Darklight Conflict is a space combat simulator video game developed by Rage Software and published by Electronic Arts in 1997 for the MS-DOS, and the Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation game consoles. Players take on the part of a contemporary human fighter pilot abducted by the alien Repton species during an aerial battle, and biologically modified to become a starfighter pilot for them in their war against the Evil Ovon race.

The Story Behind Darklight Conflict

After the player character completes the four campaigns and destroys the Ovon home-world for the Reptons, the Reptons send their best pilots to kill the player character. The player character escapes and jumps to Earth, where centuries have passed since the player character left. The ship is greeted by the Earth Defense Fleet, which destroys all Repton ships in hot pursuit.

Darklight Conflict is a space combat simulator video game developed by Rage Software and published by Electronic Arts in 1997 for the MS-DOS, and the Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation game consoles. Players take on the part of a contemporary human fighter pilot abducted by the alien Repton species during an aerial battle, and biologically modified to become a starfighter pilot for them in their war against the Evil Ovon race.

How Darklight Conflict Plays

Darklight Conflict is a space combat simulator video game developed by Rage Software and published by Electronic Arts in 1997 for the MS-DOS, and the Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation game consoles. Darklight Conflict has several multiplayer modes, including deathmatch, team battles, and space combat variations of tag and capture the flag. The player pilots one of three different starfighters, each with different strengths and weaknesses, and occasionally a captured enemy ship, or controlling a gun turret on the Mothership (The "War Drum").

The player's ship moves between mission areas via "hyperspace portals", passing through a hyper-space environment, resembling that seen in 2001: A Space Odyssey. After the player character completes the four campaigns and destroys the Ovon home-world for the Reptons, the Reptons send their best pilots to kill the player character. The player character escapes and jumps to Earth, where centuries have passed since the player character left.

Why Players Still Load It Up

He and EGMs Crispin Boyer and Sushi-X found the oversensitive controls with no support for analog controllers to be an annoyance which greatly aggravates the already frustrating difficulty; Boyer elaborated that "you're forced to tap, tap, tap until you're on target." GamePro, however, contended that "The control is a bit twitchy at first, but is very solid once you get used to it." Critics also disagreed about the game's lack of story. Next Generation reasoned, "As excessive and ungameplay-focused as the FMV sequences in Wing Commander IV are, at least they give the player a face to identify with, and maybe even an emotional connection. Players take on the part of a contemporary human fighter pilot abducted by the alien Repton species during an aerial battle, and biologically modified to become a starfighter pilot for them in their war against the Evil Ovon race.

Boyer, Hsu, and Next Generation all argued that despite the varying objectives, the missions all boil down to the same requisite skills, making for an extremely repetitive gaming experience. Electronic Gaming Monthlys Dan Hsu and Next Generation said the graphics in general are superior to those of the game's closest competitor, the PlayStation version of Wing Commander IV, though the Next Generation reviewer added that they still come as a disappointment compared to the PC version of Darklight Conflict. In contrast, GamePro and Sega Saturn Magazine praised the variety afforded by the missions, with SSM adding that "the action continues all the way through with some complex and well designed duties".

Darklight Conflict — Frequently Asked Questions