Darkfield’s Arcade
It is a virtual realm where the binding terms and conditions must be agreed to before entering, with no refreshments to be provided at the orientation, perhaps regarded as a distraction when strict attention must be paid to the instructions and the required performance metrics, reaction times critical when responding to the spoken prompts.
There are mentions of endless war, of underground tunnels full of monsters, of lawlessness on the outskirts to the north, and each person progresses alone, attempting to interact but unable to change the walls of the maze, handed a gun and told to use it when directed, an offer to which no discussion is encouraged or refusal allowed…
Darkfield’s sensory deprivation surround sound interludes taking place in the profound darkness of sealed shipping containers, following Flight, Séance and Eulogy they present Arcade, the participants stood at mocked up video game cabinets though the control they have is debatable, the one-second rule perhaps enforced so the player will blame themselves for failing to respond with sufficient alacrity when choices are almost invariably overruled.
All control vanishing in the final seconds, Arcade is unsettling though beyond a single entirely unexpected shock it does not push the Darkfield brand in a new direction, the whispered voice of the protagonist passive as they are guided through narrative cul-de-sacs, more a blind first person shooter than an arcade game and other than flashes of light failing to capitalise on what might be done with the visual promise of the iconic cabinet games, even briefly.
Darkfield’s Arcade continues at Summerhall until Monday 26th August
