Amnesia: The Dark Descent PC

Amnesia: The Dark Descent for PC is a survival horror game developed by Frictional Games studio, known by fans of the genre for the Penumbra series. The new production of the Swedish developer once again refers to atmosphere of short stories and novels of writer H. P. Lovecraft.

Plot

In the game we play the part of a man named Daniel, who wanders through dark corridors of an eighteenth-century castle. Protagonist voluntarily lost his memory and does not know exactly what happened, although he has no doubt that his life is in danger. Traversing subsequent parts of the fortress we discover horrifying events of Daniel’s past and try to understand why had he caused temporary amnesia himself.

Mechanics

Amnesia: The Dark Descent for PC combines elements of exploration, survival horror and adventure game. Developers decided to resign from any combat skills and replaced them with much more interesting ideas. Player must take care of both mental and physical health of Daniel, and thus escape or hide from every terrifying creature, as well as avoid darkness. This kind of mechanics makes things that can illuminate interiors, like oil lamps or matches, particularly important. We use them to solve puzzles, activate machines and look for consecutive fragments of letters and notes.

Technical aspects

For the needs of the game Frictional Games studio improved its game engine (HPL2), making locations and lighting effects look really good. This is not, of course, technological level known from high-budget productions, but in spite of that, developers managed to create a suggestive environment. Sound is also a very important element that helps to build atmosphere and to simply scare. Game also features modding tools, which are available online, that allow creating our own adventures.

Last updated on 16 November 2010