Memo to Game

Amnesia: Justine - Lasting Impressions

After the testosterone infused setting in Amnesia: The Dark Descent, it is nice, at last, to have an expansion with a female equivalent. Well, almost equivalent. There's still the occassional cock to be observed every now and then, but it can said the story itself is indeed an exploration of a female psyche. A female psychopath's psyche, but a female psyche no less.

The whole 'saving is not allowed' business is a bit cack, to be honest. There isn't much opportunity for death, despite its malevolent nature which will already be familiar to many Amnesia fans. In fact, the only area where you are likely to die (and where many Let's Players have died, actually) takes places in the middle. There's nothing like a panic striken chase sequence, complete with shouting at lever and valve controls (you had to be there), but the idea of failing this, then being forced to restart from the very beginning seems a bit needless, even a cheap way of prolonging this expansion.

Amnesia: Justine reminds me of Silent Hill 2's Born from a Wish scenario. Both star female characters, obviously, and both are also short with the overall difficultly ramped up a notch. Also, like the main character in Justine, Maria cannot remember what she is doing in her relative world. This, to me, is video game feminism at its most finest. If we can agree video games creators are largely male, then we must also agree this is men at their most faithful. Better for a man to admit he knows nothing of women than to make it up as he goes along.

If Amnesia: Justine were longer and the difficulty settled, we may have ended up with a self aware, Tomboyish character like Heather Mason or Lara Croft.

A Further Three Impressive Things (or Things That Impress Me, Anyway) in Amnesia: The Dark Descent

1. MACHINES

 

Alexander, antagonist and owner of the castle, loves his machines, he does. He’s got a machine to work an elevator, a machine so complicated that it requires three lots of inventory items and the reading of three different memos, each for three different puzzles, each of which are performed on three different floors, isolating three different rooms where you’re required three different things, but not really, including getting a stove to work, adding cogs to an incomplete layout, putting rods into the correct order and getting your head around roman numerals.

 

All of the above is to get an old, singular elevator, to work. I hope Alexander never thinks about getting an electric garage.

 

Still, is there anything good to be said about Alexander’s machines, apart from the deliberate fact that they are there to provide puzzle elements and break up the game? Well, yes, there is, actually. Although a machine's existence may be contrived, their overall presentation comes across as pretty cool. It all boils down to the sound, really. When the machine starts powering up, the sound of pipes hissing is not a million miles away from the music you hear whenever a monster is running after you.

 

To be fair, there are only two big machine puzzles in the game and neither are particularly tortuous. There is one much smaller machine puzzle which takes place near the end, though, and nothing is said about it until the moment you think you're about to reach the game's conclusion. You won’t know that puzzle needs completing until you see a pop up message, you know something which might as well read like, ‘Well, we would let you complete the game, but there’s this machine we’d like you play with first!’ Bit annoying, really.

 

2. PAINTINGS

 

We talked about Amnesia’s reading in the last top listing entry. Now let us talk about Amnesia’s paintings.

 

I’m not art critic, or an expert, but I like to take a gander at the odd painting now and again. Fortunately, in Amnesia, paintings are in no short supply. What is in short supply, however, are the images of the paintings themselves.

 

Those who wish to treat Amnesia’s castle like a glorified art gallery may well be disappointed. Yes, what is there is made beautiful, but it is also replicated in later segments. For example, I saw the figure of Christ at least twice and the bloke with the minstrel at least three times. By the time I discovered Alexander’s office, connected to a single staircase which spiralled upward, I saw Alexander’s portrait (again) and the figure of Christ (again) and I was like, ‘Give me something new to look at!’

 

OK, the recycling of paintings isn’t that bad, and it’s not a gameplay issue by any measure, but it is noticeable. It would be interesting to find out how Frictional Games managed such imagery. Did they have to buy rights, or pay a fee of some kind to use such imagery or did someone from Frictional Games create them? The latter would be believable, if only because all paintings seem to adopt a similar style.

 

Ooh, I think I’ve just talked myself into playing through Amnesia with its developer commentary enabled! But not yet…

 

3. COCK

 

Amnesia loves a bit of cock. I know this because it can’t help but show it off throughout the second half of the game. Granted, most of the dudes who appear naked in this game are dead, but at least they're male. There’s no looking for a pearl necklace in this game (well, not visually, at least – ew).

 

Even the main characters you come across are either naked or near naked. It makes you wonder if Daniel, the hero you play as, is a boxers or briefs, or in Amnesia terms, second hand loin cloth or absolutely nothing kind of guy. Given how Alexander was waving his around (hyperbole), I’m willing to believe it’s the latter.

 

I could add my opinion on why I think the nudity is almost completely male, which is odd enough for indie games let alone for mainstream. However, I think I should like to wait until I’ve absorbed the commentary before I do. Perhaps cock, and everything else contained within amnesia, is there to showcase a certain violence men have between men. Sexist? Perhaps. Gender specific? Most definitely.

 

Play the demo! Buy the full version! [Link]

Amnesia: The Dark Descent - Descended

Last night –Well, actually the night before- I completed Amnesia: The Dark Descent. The game took about 10 hours, in total, between four to five day bursts. My opinion on the game is generally positive, though it could have dragged its bloody weight a little bit longer.

 

Perhaps one of the biggest misconceptions about Amnesia is that this is a stalker, run through everything, kind of game. It isn’t. A lot of Amnesia is to do with exploration. While some of the equally as explorative areas do contain a creature that might have failed its audition for an episode of Scooby Doo, those areas, in my opinion, are selective.

 

Despite this, stalky, run through areas do exist, though. For example, you do a lot of running and hiding in areas like the prison and the choir. Their reasons for being, I think, are there to, ironically, brighten up an otherwise pretty tired set of fetch quests.

 

The inclusion of a ‘sanity’ meter is interesting, although somewhat suspicious. Although it’s pretty easy to understand that dark equals more grinding of the teeth and hallucinations, I fail to understand how solving a puzzle, especially one of the key to door variety, can alleviate this.

 

OK, so Amnesia’s only a video game, I know. The only problem is, if a game is asking you to remain passive to something (and there’s very little you can do to maintain your sanity, unless you like standing under torches for half an hour at a stretch), you kind of want it to be believable. As it is, I can't help but think I’m boarding a more sophisticated version of the Capcom rollercoaster, complete with dog-through-the-window jump scares.

 

Although Amnesia's structure is often solid, things do take a step back from its ‘light vs. dark’ concept during the last third of its run. This is most evident, I think, when you turn to your inventory and find you have about half a dozen oil cans and a shitload of tinderboxes. It’s a bit of a mystery why the gaming world still offers you so many tinderboxes when the remaining worlds don’t require much in the way of being lit. This is because, towards the end of the game, you’re either (a) wandering about lit areas anyway or (b) running away from ginormous apparitions that like to make themselves known.

 

I may moan about Amnesia, but I do like it. I’m glad I paid for it and played it myself. This is the kind of game which, if you can stomach it, you will benefit from experiencing yourself. Even after watching a ton or so Let’s Plays of Amnesia, I think you can still experience something from it yourself.

 

Some may argue watching another player’s experience of Amnesia is apt to ruining your own. I would argue it’s the other way around. It wasn’t until after I played Amnesia, when I learned where everything was, what must be done, when and where monsters spawned, that I realised the seemingly random nature, the feeling of being killed anywhere, anytime, was a fabrication.

 

Item and monster locations might change on a second playthrough, but it’s a second playthrough I’m not ready to experience nor would I approach it in the correct way. The last thing Amnesia wants is to have you immerse yourself so much that you’re able to perform a speedrun.

 

Play the demo! Buy the full version! [Link]

Moments in Survival Horror: Doors Opening... Eventually...

"The scariest thing in the Resident Evil games are, without a doubt, the loading times."

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Moments in Survival Horror: Amnesia - The Dark Descent

Finally, I have played the demo version of Amnesia: The Dark Descent, supposedly being held as thee scariest game ever since the chicken and egg dilemma was invented. Is it good? Is it scary? Is it worth getting the full version? And, most importantly, do bears really shit in the woods? Let's find out!

 

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Moments in Survival Horror: David King gets Swallowed

In case you don't know who David King is, he's the sexy plumber guy from the most underrated survival horror, ever, Resident Evil Outbreak. Not to be confused with 'the one who looks a bit like Tom Cruise', David King is the tall dark stranger, the strong and silent type and you'll never, never, never find out how old he is.

No, I don't have any actual pictures of David King getting swallowed, but it isn't entirely from wishful thinking. Like all the other characters in the Outbreak series, David is vulnerable to 1-hit kills, those signature moves many Capcom villains are famous for.

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Moments in Survival Horror: The Best Amnesia - The Dark Descent Scares

Continue reading 'Moments in Survival Horror: The Best Amnesia - The Dark Descent Scares' >>>

Moments in Survival Horror: Reaction to 'Amnesia - The Dark Descent'

I've been hearing good things about Amnesia - The Dark Descent. The general consensus seems to be that this is thee most scariest game ever.

Those who are unaware of the title are urged to check it out. It's this first person adventure game that sort of plays in the vein of Thief, except without the ability to attack. Instead what you get is the occasional gothic humanoid hidden like a needle within a scary haystack of ambiguous noises.

Much like the reaction to the original Silent Hill, it's all about what you don't see that players find truly scary in Amnesia. Though anyone who's worried this is just a horror themed version of, say, Myst will be glad to know there's a population who are indeed intent on feasting on your soul should you so much as look at them.

The game ups the tension by not only including a health meter, but also another for your sanity, which is primarily affected by staring at 'disturbing' visions or spending too long in the dark. Throw in some camera tricks and a few otherworldly traps and you might just have yourself the first, most brilliant haunted house simulator.

Unfortunately, I do not own Amnesia - The Dark Descent right now, but I hope to play at least the demo soon. If you think about it, there isn't really a video game that's done the 'run and hide from overbearing forces' horror element effectively. The clock tower series is most famous for it, true, but execution of this particular element is nowhere near as good as it could be.

Moments in Survival Horror: The Corridor of Bats in 'Weird Dreams'

Everyone has weird dreams. What other kind is there? Good dreams are weird. Bad dreams are weird. Even the ones you don't remember, the ones that may or may not have stored themselves away in the abandoned library that is your subconscious, are weird.

Many years ago, I had a dream in which I was running through a corridor that seemed to stretch toward infinity. It seemed, no matter which direction I took (forwards or backwards, or was that left or right?), it offered the same never ending run toward inevitable exhaustion.

Bat creatures, with round, furry bodies and enormous white eyes, all scattered the ceiling. I braced myself for the inevitable swoop. They knew, as I knew, there was no where to run.

My final thought was self examination. What was I doing in these ugly black and white pyjamas? Then I woke up and made a mental note never to eat cheese before bedtime ever again.

Years later, toward present day, I came across an Amiga longplay on Youtube. The game showcased was called 'Weird Dreams'. This should be interesting, I thought. I'm a fan of all things survival horror, as well as that which is considered to be 'out there'.

Watching the first couple of minutes had me wonder about the main character. He was a guy in black and white pyjamas. The pyjamas were not ugly, like the ones in my dream, but they were pixelated. Video game pixelated.

Continue reading 'The Corridor of Bats in Weird Dreams' >>>

Moments in Survival Horror: A 'Let's Play' of Calling

I've recently enjoyed watching a 'Let's Play' of cell phone survival horror 'Calling', recorded and played by YouTube user GamerKat09.

Watching someone else play a video game can often be a boring affair, which is probably why so many Let's Play's (or 'LPs') are often peppered with jokes - and a huge amount of swearing. But GamerKat09's LP is something different, even refreshing. Her blind run of 'Calling' is one that's almost entirely responsive to the survival horror's many 'jump scares'.

Her seemingly endless supply of screams, gasps and nervous anticipation could well have you wonder why GamerKat09 bothered playing a survival horror in the first place. Yet at the same time you have to further wonder if she represents the genre's perfect play tester. After all, these games are supposed to be scary, right?

On top of this, it's entertaining stuff. It's enjoyment factor is similar to watching someone get hysterical on one of those paranormal investigator type programmes. You know the type, where someone always thinks they've heard the threat of evil spirits when in fact it was the inner workings to a wall fitted air freshener?

Those who prefer a more generous example in audio and visual are recommended to watch Part 5.

Those who wish to watch right from the beginning can do so here.