At Sundown: Shots in the Dark - PlayStation 4 Review

Let the dark hide your carnage

Game Info

  • System: PS4, Nintendo Switch, PC, Xbox One
  • Publisher: Versus Evil
  • Developer: Mild Beast Games
  • Release Date: January 22, 2019

Who it Caters to

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Need a new party game to play with friends but are tired of the typical mini-games? If that’s a resounding yes then you’re in need of a stealth based action-shooter that is fun, frantic and all too intense! At Sundown: Shots in the Dark delivers to players a 4 player versus title with an emphasis on high octane action and stealth working in perfect harmony. We here at Honey’s Anime put several hours into this multiplayer focused title and have a review you’re not going to want to miss! Keep on reading down below as we dive into the darkness themed stealth action title, At Sundown: Shots in the Dark!

What to Expect

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At Sundown: Shots in the Dark is a top down third person action/stealth game with a focus on staying hidden to take out your enemies. Players are thrown into various maps with light being taken away keeping players position away from others and at times…yourself. You’ll need to rely on strategic use of skills and weaponry to take out unsuspecting enemies and earn points to stand as the victor. The more you play At Sundown: Shots in the Dark, the more you’ll unlock with different maps and zone as well as weapons and gameplay modes. At Sundown: Shots in the Dark offers online multiplayer for up to 4 players, local 4 player and/or AI bots to fill in the empty seats.


Story

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At Sundown: Shots in the Dark doesn’t have a main story. Players choose from one of several characters, arm themselves with various weapons and enter into an arena where stealth and quick movement are keys to victory. Each arena has different levels of darkness making players ease around corners to unleash deadly shots on their enemies with a precision of luck and quick thinking. With each game having a timer and a kill count, the pressure to keep moving despite being lost in darkness grows with each passing second. Will you come out on top and be the best or be left for dead in the darkness as the victor stands proud? Ready up and let the best man—or woman—win in At Sundown: Shots in the Dark!

Gameplay

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Developer Mild Beast Games is new to the gaming world and you always have to wonder how a new team’s first outing into the video game market will go. Here at Honey’s Anime, we have personally witnessed many new developers do quite well in this oversaturated market, but equally, we have seen some studios fall as quickly as they rose. That’s why when we got Mild Beast Game’s entry title, At Sundown: Shots in the Dark, we went in with both high excitement and a bit of fear. Does At Sundown: Shots in the Dark provide this new studio a chance at making it big in the gaming landscape? Let’s find out together as we review At Sundown: Shots in the Dark for the PS4!

At Sundown: Shots in the Dark as we mentioned above is a top down stealth/action title with a multiplayer focus. Players choose between several characters—the choice is just cosmetic though—and then choose a weapon to use as well as the map they will play on. From here, you alongside 3 others—for a total of four—are thrown onto a map where darkness reigns supreme. What exactly does this mean though? We’re glad you asked reader! We’ll explain in further detail what you can expect when playing At Sundown: Shots in the Dark.

Due to the darkness of the various maps—light is minimal—you will be unable to see your character for most of the match. You’ll need to rely on well timed shots or attacks from your weapon to show your position on the map and equally need to use various skills to ascertain your position. Running or dodging for example, gives players a slight mist cloud behind them that correlates to the color your character represents that match. The same will happen when you shoot off a shot or attack which will show your position briefly allowing you to make your next move. However, while being visible obviously helps you as a player, it also helps your opponents see your position and know where you’re at. This is where At Sundown: Shots in the Dark shines brightest. Every action and movement can both help you and also give you away leading to a desperate need of constantly knowing when to reveal yourself—for yourself or to set someone up—and when to rely on vibrations from the controller when you hit a wall or using the maps few areas of lights. At Sundown: Shots in the Dark does occasionally pull sneaky—random—moves like showing everyone’s position on the map or altering the lighting overall which makes even the most carefully executed stealth plans fail for those unprepared.

If what we mentioned a second ago seems really simple, that’s because it is just that…simple. At Sundown: Shots in the Dark works so well as an indie multiplayer game due to its simple but intriguing gameplay set up. Mastering weapon types and how your movements work for and against you doesn’t take longer than an hour or so, but the same applies for every player of At Sundown: Shots in the Dark. Ultimately, everyone is on the same level of play while engaging in At Sundown: Shots in the Dark making every game frantic and extremely fun. Even if you play alone with bots—which might be a viable option when we explain the one issue with At Sundown: Shots in the Dark—you’ll never feel like a match was in favor of one player.

Now as perfect as At Sundown: Shots in the Dark sounds, there is one glaring flaw we found shining through its amazing gameplay. When we went online to play At Sundown: Shots in the Dark, we noticed a complete lack of player base. We tried hosting rooms and even doing random ones but to no avail. We had to rely on bots with one other real player to do our review of At Sundown: Shots in the Dark and that shows that right now, At Sundown: Shots in the Dark isn’t well known. We can understand that given its release was alongside titans like Kingdom Hearts III and Resident Evil 2 but if this continues being an issue for At Sundown: Shots in the Dark then we can see a problem months later appearing. At Sundown: Shots in the Dark will lose its fun as you never get to play with others unless you rely on bots or real players locally all the time. Add to this with several different gameplay modes each offering a multitude of gameplay presentations that keep At Sundown: Shots in the Dark and you’ll see even playing with only one other person and the rest as bots doesn’t degrade this stealth/action title in the slightest.

Ending our review on a good note though, we have to give it to the music and art style department for At Sundown: Shots in the Dark. We loved how At Sundown: Shots in the Dark looked with its awesome use of colors despite what seems like a very dark title. The music also worked quite well giving At Sundown: Shots in the Dark a feel of futuristic techno thanks to its dubstep and electronica. Both elements make At Sundown: Shots in the Dark stand out as a very original looking and sounding game in a sea of similar titles.


Honey's Gameplay Consensus:

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At Sundown: Shots in the Dark is a very simple title that despite its simplicity works quite well at delivering a fun and intense multiplayer title. With the several weapons to choose from and the various maps that give everyone a fair shot regardless of weapon choice, At Sundown: Shots in the Dark becomes a game where skill and luck go hand in hand. You can hope that you spawn in behind the enemy and not in front of them while your enemy can hope they aren’t revealed at the worst opportune moment. That’s why in terms of gameplay and content, At Sundown: Shots in the Dark works incredibly well. The only issues we see plaguing At Sundown: Shots in the Dark is the low player based that made finding games online—at least for the PS4—a test of patience. If you don’t have four friends to play with you locally, you’ll have to rely on the bots which doesn’t turn out to be too boring as bots can be changed in difficulty to suit your play style. At Sundown: Shots in the Dark is a solid stealth/action title and we really think many players who enjoy multiplayer themed titles will love what developer Mild Beast Games did with this game.

Honey's Pros:

  • Simple gameplay that has just enough concepts to allow mastery and skill to take over as you play
  • All the weapons you unlock are fun and add to different styles to gameplay for each player
  • Playing solo doesn’t feel boring thanks to bots who are quite tough even on medium difficulty
  • Awesome soundtrack that works in tangent with the game’s art style and themes

Honey's Cons:

  • Low player base online could lead to longevity issues

Honey's Final Verdict:

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It’s rare that we find an indie title like At Sundown: Shots in the Dark with so few issues. The gameplay works incredibly well despite its simplicity and there’s a nice amount of content to enjoy single player or multiplayer wise. We do hope more people begin to play At Sundown: Shots in the Dark as we can see the lack of player base might ruin the lasting appeal but for now, we think this title gives enough to keep it going for some time. Are you thinking of downloading At Sundown: Shots in the Dark? Comment below why and if you’re playing already, let us know what you think about this awesome title. If you’re looking for more game reviews or anime themed articles be sure to keep stuck to our hive here at Honey’s Anime!

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Writer

Author: Aaron

Hey everyone I’m Aaron Curbelo or Blade as I’m called by my YouTube Subscribers. I’ve been an anime/manga fan since I was a young kid. In terms of anime I have watched nearly a thousand shows and have read hundreds of manga series. I love writing and honestly was so happy to join Honey’s Anime to get a shot to write articles for such a wonderful site. I’m a firm believer in respect in the anime community being the most important embodiment we should all have. We all love anime and we have varying opinions of series but we should respect one another for those differences! Life is too precious to spend it making needless arguments in a community that should be the shining example of loving an amazing medium. I hope as a writer for Honey’s Anime I can bring you folks some amazing articles to read and enjoy!

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