The Dark Mod

The Dark Mod
Engine id Tech 4
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Linux
OS X
Release date(s) October 17, 2009 (Doom 3 mod)
October 8, 2013 (standalone game)
Genre(s) Stealth
Mode(s) Single-player

The Dark Mod is free and open-source software first-person stealth video game, inspired by the Thief series by Looking Glass Studios. The game provides the basic framework and tools - engine, assets, models, an editor - for more than 80 fan-made missions, including several multi-mission campaigns. The Dark Mod was first released in 2009 as a total conversion mod for Doom 3. Version 2.0 was released in October 2013 as a standalone game using the open-source id Tech 4 game engine.

Gameplay

The Dark Mod takes place in a classic gothic steampunk world. This includes a crossover of elements of fantasy, the Late Middle Ages, the Victorian era and the Industrial Revolution. Although set in a very similar world to that of the original Thief series, the mod does not use any of the original Thief intellectual property.

The player is an agile thief in a hostile world. He has to use his equipment and the environment to avoid guards, traps, creatures or other threats. His equipment include a blackjack, water arrows, holy water, flashbombs, mines, and more. Since the player has only a limited fighting capability, he is supposed to sneak and hide in dark, mostly avoiding combat. The plot and mission goals are set by the author of the fan mission or campaign.

Development

The Dark Mod was originally released as a total conversion modification for Doom 3, but with the release of version 2.0 it became completely standalone on the id Tech 4 game engine. The game's source code is licensed under the GNU General Public License 3 and all other non-software components are under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA.[1]

The mod was originally developed as a toolkit. It includes models, sounds, AI, art, tools, and a specialised editor for users to create custom missions. The development of the mod started in 2004, and the first Beta was released in 2008, along with its first mission. In October 2009, v 1.0 was released. In October 2013 version 2.0 was released as a standalone game that included two missions created by the development team. The current version is v 2.04,[2] with over 80 fan-made missions available, and a lengthy campaign titled "Crucible of Omens" in development.[3][4]

With dhewm3 there is a fork of the id Tech 4 game engine that was ported to CMake, 64-bit, etc.,[5] but this is not used. Thus, it is not possible to play The Dark Mod on a 64-bit Linux build without downloading separate 32-bit compatibility patches.[6]

Reception

The Dark Mod has been featured and reviewed by a number of game magazines, websites and blogs. Examples include the Dutch magazine PC Game Play,[7] the blog Kotaku,[8] the British magazine PC Gamer,[9] the German magazine PC Games[10] and the British gaming blog Rock, Paper, Shotgun.[11]

After going standalone the project received substantial coverage from Destructoid[12] and Joystiq.[13]

The Dark Mod won PC Gamer UK's Game of the Year award (mod category) for 2013,[14] and has been distributed on several magazine cover DVDs.[15] In 2016 The Dark Mod was listed as #2 in the "The 50 best free PC games" list by PC Gamer.[16]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Dark Mod license.txt". Retrieved 2015-09-20.
  2. ↑ "Announcing the new The Dark Mod 2.04 update!". The Dark Mod. 2016-07-19.
  3. ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions". The Dark Mod. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  4. ↑ "Crucible of Omens June Update news - The Dark Mod for Doom III". Mod DB. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  5. ↑ "dhewm/dhewm3 · GitHub". Github.com. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  6. ↑ "Download the Mod". The Dark Mod. 2015-02-08. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  7. ↑ PC Game Play, May 2011 Issue
  8. ↑ "The dark mod News, Videos, Reviews and Gossip". Kotaku. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  9. ↑ Sykes, Tom (21 October 2012). "Get your stealth fix with The Dark Mod, the Thief total conversion for Doom 3". PCGamer. PCGamer. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  10. ↑ "Mod des Tages: The Dark Mod - Tears of Saint Lucia für Doom 3". Pcgames.de. 2015-09-14. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  11. ↑ Meer, Alec (2012-10-22). "Outta Dunwall: Thief Remake The Dark Mod Updates". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  12. ↑ "Thief-inspired The Dark Mod is now a standalone release". Destructoid.com. 2014-01-15. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  13. ↑ "Thief homage The Dark Mod steals spotlight for itself, goes standalone". Joystiq.com. 2013-10-13. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  14. ↑ "Mod of the year: The Dark Mod". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2015-09-20.
  15. ↑ Gamestar (Germany) January 2014; PC Master (Greece) December 2013; Oyungezer (Turkey) December 2013
  16. ↑ "The 50 best free PC games" on pcgamer.com (2016)
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