No matter what clothes the irrational fear is, we know very well that in fact, only two things always lie at the basis: the unknown and surprise. Not knowing what exactly the danger consists in, not being prepared for it, we cannot control the situation. We have neither tools nor levers for curbing our own panic
if we do not know what we should fight with.
So, the old, million times repeated techniques of discharge of the situation should bounce away from us like peas, isn’t it so? Modern man managed to disappear King, Satisfied Hitchcock And now he is scolded contemptuously when he is offered a shameless Lovecraft. Well, madness, well, zombie-maniac-darkness there, strange cultists. Not scary. Tired.
“Ah, not scary? You just didn’t try it, ”the developers from Frictional Games. At one time, this team gave us a truly terrible (in the good sense of the word) Penumbra series. So: their new project Amnesia: The Dark Descent, Perhaps Penumbra will surpass the degree of nightmare.
Remember, but better not all
Our hero comes to his senses in an old and very strange castle. Surprisingly, he has amnesia. Perhaps he also has schizophrenia and paranoia or just a very thin mental organization. The poor fellow is scared of any rustle, panicky is afraid of darkness, is absolutely helpless from a physical point of view and is generally on the verge of complete urgent mixing. How Daniel reached such a life, we will find out along the play, since he himself, while still in sober memory, kindly scattered his old diaries on the castle and left notes with valuable instructions. In addition, in some places in the archives, documents shedding light on what happened earlier have been preserved.
Of these scattered fragments of the past, we will collect the plot of the game as a puzzle. Indeed, in the present we have only a hostile castle with its terrible inhabitants and disgusting secrets. And the goal. More precisely, two.
The second is to get to the internal sanctuary and kill the Baron Alexander, the owner of all local lands, the ideological inspirer of all the abominations that were happening in the cellars of the castle. There is, however, a nuance: Daniel may not have moral right to revenge and punishment. The hero does not remember what participation he took in the projects of Alexander. He does not remember – for the time being.
Are you afraid of darkness?
Developers recommend playing in good headphones to achieve the greatest effect, at night, alone. We do not advise scrupulously implement these recommendations if you have problems with the heart or nerves. Even if you pass Amnesia In the light of the day, without sound, constantly reminding yourself that you are not afraid – it is hardly at least for at least a minute that you will be able to feel safe. Although in reality Frictional Games does not use neither new, revolutionary techniques for pumping the atmosphere, nor unprecedented supermonstens. And the plot itself is quite typical for a solid, but traditional horror in the spirit Lovecraft. Madness, otherworldly worlds, an elixir of immortality, a powerful artifact – moderately pathos, moderately thoughtful story, not without scenario blunders and with a bunch of white spots.
What is the result of scary? Firstly, loneliness. For the whole game, we will meet only two relative people whose belonging to the appearance of Homo sapiens is in great doubt. Otherwise, the castle is clearly inhabited by anti -human entities.
Secondly-a first-person view with all related circumstances. The cursor in the form of a palm is bashfully emerging only when we need to perform a certain action with the subject. The rest of the time, nothing violates the integrity of the picture, nothing prevents completely dissolve in the oppressive atmosphere of constant stress.
Thirdly, for the benefit of a cozy personal hell, sounds work behind the monitor. The balance of silence, half -fingers and the horror of the rustle is perfectly sustained. When Daniel, frightened by something again, begins to breathe intermittently, like a beast driven into a corner, or, already on the verge of madness, suddenly says “someone is coming!”, You have to make a lot of efforts so as not to rush a frantic hanet where you look – just to hide, just to survive.
But the main horror story is still dark. Game mechanics is built in such a way that we cannot afford a lot of light. Hopping candles are ignited with the help of workers, which are always few. A hefty lantern must be constantly seasoned with new portions of oil. There is enough for a short time. At the same time, the darkness drives the hero crazy. We feel his madness as our own: when Daniel’s reason is not in order, the image becomes blurry, the world around is distorted, reality replaces hallucinations.
Monster to man – friend, comrade and brother
The presence of various monsters in a castle bizarrely intertwined with a complete absence of military operations. We have the role of an ordinary person whose nerves are valid, health is undermined, and basic physical data are more than modest. He can’t fight. At all. Colliding with a monster to nose (if the rotting corpse still has a nose, of course), Daniel flows into a stupor, loses the remnants of the mind and dutifully allows himself to kill himself.
Therefore, the only method of combating revived nightmares is to play hide and seek. Golems, cadavers and zombies, most likely, will not notice us in complete darkness. But they fly like insects. More precisely, they hobble, but not the point. We should notice a suspicious silhouette nearby or hear the characteristic sounds accompanying the appearance of the “company”, we immediately extinguish the lantern, get clogged into the farthest corner and pray: let the creature pass by.
The developers did everything to limit our direct contacts with the monsters. Sitting in a dark room and shaking with fear, we cannot look at anything but the general outlines of the enemy. And if you approach the monster closely, Daniel is so frightened that the whole zone of his visibility will be covered with thick ripples. We still won’t get a clear image of the monster. We are kept in constant unknown.
In this regard, the game with movements is very invigorating. After the death of the hero, a reboot occurs. We are returned a little back, to a little. “Ha! – We think. “Now we know exactly where this cadavre goes, the second time we will not rise to it.”. And – nothing like. It is possible that in the very place nothing will happen at all. And a groom will appear in a completely different room.
However, a direct collision with monsters actually cuts down rather than adds atmospheric. They are not so terrible. For the most part – ordinary zombies. That we did not see walking corpses? In addition, when Daniel kills some monster, a carefully built illusion of presence inevitably collapses. Character – he is there, dead. And we are here. In a cozy chair and in complete security.
The main thing is not to stop
One of the most funny finds of developers Amnesia – The influence of puzzles on the hero’s mind. When Daniel manages to solve any problem and move forward, he begins to feel better. Well, yes, everything is true: in order to at least somehow distract from hopeless reality and a gradually awakening memory about what should be forgotten forever, it is important to take the mind with simple, momentary affairs.
For example, the elevator has broken. We must fix it. Owing red biomass closed the passage. So you need to get rid of it. Or for a good deed, you will have to inject the blood of the dead room into the vein from the torture room. Although no, it is just better to do without unnecessary thoughts and, preferably, turning away.
The tasks are in many ways very reminiscent of PENUMBRA. It was not that they were easy to solve, but we are not talking about wild difficulties. Thanks to flashbacks and notes, we almost always know what to look for and what to do with the found. Sometimes, in order to detect the necessary item, you have to carefully examine each angle in the room, which in the realities of the game can be very difficult.
Not all actions and prohibitions are logically justified. Why, for example, do not take with you a small candlestick with a cark instead of stagnation of drodniki in industrial quantities? It is forbidden. The lantern Daniel can wear, but there is no candles.
By the way, many problems can be solved in several ways – thanks to advanced physics. It is a pity that physics itself this time was not on top. When a clay pot, when falling from a decent height, bounces like a rubber ball and remains aimed – this greatly destroys the atmosphere. And the iron saw should not, in theory, behave like a piece of paper in the wind.
Another disappointment is the quality of the graphics. A stunning effect on the effect of eye getting to the darkness is spoiled by insufficient details of textures and elaboration of shadows. Although the atmosphere largely blocks these defects. In the end, in the process of passing a normal player, it will somehow not be up to the analysis of visual beauties.
Only one thing is required from the game in the Survival Horror genre: so that it is scary. Amnesia: The Dark Descent – It’s very, very scary. Here, in fact, is all that we wanted to say.
Pros: masterful atmospheric injection;competent voice acting;Interesting game mechanics based on the balance of light and shadow;Moderately complex puzzles.
Cons: secondary plot;average graphics;physical “blunders”;not always logical gaming prohibitions.