Introduction
With Halloween taking place a few weeks ago, there was no doubt that there would be some sinister additions to the skinning world. This, in my opinion, is no exception. A superb port of an original theme, with a dark and disturbed feel to it. Three completely different variations and lots of extras make this theme a really great addition to your collection. Thanks, Eldy, for a great port, and read on for the rest of the review…

First Impressions
Generally, I’m not a fan of dark themes. I downloaded this theme with some reluctance, and did not really expect it to appeal to my tastes. However, I was pleasantly surprised. The grey shades are not over-dark, and the general appearance of the theme is more metallic than dark. When applying the theme, I couldn’t help but notice the three very different sub-styles - it’s unusual to see a theme with such internal variety.

The three themes consist of two which are similar (one with a border, one without), and one which is a more similar metallic style. These appeal to all tastes, and one of them will probably look nicer to you than the others. Within these, there are three font options - HandelGotD, Tahoma and Lucida Grande. Again, it’s personal preference as to which one you choose, but it’s nice to see all three included. The theme is a Mac style, with creamy white coloured window buttons and a taskbar designed to go at the top of the screen.

Usability
Basically, this theme is very easy to use. There are no complications, and although the actual design of the theme is quite complex, I can find no major faults. Everything seems to work OK, and the small Photoshop buttons also look good. The startmenu is excellent, fitting in well with the theme and keeping the text very easy to read. The rollover animations make it look as though a section is depressed, giving an attractive effect. The Turn Off/Log Off buttons are similar to the close/minimise window buttons in colour. One slight problem I can see is that the Apple logo to open the Start Menu seems a little too large. This may be rectified in a later release.

The scrollbars work well, and are very simple and compact. The Shell Style included with the theme is superb, changing depending on which sub-style you choose. It is flawlessly created, and I can’t fault it. The form buttons found when browsing the web look fairly standard, as does the progress bar seen when transferring files.

Extras
This is where this theme comes into it’s own. There are lots of extras included with it, including the fonts required to use the theme, and the three sub-styles with appropriate Shell Styles. Also included is a Y’z Toolbar theme, and a .bmp toolbar for use in some other applications. The theme also bundles the Puft icon set (by David Lanham), in both Icon and PNG formats (perfect for your dock).

A little searching on the net will come up with Eldy’s site as well, where you can download numerous wallpapers to match the theme. There’s even a Sony Ericsson mobile phone theme! The link to the wallpapers can be found at the end of this article.

Conclusion
This is much, much more than your average Halloween knock-up. It’s a well crafted port, which pays attention to detail. The extras included with the theme do it credit, and when they’re all combined you can really have your desktop looking like something out of a 1950’s horror flick. Despite a couple of problems, the theme flows very well, and all the major elements are flawless. The inclusion of three sub styles (with font variations) is just the icing on the cake!

MsStyle
Preview : Download @ DeviantArt : Wallpapers

Credits:
JoE950 and ZachRL (author of the original GuiKit)
Eldy (author of the port to windows)