Edward Carnby

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Edward Carnby
Game series	Alone in the Dark series
First game	Alone in the Dark
Created by	Infogrames

Edward Carnby is a fictional paranormal detective and the main protagonist in the Alone in the Dark series of survival horror computer games created by Infogrames. The series is widely credited as being one of the first survival horror games, further populated by Capcom's Resident Evil and Konami's Silent Hill franchises.^[1]

Edward Carnby is a reference to John Carnby, a character in the Cthulhu Mythos tale "Return of the Sorcerer" by Clark Ashton Smith.^[2]

Edward Carnby has featured in every Alone in the Dark game to date, with the exception of the promotional mini-game Jack in the Dark.^[3]

1 Alone in the Dark
2 Alone in the Dark 2
3 Alone in the Dark 3
4 Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare
5 Alone in the Dark (2008 video game)
6 Alone in the Dark (2005 film)
7 Comic Books
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Alone in the Dark

Alone in the Dark (released in 1992) was initially inspired by the work of H. P. Lovecraft, which in turn marked the beginning of a fully 3D gaming experience, that eventually became very standard and mainstream.

Players are giving the option to play as either "The Reptile" Edward Carnby or a lady named Emily Hartwood as they explore a haunted Louisiana mansion called Derceto in real 3D. Emily's uncle Jeremy committed suicide in the house because of his spiritual beliefs and subsequent ghostly encounters, as the player learns from viewing his various notes. Gameplay wise, neither protagonist has any character specific privileges or alternative endings. The only difference between the two is Emily's combat stance.

The game begins with a lengthy intro, in which either character enters the house and then makes their way up to the attic, to look for a note hidden inside a piano. Players soon encounter evil zombies and other assorted creatures, that attempt to kill you at every turn. In addition to this, you will perish if you attempt to exit the house. The continuity suggests that both protagonists entered the house and survived the ordeal.

You can either use firearms, knives or your bare hands and feet to counteract such foes. However, certain enemies must be avoided altogether in order to prevent instant death. Although characters can also die by falling off pillars, or by making the wrong choice during a puzzle.

In the end, Carnby and Emily survive their ordeal in Derceto by exploring all the rooms and finding their way out of a dark underground labyrinth.

[edit] Alone in the Dark 2

Carnby loses the moustache and gets a a new look. He is now referred to by his peers as the "Supernatural Private Eye" because of his ordeal in Derceto.

His first assignment is to investigate the kidnapping of a young girl named Grace Saunders, after she is taken hostage by the infamous pirate mobster, One Eyed Jack. Edward's friend and fellow investigator Ted Stryker was killed by the witch Elizabeth Jarret during an effort to save Grace at One Eyed Jack's mansion of Hell's Kitchen. It is up to Carnby to continue the investigation, in which he risks his own life to rescue Grace and put an end to One Eyed Jack and his henchmen.

Players alternate between Carnby and Grace during parts of the game as required, coming up against zombie gangsters armed with Tommyguns, as well as the voodoo witch queen Elizabeth Jarret, who is romantically involved with One Eyed Jack.

The game was ported to the PlayStation as Alone in the Dark: Jack is Back in the UK, and elsewhere as Alone in the Dark: One-Eyed Jack's Revenge. Carnby's attire was changed significantly, but otherwise the game remains the same.^[4]

Alone in the Dark 2 took a more linear approach than the original, opting for more action over puzzles and Survival horror. The game also caused some controversy upon its release, due to its then very graphic violence and excessive use of firearms. Detective Chief Superintendent Mick Burdis from South Yorkshire CID famously demanded that the game to be banned from sale to young children, saying, "It's sick. It can terrify them, damage their thought processes and make them insecure for life." Prompted by this, the Sheffield Star newspaper ran the headline, "Ban Kids From This Computer Sickness".^[5]

[edit] Alone in the Dark 3

In the last of the original trilogy, Carnby visits the ghost town Slaughter Gulch in the Mohave Desert to investigate the disappearance of a film crew. Since money is an issue, he only agrees to take on the case because his friend Emily Hartwood was a member of the film crew.

During the investigation, Carnby comes up against many dangers, including voodoo, invincible gunslingers, undead prospectors and the dreaded Jed Stone, who is responsible for Emily's disappearance...

At one point during the investigation, Carnby dies and is turned into a mountain lion. He must fulfil an important task before he can become human again. Eventually, Carnby saves Emily from Jed Stone, and they make a daring escape from Slaughter Gulch using an old railway.

[edit] Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare

The next Alone in the Dark game (released in 2001 at the height of the survival horror craze), reinvented Edward Carnby as a somewhat sarcastic and darker character reminiscent of Fox Mulder from The X-Files, while still maintaining his trademark "Supernatural Private Eye" gimmick that began in the original trilogy. Because the game takes place roughly 80 years after the original and Carnby has not aged, it is likely that the series is the subject of a floating timeline.

The game was released on the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PC, Dreamcast and Game Boy Color, although the Game Boy Color version is radically shorter and only takes around an hour to complete.

Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare is set in the fall of 2001 and plays more like a Resident Evil game, with a similar control system, fixed camera angles, and horrific situations reminiscent of the earlier Resident Evil games. The game itself can be considered a remake or a reimagining of the Alone in the Dark series, and wields distinctive torch lighting effects.

The main story involves Carnby reluctantly teaming up with Boston-based archaeologist Aline Cedrac to investigate the death of his best friend Charles Fiske on Shadow Island, just off of Maine. Aline secretly wanted to confirm her suspicions that the island's Professor Obed Morton was her long-lost father.

Things quickly go pear-shaped before they reach the island, and Carnby and Aline have to parachute from their seaplane. Following their separation, players can choose whether to play as Edward Carnby or Aline Cedrac. Carnby begins in Shadow Island's densely dark forest armed with a 6-shooter, while Aline ends up on the roof of the Morton's manor. Aline only has a flashlight which can repel the monsters. Both characters can communicate via their radio, adding more depth to the story.

Shortly after the game begins, Carnby encounters an injured man, who warns him of "creatures of darkness" before he disappears. The monsters inhabiting the island turn out to be the results of grisly experiments conducted by Alan and Obed Morton.

Carnby later enters the house and frees Aline from captivity, but Aline insists on going on alone, so Carnby gives her a boost so she can reach an attic. Upon meeting an old Indian named Edenshaw, Carnby quickly suspects him of knowing more than he reveals. Although his true motives seem unclear to Carnby, he requires Carnby and Aline to find several statues that depict animals. One of these statues is later obtained when Carnby performs a ritual, with words recorded on a cassette.

After exiting the mansion, Carnby later finds the seaplane stranded in a swamp, but is unable to save the fatally wounded pilot who ends up sinking to his death. Carnby also meets up with Aline and they both give each other an important item, before going their separate ways once more.

After another run in with Edenshaw, Carnby discovers the Morton's laboratory and dark history. With Aline's help, he recovers all four statues. Although Carnby later questions Edenshaw's role in everything, it becomes clear that Edenshaw is actually trying to stop Alan Morton from achieving the doomsday. In the end, Carnby and Aline finally defeat the Mortons in a deep underground cave and with the aid of Edenshaw, also prevent the apocalypse.

[edit] Alone in the Dark (2008 video game)

In late 2005, Atari revealed plans to make a new Alone in the Dark game for next-gen consoles, including the Xbox 360. Although details are limited at this time, it was confirmed that Edward Carnby will be the main character once again.^[6]

Set during 2008, the story continues with Edward Carnby, the main protagonist from the original game, looking for answers to strange supernatural and bizarre occurrences while battling his way through the opposition in New York City's Central Park. It has been mentioned by Atari in Play that this games incarnation of Edward Carnby, is the same Edward Carnby from the first three games, and that this game will explain how he managed to end up in the present day from the 1920's. Condensed portions of Alone in the Dark 5 were seen during the E3 2006 presentation.

[edit] Alone in the Dark (2005 film)

In 2005, Christian Slater starred as Edward Carnby in a movie loosely based on the game Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare. However, the movie was not well received by fans of the series. Many plot elements from the movie contradict those from the game. IMDb even had a placing for it on their top 100 worst movies list, although this alternates from time to time.^[7]

In the movie, Carnby is raised at an orphanage under Sister Clara. Carnby lost his memory when he was ten years old. At twenty, he was recruited by Bureau 713, gaining knowledge on the paranormal soon after. His current assignment is investigating his past along with researching the disappearance of the Abkani. Due to the experiments conducted on him as a child, he has the ability to sense paranormal activity and has increased strength and speed, which allow him to perform acrobatic moves that a normal human could not do.

With the help of Commander Burke and his girlfriend Aline Cedrac, Carnby manages to save the world once more. He will return for the next movie, to be released some time in 2009. Uwe Boll has had to replace Christian Slater with a Korean-American actor, Rick Yune, because his offer to reprise the role was declined.^[8]

[edit] Comic Books

An Alone in the Dark comic book entitled "Life is a Hideous Thing" was published by Semic Comics in 2001 in France, and translated by Image Comics in the U.S. in September 2002. It was also translated and published in Italy and Spain.

This comic book was written by Jean-Marc Lofficier and drawn by Matt Haley & Aleksi Briclot. Its story took place just before the Alone in the Dark 4: The New Nightmare game. It starred Edward Carnby and introduced Aline Cedrac, both on the trail of a mysterious conspiracy in Tibet.