Game Review – Amnesia: The Dark Descent (PC)
by Grimman on Oct.25, 2010, under PC, Reviews
Amnesia: The Dark Descent is a graphic adventure survival horror, developed by Frictional Games. While these days horror games tend to be more about action, Amnesia seems to be more focused on the aspects of survival and storyline. Did Frictional Games do the right thing with Amnesia, or should they have just gone with the flow like every other game developers these days? Well, let’s see..
Story
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In Amnesia, you play as a man named Daniel, who is suffering from an amnesia. Shortly after waking up inside the castle of Brennenburg, you find a note written by Daniel himself before he lost his memory. This note explains to you that Daniel chose to lose his memory for unknown reasons and urges you to journey into the depths of the castle and murder a man named Alexander, the baron of the castle. The note also warns Daniel that he is being followed by a mysterious dark shadow, which causes a strange grow of fleshy substance in the castle when it reaches Daniel. As you journey into the depths of the castle, the mysterious past of Daniel, the “shadow” following him, his current situation and the reasons for wanting to kill Alexander is explained through various flashbacks and diary notes. Yes, there is some amount of reading involved if you want to get into the depths of the storyline, but most of the diaries are narrated and involve a flashback, which makes reading them much more enjoyable.
Before you start the game, the developers give you a message, stating that Amnesia is supposed to be enjoyed for its storyline. Well, I can safely say that the story of the game really keeps you interested. The game leaves you with a “hunger for more” when some interesting aspect of the story is explored, and during the last parts of the game, you begin to wonder if Daniel himself is an innocent man.. However, without spoiling anything, the ending is really disappointing. After finishing the game, Amnesia leaves you with more questions than answers. I have no idea if this is a hint of a sequel to come, but I think the game should have explained some of the things more clearly. The developers really did a good job of keeping you interested, but they reward you with a vague ending, which is a no-no.
Gameplay
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The game is played from a first-person point of view. What’s interesting about Amnesia, is the fact that you can’t fight back when the creatures of Brennenburg Castle find you. Your only option is to run and hide, hoping that the creatures won’t find you. This aspect of the game makes your hair stand on your neck when you see that creepy silhouette of a zombie slumping towards you as you run and try to find a hiding spot. However, there were couple of instances where it seemed to be impossible to hide from the monsters leaving you with no choice but to get your face chewed off.
The game has your basic health, but it also has something called “Sanity” meter. When the sanity meter starts dropping, your sight starts to become blurry and you begin to hear noises. Monsters also become aware of your presence when you lose too much of your sanity. Witnessing creepy events and flashbacks, watching the monsters and standing in the dark will cause your sanity to drop. Standing in the light by lighting candles or using your lantern will heal your sanity. This makes the gameplay interesting, giving you the choice of hiding the dark from the monsters and losing your sanity or use the lantern to keep your sanity intact, but making your presence more noticeable by the monsters.
In Amnesia, you use the mouse to operate levers, open doors, pick up and throw objects, etc. The game has loads of puzzles that require you to use this control feature for either operating or fixing a machine, or making a potion of some sorts. The puzzles are not difficult, but there are moments where you really have to stop and think what to do or find. If you missed an item required in one of the puzzles, you have to do some backtracking, which can be tedious (especially if that item is in a creepy place where you don’t want to go back). The puzzles are mediocre at best and you rarely feel rewarded when you manage to solve a puzzle.
Graphics
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While not the most colorful game on the market, Amnesia really knows how to set the mood. The dark halls of the castle will really make you shiver and when you see a zombie dragging itself in the distance, it makes the hair stand on your neck! The game really delivers for me when you enter a dark area and you think to yourself “Can’t I just go back to the less scary place?”. When your sanity decreases, you will immediately start to notice the effect. Your eyesight becomes blurry and starts to wobble, and when you are finally at the edge of insanity, bugs will start to appear crawling on your screen, which makes you go “Wow!” and “Uh-oh..”.
Creepy Atmosphere!
Sound
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Creepy moans, screams and voices! That is the cherry on top of the ice cream of creepiness! When you journey through the castle, you are greeted with loads of scary voices, which will sometimes make you jump out of your chair. Not to mention when your sanity decreases, you start to hear what sounds like walls being scratched and your ears will start ringing. Amnesia really knows how to scare you with sounds!
Voice acting is mostly done well, although there are couple of parts where the acting seems to be somewhat off. Music sets the mood of creepy things to come and really gets the job done. I have to mention the creepy music when you are noticed by a zombie, which sets the panic state even higher!
Last Words
Overall, Amnesia: The Dark Descent is a scary and a good game! It’s been a while for me when a game has startled me this much. The fact that you are completely helpless throughout the game, not to mention the creepy atmosphere and fascinating storyline, makes Amnesia really stand out among the crowd of horror games. If you are a fan of horror games, I really recommend that you check this one out! You won’t be disappointed!
