This is one of the best games I've ever played. It's also one of the most merciless.

I'm sure some other veteran gamers can balk and scoff at that claim, and smugly point at other legendarily difficult titles. Sure, Dark Souls is more brutal. Fair enough, Ninja Gaiden was soul-wrenching. But Darkest Dungeon is up there because there's an emotional investment that doesn't quite materialize in many other 'hard' games.

I've wanted to throw my keyboard across the room before this, sure. But rarely has a game driven me to put my head in my hands and grimly start figuring out what I did wrong, what miscalculation led my best healer to her madness-driven (and very permanent - the ol' quitting and restarting trick will never work in this game) demise.

And you have to figure something out quick - cause there's three other poor bastards still down in that dungeon right now who need your guidance (or two, or even just one by now...). Do you try to run away and get your demoralized but alive troops the hell out of there, or plunge through and try to kill just one more monster to call this mission a success, so your beloved healer's (well, not at the end - she died shrieking verbal abuse at her teammates since she had lost her mind three rooms ago) sacrifice would not be all in vain?

But this self-reflection is also more profound with Darkest; it gives you a resolve to learn, and a stern promise that you will *never* allow this situation to happen again. A promise you will almost certainly break.

The balance of this, of course, is the reward - when you finally get that cursed mission done and all your good lads made it back in one piece. You know you're feeling in a serene place when you're literally toasting a computer screen containing four imaginary figures with a shot of whiskey. At 2 in the afternoon.

This review could, and deserves to be, a lot longer. But to make it snappy, this game is certainly not for everyone. Many won't like the autosave and permadeath. Some won't like the very gloomy atmosphere, between the grim artwork and soundtrack that even Dr. Lecter would find a bit morbid. If you're not into Lovecraft in any way, this game likely isn't your thing.

But even those uncomfortable with Darkest Dungeon can agree - the developers had a very specific goal in mind when they made this game, and I don't know if even they realize how well they made that goal a reality. So depending on your tastes, at worst you have a very well made RPG on your hands. At best, you have a game that redefines what you now expect from other games. And I can't think of higher praise to give than that.