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In 2015 Supermassive Games released Until Dawn and brought a new level of interactive horror to gamers. With the release of The Quarry, the company has taken the genre to a new level thanks in large part to the power of the new generation of gaming systems and graphic cards.

Unlike Until Dawn which was a PS4 exclusive, The Quarry is available on multiple platforms.

Using the same motion capture and a star-laden cast of Until Dawn, players are introduced to a group of councilors who have just seen their campers head home at the end of the summer.

Eager to get home and on with their college plans and lives, things take an unexpected turn when Jacob (Zach Tinker) decides to disable their van in the hopes that by staying an extra night he can convince Emma (Halston Sage), to not end their relationship which she viewed as a summer fling and with four states between them for school, something that cannot be maintained.

Despite the warnings of camp owner Chris (David Arquette) to stay inside with the doors locked, the kids decide to hold one more party and this is when things start to unravel. Players will take control of various players at random points of the story and this enables players to explore, gather clues, interact with objects and use weapons in rare instances.

The story is told over 10 chapters mainly set in one evening and the dangers that lurk are brutal and graphic when they arrive which means that stumbling around in the dark as the game often requires can have deadly results.

Players will have the option to make choices at several points during their gameplay and they can range from the tone used to answer a question or if they wish to run or hide from danger. There are other options as well as the intensity rises which all will change how the story unfolds as the game is based on branching storylines where who lives and who dies can change with each time through the story.

While there were elements where it seemed that I was stumbling in the dark trying to find where I was supposed to go and that large segments at times left me with little to do but watch the action and only occasionally pick a response when I had to move and make some rapid choices on directions and hotkeys, the game really drew me in.

The cast is strong and features Ariel Winter, Ted Raimi, Miles Robbins, Brenda Song, and Lance Henriksen amongst others and aside from one character who delivered his lines in an annoying monotone which sounded like they were delivered through a clenched jaw with a head cold, the voice acting is solid and above what one might expect in a game of this sort.

Graphically the game shined on a PS5 and being able to really enjoy the character animations helped me immerse myself in the story.

Since death is a part of the game, players are given three lives which will allow them to rewind the game and try to save the character. While it usually goes just before their passing, one did back me up a full chapter which I had to replay in order to get back to the next which also had to be replayed only to have the same fate befall the character.

In the end, The Quarry is a triumph of interactive storytelling and is an engaging and compelling tale with a strong cast. It will be interesting to see what Supermassive will do next but The Quarry is a game well worth your time.

4 stars out of 5.

Has finally arrived on the big screen.

The movie is based on the hit Playstation series of games by Naughty Dog and stars Tom Holland as Nathan Drake, a young man who is as adept at history as he is with pickpocketing which he uses to offset his income from Bartending.

Nathan's brother fled the law years earlier and aside from Postcards has had no contact with him over the years. Things change when Victor Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) arrives and recruits Nathan by showing him that he used to work with his brother. Despite misgivings and unresolved feelings; Nathan joins with Victor and finds himself in a daring caper to steal a valuable object that could unlock the key to a gold supply that has been lost for over five hundred years.

Naturally, there are others who want the money, and Nathan, Victory, and their dubious partner Chloe (Sophia Ali); as they rush around the world in one adventure after another to solve the ancient puzzles and stay one step ahead of some very deadly individuals.

The movie has elements of "National Treasure" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" in terms of the quests to find ancient treasures mixed with action but keeps things in a simpler context. The focus is not on plot development, character development, or plausibility but considering the film is based on a video game, it does a good job with the source material.

There has been some controversy about the casting of Holland as Nathan is older in the game series, but he goes all-in with his performance even when the acrobatic action sequences does offer many reminders of his Spider-man role.

The action in the game is fun and over-the-top and more than once I thought I should be pushing my X and Square button to help him make the moves necessary to complete the task and survive.

The post-credit scenes offer some great possibilities for future adventures and those would be more than welcome for those looking for some no-brainer escapist entertainment.

3.5 stars out of 5.

Liam Neeson is back in "Blacklight" and continues his recent trend of action-oriented roles

Neeson plays Travis Block; a fixer who works off the books for his old Army friend Gabriel Robinson (Aidan Quinn); who is currently the head of the F. B. I.

Travis is tasked with bringing in an agent named Dusty (Taylor John Smith) who is looking to bring his knowledge of his work; especially a project named "Unity" to the media.

Robinson cannot allow what Dusty knows to become public knowledge and orders him to be silenced. This causes Travis to rethink his career and decides he wants to try to spend more time with his Granddaughter and estranged daughter.

Naturally, a valuable resource like Travis will not be able to just walk away and when his family vanishes without a trace; Travis uses all of his skills while working with a Journalist named Mira (Emmy Raver- Lampman) to bring the truth to light and the guilty to justice.

"Blacklight" has a very interesting premise but after spending the first ¾ of the film setting up the characters and the scenarios; goes rapidly off the rails and takes a very safe and conflicting path to conclusion.

After an engaging action sequence that started well but came off as anti-climactic; the film rushes to a conclusion when there were numerous other scenarios that were likely to follow. The final confrontation is underwhelming and the final outcome contradicts earlier events.

One fact that the film drives home is how Travis's work is a concern for his family and has caused him mental issues. This is all magically resolved in the final moments of the film seemingly overnight and without explanation and is a marked contrast from how things had been portrayed throughout the film.

In the end, "Blacklight" fails to capture the potential that the premise and star offered and instead disappoints.