And you can’t stick around, because the building itself is corrupting around you, the rocks growing horrendous pulsating flesh and exploding pustules. Get away from where you are, because it’s bloody terrifying, and try to move on. And because the narrative cleverly doesn’t come together in a meaningful way until the final acts, I’ll not say a word more. Why you’re stuck in a giant castle, and where you’re going, are unknowns. The only knowledge you have of yourself are the notes you left behind, and the memories that assault you as you enter certain locations. You play Daniel, an explorer who apparently discovered some sort of magical orb. That there’s still deadly enemies is in a large part why this is so damned scary. However, unlike Penumbra, there’s no combat whatsoever. Taking Penumbra’s technological reigns, once again this is a collection of large, complex physics puzzles, combined with exploration and inventory application. This allows a narrative of gradually revealed horrors to seep back in as you progress through the first-person adventuring.Īnd it really is adventuring, but in a way that - if only any other developer in the world had had the sense to copy from Frictional’s previous Penumbra series – should be the genre’s new direction. While the idea of a player character who’s lost their memory may induce a groan, here’s the game that’s allowed to do it. So you stay there, panicking, panting, staring at stones, unsure if it’s even in the room any more. But you can’t turn around to find out what it’s doing – see it, and Daniel will react, perhaps make a noise. Whether it comes in to find you, or loses you in the darkness, is up to the moment. Its fists batter at the wood, and you turn around to see splinters flying off, then a hole punched through. It’s growling moan still grows louder, and then you hear it slam against the door. You race in, and slam it shut behind you, and run into the darkest corner, crouch, and face the wall. Daniel staggers, his sight goes red, but you keep your finger on sprint and you just run, in darkness, no idea where you’re going. Darting past, it clips you with a talon-finger, a slice of blood ripping across the screen. It speeds up, charges, and you can only run. It’s not a scream, not a roar, something between, one tone, horrendous. But you’re lit by that candle, and it’s going to. Daniel’s breathing picks up, his vision stretches out thin, before swimming slowly back to normal. It hasn’t seen you yet, but the music has, and it’s become discordant, threatening. Stood in front of your is the horror of a mutant, its face in a ghastly, deadly yawn, arms twitching, staggering toward you. So you turn around to make your- WHAT THE HELL IS THAT? But suddenly everything starts shaking, a roaring crash deafens you, and in front of your is a rockfall blocking your path. You light a single candle on the wall, more to mark that you’ve been this way than to provide any respite. You’re walking down a barely lit corridor, bleak with shadows. It has shortcomings too, and I’ll get to them, but this is an overall tale of impressive success. However, Amnesia achieves on so many levels, from phenomenal architecture to astonishing visual design, from exquisite use of darkness to a game-changing use of physics. If it failed at everything else – and it absolutely does not – then it would still be an extraordinary achievement simply for so ceaselessly inducing ghastly fear. There is no question, not one, that it has instantly equalled with the original Thief in terms of making me feel like I’m constantly on the verge of a hideous heart attack. Good flipping grief on a barge, Amnesia is a scary game. Is it good? Is it scary? (Let me give you a clue: flipping yes, and oh good grief yes.) Read on to find out just exactly Wot it is that I Think. ![]() Amnesia is a combination of classic haunted castle horror with their unique first-person adventuring. Frictional's first full-length game, and a successor to their Penumbra series, comes out tomorrow.
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