.
- Developer: Cyberdreams, Inc., Destiny Software Productions, Inc.
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