The choice between Emily and Edward may seem obvious when put it like this: Do you want to be Jodie Comer or David Harbour? But there’s actually a lot more you need to think about when it comes to who you play as in Alone in the Dark.
Here is our rundown on who you should pick first in Alone in the Dark.
Who to pick first in Alone in the Dark: Emily or Edward?
You should play as Edward first in Alone in the Dark. Edward must be picked first if you want to fully complete the game and find all collectibles. While Emily was the obvious pick for myself when I started Alone in the Dark (it’s Jodie Comer, for Christ’s sake), I realized a glaringly obvious downside to playing as her when I switched to Edward in my second playthrough.
Your Lagniappe collection from one playthrough (regardless of who you pick) is supposed to carry over to the next character. But in the case of playing as Emily first, your Lagniappe progression is reset to zero, making you play through Edward’s story without that much-needed advantage.
Worst of all, playing through Edward’s story after Emily will not only reset your collectible counter but also reset it once more when you start a new game as Emily for the second time. The desperate attempt to complete the Lagniappe Sets is ruined by playing as Emily first.
What we can confirm is that completing Edward’s story first will carry over your Lagniappe Sets, letting you 100 percent complete the game. There are specific Lagniappe that you can only get in your second playthrough, with the puzzle knowledge acquired from your first time playing. But you can only do this as Emily after completing Edward’s story.
While I played through the game as Emily to start off, I learned the hard way that this was the wrong thing to do. Her story is better than Edward’s, with more character depth, emotional moments, and added gameplay mechanics. You also get more context and certain narrative components line up better as Emily than as Edward. But because of the Lagniappe bug, the only correct character pick is Edward.
Alone in the Dark: Differences between Emily and Edward
If you don’t care to 100 percent complete the game, however, the choices between each character are separated by these things:
- Dialogue lines: While the narrative path is the same for both characters, all cutscenes vary in dialogue, thus providing different context to the story.
- The identity of Grace: Grace’s story is completed by playing as Edward.
- Memory section: Emily and Edward have their own unique memory section. Emily’s section focuses on stealth, while Edward has more puzzle-solving gameplay mechanics.
- Exclusive cutscenes: Both characters have exclusive cutscenes with Ruth and Mrs. Thompson (Housekeeper). Emily also has a unique cutscene with Grace. Finally, the Dark Man and Jeremy behave slightly differently depending on who you play as.
- Weapons: Emily’s default is a M1911 pistol, while Edward rocks a revolver. Overall, I found Edward’s revolver was more powerful than Emily’s pistol.
- Puzzle solutions: The Empty Room puzzle has a different solution depending on who you play.
- Important character item: Emily has an engagement ring, and Edward has his private investigator license.
- The treatment of Emily and Edward: Depending on who you play as will determine how you are treated around the house in cutscenes. Edward is an authoritative figure because of his job, allowing him into areas with greater ease than Emily. An example of this is Emily getting attacked by Batiste, but Edward is warned by Batiste about the dangers of being outside.
- The relationship between the characters: Emily is known around Decerto for her link to Jeremy, but Edward is a stranger, making his story conclusion less believable than Emily’s.
All in all, I enjoyed Emily’s story far more than Edward’s (even if he has more comedic moments throughout). Emily feels like the protagonist of Alone in the Dark, but the Lagniappe bug forces you to see the game out as Edward first (if collecting every item is your top priority).
