Notes to publisher:
- It is not specified whether Clues and Resources can go negative, and Health and Sanity can. It will be better if that is strictly defined.
- At section 101 players might no longer have the notebook (lost on 291) but the main character yet shows it.
- PBLs are used in the worst manner possible - this amount of "Secrets" makes no sense and this is a story-driven gamebook, which shouldn't aim too much at replayability anyways. However, having 5-10 interesting secrets might make players actually find them, having a 100 will make everyone lose interest.
- In section 13 there are some symbols (2323) which seem to be just an error.
- Having 9 locations 15 characters each, converting to numbers and then summing up is tedious. So is the notebook puzzle (way too long conversion), so are item names, long to record, so are secrets every 2-3 sections.
- More meaningful choices, less luck and blind choices are needed.

Review:
As the name suggests, "The Darkness Over Arkham" is a Lovecraftian themed story. Without saying too much, there is a strange scene that the main character witnesses and thus he/she decides to investigate further and no matter the cost get to the bottom of the mystery and there what you expect from Lovecraftian story follows - ancient artefacts, otherworldly beings, mysterious houses, cults, etc...

Jonathan Green is experienced in writing light interactive horror, based on popular fiction and the text here is fluid and there are several good scenes. For the most part, he plays too safe and the scenes feel more like a themed board game cards text, instead of true Lovecraftian horror, though. It doesn't help that players can pick among a few characters (and more to come online, so far none of which is actually an investigator, regardless what the synopsis says) and thus during the adventure the main character has zero personality; and zero motivation as well - they just are thrown in the adventure, which is rather short and without sufficient built up, we reach the finale, where (excluding minor breadcrumbs) the entire story is told. I find it as the strongest part and not a bad story itself, but personally, I couldn't get too immersed in the adventure.

Each selectable character has different main attributes (Intellect, Combat, Willpower), used for checks, stats (Health and Sanity) and resources (Resources, Clues, Items), as well as abilities and weaknesses, which might provide bonuses/penalties, as well as branch the story at some places. Considering this variety to be taken in consideration on 300 sections, it seems clear why the story feels so short - whichever character you get, many possibilities will be either locked directly, or through checks you are unlikely to succeed in. This and the nearly 100 "secrets and achievements" probably aim at increasing the replayability, but this is in absolute conflict with the concept of investigation - this story is worth completing successfully once and then you already know everything interesting about it, as well as where to go, what are the location codes and so on and I doubt many players will feel like replaying it again and again.
As a balance it feels unfairly hard and without really making full analysis, I feel many or all characters will require a lot of luck to pass the major checks - some I think might be doomed really early on, before even understanding what the story is about. Gameplay choices are also lacking - entering a random wrong room might be dooming, there are direct deaths after choices like "you decide to wait", as well as "you decide not to wait" and many many situation are decided by the dice, not by choices. There are tedious calculations of location numbers, on every 2-3 section you need to tick a checkbox of a secret (practically for every scene, which quickly wears off and no "secret" found feels secret or overwhelming). Overall, the gameplay it is not too bad, but it is definitely not great.

As a conclusion, there are a few good parts and nothing is too bad, but it feels more as a craftsman's work and packed as another Lovecraftian product with "unimaginable", "unnamable" and "impossible geometry" spammed within, rather than something actually capturing the heart and soul of this sub-genre. It also feels too much as a board game and not enough as a book with actual strong characters, dialogue, motivation, conflict. However, the potential is there and if this continues as a series, I'd love to see what comes next.

It's an interesting concept with a good plot so far. I like how each decision you make as a reader can take you in different directions but still lead you the essential points that drive the story. Recommended for those who actually want to play a game book and not just reading it for the plot because then you might be disappointed by hitting dead-ends (happens very easily) . It requires patience to enjoy and you will need to break out a pen and paper to keep track of a lot of things. I have yet to complete it because I keep hitting dead ends but it's still kind of fun to do. (I just use the search bar to backtrack my decisions. Is that cheating?) Enjoying it so far

I read an eARC of this book so thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley.

This felt like more complex version of the choose your own adventure books. You have that ability to forge a path through the book by choosing options to take you to different pages, but you also have RPG elements such as dice rolling and character traits and stats and abilities. Where the book gives instructions at the start, it’s best to follow these closely to get the most out of the game, and definitely give yourself a way to track what you collect throughout.

This was a fun and entertaining venture into Arkham Horror. I played through as the Waitress. It was quite challenging and I failed several times, progressing a little bit more each time before I managed to solve the game by making the best choices (there are lots of different outcomes and endings). Sometimes the early ‘the ends’ came as quite a surprise and were unexpected which was a nice touch as it meant the game didn’t feel too easy.

The theme and story were good, there were lots of recognisable elements from Arkham Horror. Story wise it was quite familiar and wasn’t introducing anything groundbreaking, but it was more being able to take control of the narrative yourself and choose what to investigate that was really interesting. You are trying to uncover a mystery and there’s lots of different routes you can take so you can play through this a few times, experiencing a different story each time.

An enjoyable addition to the Arkham Horror universe. Fun to play through and a cool investigation in a book.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Aconyte Books for an advance copy of this new gamebook that puts you in the body of an investigator in the town of Arkham, where evil and madness are just one bad page flip away.

Arkham, Massachusetts is a town where people where many different garbs. One for example can be a waitress with a secret, a boxer out for vengeance, or reporter looking for a story. Some might even be pretending to be human. Arkham is a strange town, full of smells, and noises that nothing living could emit or utter. Where residents need a particular set of skills to keep their health and their will power. A place where the thin line between sanity and madness is a dice role away. The Darkness Over Arkham:An Arkham Horror Investigators Gamebook by author and game designer Jonathan Green is a book that leaves the story up to the reader, with a little help from some dice, and a whole lot of luck.

One is either working, getting story ideas, or even better eating at the local diner, when two other diners draw attention to themselves with the loudness of their argument. And strange eating habits. The couple, older and looking scholarly leave, and the your keen eyes spot a notebook on the floor. One can follow the couple, losing them in the busy streets of Arkham, or one can look inside and see the book is loaded with strange writing and sketches. Maybe the strange words can lead to a story, or a magical possibilities, even a chance at fighting the darkness that fills Arkham. Maybe one should have the notebooks looked at. Since there is a name inside the notebook, maybe a trip to the university is in order to return piece of found property. Each decision is the readers and can lead the seeker on many paths. One can be accused of muder. Attacked by cults. Or far, far worse. Even by chance, a decision could be made just to go home, and though one knows something is happening, something evil, for this investigator the case is closed.

A fun adventure for readers needing only paper, pen, dice, and imagination. Oh, a lot of luck. Those unfamiliar with gamebooks will enjoy the introduction which does a far better job than I telling one what to do. This is sort of like a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure story, with dice, and a love more creatures from beyond. Readers can be three different investigators that come with the book or download more from the website, along with character sheets that tell about the character, and the stats needed to play. Each part is numbered and as one reads, rolls dice and flips pages, readers are told at the end what chapter to flip too. The story is good, spooky in places, violent in others, and all fun. One does have to pay attention as questions are asked of readers that don't appear in the text, and some addition might have to be done. So make that a full pad of paper.

Recommended for people going on trips, who like the world of Arkham, or really enjoy playing gamebooks. The story is good, the plot really moves, and there are plenty of different ways to do things for a bit of replayability.

Not a format I would wholly expect, but a fun exercise. Could be useful for someone curious about how Call of Cthulhu plays.

You are an Arkham Investigator – your choices will decide the outcome of a terrible murder mystery and a sinister plot threatening Arkham ­– in this brand new gamebook adventure in the world of Arkham HorrorWhen a renowned professor is found dead, his body melted, it’s up to the Investigators of Arkham to discover what occult horrors were behind his fate. Pick your path, Investigator, and collect allies along the way to hunt down his killer before they strike again. However, Arkham is full of mysteries, with many wishing to keep the truth buried, and who are hungry to usher in a new era full of death and darkness to devour the world you know it. Can you stop it before it is too late?

This was my first taste of the world of Arkham. It may have not been the best choice being as this was one of those "choose your own adventure" books. It reminded me of those old goosebumps books where you get to decide the outcome of your own story. There were some cool moments here, but ultimately this felt a little too YA for me, with this probably being better suited for younger audiences.