Amnesia will return soon with a new opus which will be marked by a radical change for the series. Gone are the days of linear games, make way for the open world.
In 2010, the first Amnesia caused a stir by offering a real psychological horror game that relied absolutely everything on its atmosphere. No monsters galore, no endless blood, no Hollywood showmanship or anything like that. The game based its gameplay on flight, putting its hero’s sanity at the center of the gameplay. It was then necessary to hide, be careful not to sink into madness and flee all the enemies crossed by solving puzzles.
A fairly rare recipe, not to say unique at the time. Unfortunately, the following episodes, relying on exactly the same gimmicks, were quickly overtaken by the competition, which has redoubled its efforts in psychological horror by bringing a whole bunch of well-regarded novelties, such as Outlast (2013) which will bring the genre to its climax while remaining as minimalist as possible in terms of of gameplay. Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs or Amnesia Rebirth are not fundamentally bad, but each was already overwhelmed upon its release. But for the next episode, the Frictional Games studio goes the second and completely upsets its formula. At least in part.
Amnesia The Bunker Goes Open World
Amnesia: The Bunker will always offer an intense atmosphere that will put players’ nerves to the test. Mental health will once again be at the heart of the experience and we will have to flee rather than face our opponents. But for the rest, the game completely changes its structure and trades its linearity for a completely open world. At least, semi-open since if the vast majority of the map will be explorable from the outset, everything will mostly happen in a network of claustrophobic underground corridors. So don’t expect breathtaking views. Here, the only thing that will cut you off will be the ultra-violent creature that will chase you throughout the adventure.
Amnesia : The Bunker will therefore rely on exploration and risk-taking. Exploration will be based on an expedition system. We will have a main hub, acting as a security zone where we can store our resources, plan our future outings, etc. You will then have to go out into the corridors of the bunker to explore, unlock new paths and fulfill several objectives (linked to the main plot) to, as you can imagine, escape from the bunker. In the hub, it will also be necessary to pay attention that the central generator of the bunker is always active. This one manages the electricity of all the complex and proves to be essential to our survival since as in all the Amnesiaour sanity will plummet in the dark, and the creature that stalks us will also take advantage of the darkness to emerge.
The game is a hub-centric experience. In the center of the bunker, you will have access to a safe room, your base if you prefer. This is where you can save your progress, plan your next move, store resources, and power the generator. Most of the rest of the bunker is accessible from the start, and the player is free to go where they want and do what they want.
Although certain objectives must be completed to complete the game, it is up to the player to identify, prioritize, and judge how best to complete them. Exploration must be balanced with the dynamic threat that stalks the player, able to arise at any time based on their actions. Thus, the gameplay is heavily player-driven and differs significantly from previous games which relied on a more linear course.Frictionnal Games pour Gaming store
A second youth for the series?
Amnesia The Bunker promises to be drastically different from its big brothers, but could well give a good boost to a recipe that has seriously run out of steam for all these years. By making its game less linear, by offering real freedom to players while ensuring that they will be continuously tracked by a creature that will react to their actions, Frictionnal Games could well sign here a truly oppressive survival horror like ‘Alien Insulation. Amnesia the Bunker is expected on PS5, Xbox Series, PS4 and Xbox One on May 16th.
