Over the years we have seen several Amnesia games and the latest being Amnesia The Bunker, and when it comes to horror, they seem to have the formula for making good games. Frictional Games have done wonders with previous instalments, so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Amnesia The Bunker and give it a play.
The trailer for it was fantastic and I loved the idea of being in an underground bunker. This setting is perfect for a horror game it was just whether Amnesia The Bunker could pull it off.
This is the fourth instalment in the Amnesia series and follows a French soldier who is trapped in the titular bunker. You must find a way to escape while also trying to avoid the monster that lurks in the shadows. Like the predecessors, Amnesia The Bunker is a first-person survival horror.
The game takes place during World War 1, you control French Soldier Henri Clement as you try to escape The Bunker you are trapped in. Though you are not alone and must survive being hunted by the photosensitive monster. While trying to escape the bunker you uncover the mystery behind the monster.
You’ll have to use your wit while traversing the bunker. Hearing the monster through the walls and down the corridors is enough to make you run the other way. Your main objective is to collect the resources needed to blow open the exit to the bunker. Various items can be collected and used to help progress you through this nightmare fuelled environment.
Collect dog tags from fallen soldiers to access lockers containing ammo, gasoline and a few other useful items. One thing I did enjoy about Amnesia The Bunker was that you felt like you could overcome obstacles in several different ways, this was a good feature to have as it allowed me to be creative when it came to accessing a room or overcoming the monster.
Things like grenades, flares and a revolver make opening doors and defending yourself easier though it does anger the monster more. It falls to you whether you hide/run or try and scare it off. I find that trying to hide from the monster is useless as it always seems to be able to track you down regardless of if you are out of sight or it didn’t see where you went. Saving the game at the lamp is a great way to explore the bunker, get your bearings and plan your next move. Use gasoline to fuel the generator as this will be your saving grace.
The monster doesn’t like the light and powering the generator gives you time to get what you need done. You can collect a pocket watch to set how long you have left on the generator before it runs out of juice. If this does happen there is only a selective number of resources that will provide light. The one that I found most useful was the hand-cranked flashlight. It wasn’t the best of lights but it did enough to light the way for you to progress.
Exploration can be terrifying without the generator but you need to make sure that you don’t waste this useful resource. I found myself using the flashlight and torches to explore and find items and then when I knew where I was going and what I needed to do, I turned on the generator which made completing tasks so much easier.
Frictional Games have done a brilliant job of capturing the intense, scary feeling of being trapped in a bunker alone with a monster that is relentlessly haunting you. I never felt safe even when the power was switched on. Graphically, the game is beautiful and captures the environment perfectly.
You truly feel like you are trapped in a World War 1 bunker. Compared to previous games this one feels smaller but in a good way. Feels more streamlined while adding small hints into the Amnesia universe. I wasn’t a fan of how dark the game was at the time even when using the hand lamp.
It could have been a tad bit brighter in my opinion and still kept the suspense. One thing that does bother me graphically is when you go between areas there is a rendering issue where the game pause for a few moments to render the next part. This is annoying and ruins the atmosphere and suspense.
Amnesia The Bunker has a sense of replay value thanks to the game having semi-randomized monster behaviour and collectables on every playthrough. The premises is still the same however it does add a sense of replay value as it does enough to change the experience the second time around.
Conclusion
Amnesia The Bunker has times of horror magnificence but also comes with frustrating gameplay features that if weren’t there could make the game a whole lot better. There was a time when I was at the edge of my seat, creeping around every corner scared to come face to face with the monster but after a while, it just becomes more of a frustrating feature that makes this Amnesia experience a hit-and-miss playthrough.
There are moments of nail-biting chases but also frustrating mechanics that make progression annoying and bland at times. However, I did enjoy the horror elements and the lack of resources that you had to manage and use strategically. There are better Horror games on the market but Frictional does a good job of bringing more Amnesia and fans will highly enjoy this addition to the franchise. For those reasons, I’m giving Amnesia The Bunker a 7 out of 10.
Amnesia The Bunker Trailer
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