Amnesia: Dark Descent - first impressions

[Hader]

Alright, so I just played a few hours of this game with some friends in a dark room on a big screen TV with surround sound...

*Some spoilers, possibly, I haven't finished it yet*

Spoiler

Now I have heard a lot of shit about how scary this game is, and honestly, it was pretty scary at some points. More so than usual horror game at least. But I don't scare to easily, so it wasn't a huge problem for me. Freaky though? Hell yeah, though it can get predictable at points, it still kept me wondering exactly what was around the next corner.


So my question to everyone here who has played it is, frankly, how much did it scare you?
And/or what was the craziest part you have encountered? For me, getting the pieces to help start the elevator was definitely the craziest moment so far, I saw the damn monster just a bit behind the only door I had to go through and after my friends told me to not fuck it up and just hide in the corner for a while, I just said fuck it and ran the whole way. Ended up running RIGHT into another one and getting my face torn off.

 

[Still Life]

Alright, so I just played a few hours of this game with some friends in a dark room on a big screen TV with surround sound...

*Some spoilers, possibly, I haven't finished it yet*

Spoiler

Now I have heard a lot of shit about how scary this game is, and honestly, it was pretty scary at some points. More so than usual horror game at least. But I don't scare to easily, so it wasn't a huge problem for me. Freaky though? Hell yeah, though it can get predictable at points, it still kept me wondering exactly what was around the next corner.


So my question to everyone here who has played it is, frankly, how much did it scare you?
And/or what was the craziest part you have encountered? For me, getting the pieces to help start the elevator was definitely the craziest moment so far, I saw the damn monster just a bit behind the only door I had to go through and after my friends told me to not fuck it up and just hide in the corner for a while, I just said fuck it and ran the whole way. Ended up running RIGHT into another one and getting my face torn off.

I'm pretty good when it comes to horror (no, really), but this game has had me shitting bricks and quivering in my shirt. It's the atmosphere: superbly oppressive, disturbing and the tension is insane. Amnesia gets into my head like no other and for me, it's horror done right; I play in 15 min blocks, then I have to go do something else.

Spoiler

The section with the fucking invisible waterlurker was the hardest so far. I've had a childhood fear with something very similar.

 

[Taunta]

Loved Amnesia! I've heard a lot about it so I wasn't exactly going in blind, but even then I couldn't play it for more than twenty minute bursts or so until the tension got too much for me. There were plenty pants-shitting moments, but I think the worst it got was

Spoiler

the torture chambers. There were points where I was literally pleading with the game "please don't make me do this." The Iron Maiden almost gave me a heart attack, and Daniel's mantra in the torture flashbacks still gets to me and makes me a little sick to this day.

"Paint the lines, cut the flesh, watch the blood spill!"

 

[MetaKnight19]

I'm loving it, even if I can get pretty scared by it at times, but at least I'm not as scared as this guy

 

[Hader]

I'm loving it, even if I can get pretty scared by it at times, but at least I'm not as scared as this guy

That is the part I was recently at (the clip in the very end), I did much like that guy did and booked it but made it past the guy almost unharmed...almost

 

[Taunta]

I'm loving it, even if I can get pretty scared by it at times, but at least I'm not as scared as this guy

Ohhh my god I laughed so hard I cried.

 

[Still Life]

I'm loving it, even if I can get pretty scared by it at times, but at least I'm not as scared as this guy

Ohhh my god I laughed so hard I cried.

Same. However, I can relate. Though, I wasn't freaking out of my jocks like that guy, it was still harrowing.

 

[Zhukov]

(Ohhh, another opportunity for me to praise Amnesia

Yeah... I loved it.

Like the OP, I usually don't scare easily with games.
The F.E.A.R games? Maybe two decent moments.
Condemned? One scare.
Dead Space? Don't make me laugh, that was a pleasant action romp.

But Amnesia? Whoooo boy. That was eight hours of distilled horror, alternating beautifully between tense apprehension and oh-sweet-Jesus-fucking-Christ-it's-right-behind-me-run-like-hell moments of pure terror.

Besides, it's nice to see a five-man studio and a few contractors make a game that craps all over the big-budget offerings from the established studios.

Anyway, as for scariest moments:

Spoiler

Probably the morgue.

Giving myself the transfusion was icky enough. But then I go to leave and... wait, what's that creaking sound? Is it getting closer? I could swear that... Oh fuck ohfuckohfuck there's something on the other side of the door! Get out, quick! Run! Wait... oh God, no other exits! Then hide, fast! Hide where? Anywhere! Just hurry... oh fuck it's busting through the door! The bodies, hide in the pile of bodies! The bodies... really? But what if...? Oh God the door is giving way, just bloody move!

And thus I found myself crouching behind a pile of naked corpses listening to the creaking footsteps of a formerly human creature prowling the next room. It was scary.

 

[veloper]

Too bad the gameplay consists mostly of moving about and light puzzle solving. Still it was a nice alternative game for a change and worth the discounted price I bought it for.

 

[Hader]

I want to finish this game even more now! Hah, I find the horror element just entertaining in every way. I like how there is no way to defend yourself so it basically is a contest of how fast you can run away or hide. However, I did start playing this with a group of 5 friends watching so I think that may have taken away from the horror element a little bit. I intend to finish this game on my own eventually >

And I will film myself playing so everyone can hear my damn screaming too

 

[Glic2003]

Your first impressions....

....will be your LAST! MuahahahahahHAHAHA!

 

[Woodsey]

I'm loving it, even if I can get pretty scared by it at times, but at least I'm not as scared as this guy

That is the part I was recently at (the clip in the very end), I did much like that guy did and booked it but made it past the guy almost unharmed...almost

Since you've played it, do you find his reaction believable?

I mean he is fucking terrified from that xD I know in the PCG review the reviewer said he was nearly crying at one point but I didn't think he was speaking literally!

 

[SJXarg]

The bit just after that (where he ran up the stairs and the next monster appeared) had me freaking out a little, I ended up jumping up on the barrels in the corner, then the monster kinda tarded out and was walking in front of me. During the wine cellar my flatmate's dog walked up next to me (midnight, headphones, lights off as per recommendation) and shook itself. Apparently through 3 closed doors at the other end of the house, said flatmate hears me whimper "OH FUCK". Great atmosphere, pity its 10 bucks not 5 like it was during Halloween.

 

[Wolfram23]

I still haven't played this one but I'm thinking of getting it for my few days off next week. I recently played Penumbra. Both games had some definity scary and intense moments, especially at the start of the 2nd one, when the very first enemy comes by with a flashlight. OHHHHH GOD!

Anyway definitely have to pick this one up.

 

[Lacsapix]

This is a game I could not finish.
not because its scary, it is because your so helpless.
I see an enemy I want it dead and not just gone.....for now.

 

[Sn1P3r M98]

I'm loving it, even if I can get pretty scared by it at times, but at least I'm not as scared as this guy

That is the part I was recently at (the clip in the very end), I did much like that guy did and booked it but made it past the guy almost unharmed...almost

Since you've played it, do you find his reaction believable?

I mean he is fucking terrified from that xD I know in the PCG review the reviewer said he was nearly crying at one point but I didn't think he was speaking literally!

Yeah, it's believable. I screamed many a time and had to pause very often. That part he's in (storage) is one of the scariest in the game. I'm not finished yet though....

 

[Sn1P3r M98]

I still haven't played this one but I'm thinking of getting it for my few days off next week. I recently played Penumbra. Both games had some definity scary and intense moments, especially at the start of the 2nd one, when the very first enemy comes by with a flashlight. OHHHHH GOD!

Yup, I have that one too. That was very scary! Made it even worse because when I heard him pass by my I looked up at his face *shivers*

 

[Hader]

This is a game I could not finish.
not because its scary, it is because your so helpless.
I see an enemy I want it dead and not just gone.....for now.

That is definitely what makes it different

I do like it though, it is different, and really fun to see how scared you and your friends can get.

 

[Taunta]

Since you've played it, do you find his reaction believable?

I mean he is fucking terrified from that xD I know in the PCG review the reviewer said he was nearly crying at one point but I didn't think he was speaking literally!

Oh I do. Granted, I don't think I ever screamed like a banshee or started crying like the guy in the vid did, but it did get a few shrieks out of me, and I talked to myself a lot just to make myself feel better. Also,

Spoiler

Storage is one of the worst parts of the game. The Choir was the worst for me, but it is a guarantee that any place called "storage" in that game will fuck up your shit. (There are two, and both are equally terrible.)

EDIT: It only goes downhill from there. (Link below contains footage from The Choir area and heavy plot spoilers, which is why I only linked it. It also might make you nauseous. Watch at your own risk.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiqqVq3pfaM

 

[Taunta]

Too bad the gameplay consists mostly of moving about and light puzzle solving. Still it was a nice alternative game for a change and worth the discounted price I bought it for.

Personally, I was relieved that the puzzles were so simple. I think the real challenge of the game is having the fortitude of making it all the way through, the puzzles always seemed like a secondary element. And the lack of combat is a good idea too. After all, if you give a player a weapon, they have hope, and they're comforted by that. Of course, that doesn't stop some people. There are videos on youtube of people trying to throw barrels and other objects at gatherers. They don't end well.