![]() While every single encounter is indeed terrifying, it’s hard not to feel that the game can get a little simple or even predictable at times. The name of the game here is instead to run and hide until you think it’s safe to come back out. This is no stealth game, as that would imply that you are to sneak around enemies. More than that, Daniel also seems to be afraid of the dark, as a few seconds away from a light source will literally cause his teeth to chatter. The major handicaps come in the form of Daniel’s sanity merely looking at the Gatherers (the main enemy of the game) can cause Daniel to feel woozy and ill at ease. ![]() Picking up items is always something of a chore but other than that things work great. Apart from the obvious lack of combat, the game barely handicaps the player as far as control goes you can sprint, crouch, pick up and move almost anything and hold up a flashlight in an instant to light the way. The gameplay takes a while to get used to (opening and closing doors is going to be your first hurdle) but once you get a hand of it, the game controls brilliantly. The sporadic and confused nature of the story does perfectly match the tone the game is going for however (what with the game being called AMNESIA) and it is this tone which is so successfully hammered home with the help of the gameplay. While the tale is hardly groundbreaking, it is somewhat satisfying to figure it out for yourself. Though for those very much interested in finding out more, every entry is saved in the journal where the player can view it at their own pace. The story is mostly told through diary pages and brief audio flashbacks, which may result in you receiving information in a strange order, making it hard to piece the information together. There is a story beyond this premise for those willing to look for it, though given the nature of the game, don’t be surprised if you don’t entirely understand it the first time though. Only remembering his home, name and the comforting fact that a shadow is hunting him, our hero finds a note from himself telling him to kill the baron of the castle, Alexander. The game takes place in a mysterious castle in Prussia (former kingdom of Germany), where our protagonist Daniel, you guessed it, wakes up with Amnesia. How does the game hold up after 3 years? And is it really THAT scary? The game has since garnered enough of a following to warrant an expansion, in the name of Justine, and even an “indirect sequel” which is currently being developed by The Chinese Room (Dear Esther) with the original developers Frictional Games taking on a publishing role as they work on another project. Written by Kevin Kennedy, a time when the survivor horror genre seemed to be taking more of a turn towards action with games like Dead Space and Resident Evil, Amnesia: The Dark Descent was a breath of fresh air to many back in 2010, with it’s heavy emphasis on phycological terror and boasting no combat system whatsoever. Have a game you’d like reviewed? Send us an email. Welcome to Ghosts of Gaming Past - here we’ll be reviewing older horror games, classics and non-classics we missed when they were originally released.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |