Scary Game Review (Spectator) with James Paradie: Amnesia - The Dark Descent

"It was my greatest triumph...and I never looked back. You think I was afraid fleeing Brennenburg? Quite the contrary. I knew it was my purgatory - hellfire made to wash away my sins. There's no denying the things I've done. But I have paid my tribute. I gave them that awful man ... I did the right thing." 

If you're familiar with my reviews, you will know that I talk a lot about this game. This game that I hold in high regard and always compare it when reviewing other games. What I mean by that is in terms of scariness. I also do the same thing with Outlast. They are my favorite horror games. I did a review on Outlast I think more than a year ago. And I thought I did a review for Amnesia. Yep, I did White Night, but did I do the main game itself? Gasp! No?! I must do so now before a Suitor stabs me in the ass! 

Wait ... did that sound sexual? Oh, lighten up. If you hated my humor, you would have stopped reading this site ages ago. 

A Quick Synopsis: 

The game features a protagonist named Daniel exploring a dark and foreboding castle, while avoiding monsters and other obstructions as well as solving puzzles. The game was critically well received, earning two awards from the Independent Games Festival and numerous positive reviews. - Provided by Wikipedia (and before you think anything: the only reason why I copy other synopsis is because when I write them they tend to be long winded and suddenly I spoil the entire game.) 

My Review: 

Me getting into horror games is a recent thing, probably within the last four years I've been really into them. Mind you, I don't play them, but I do enjoy watching them. And I think the reason why The Dark Descent holds such a high pillar to me is because it is the first horror game I watched in full. It is also the horror game that I've watched on more than three occasions (the others being Nightmare House 2, Outlast, Outlast: Whistleblower, and Silent Hill Downpour, as well as a few custom Amnesia stories). I can kiss it's ass all day, but let's get with the review. 

First impressions are everything and The Dark Descent does do a great job in it's first watching. It's like that horror movie that you want to stop watching because you're so scared, but watch anyways because you want to see what happens. I couldn't get enough of this game when I first saw it. I remember I wasn't so much terrified at first, but once I saw the first enemy ... boy, oh boy. I knew I was in for a treat. 

Back when I first watched this, I always thought horror games were just slash 'ems, much like Resident Evil or Silent Hill. But when I saw that you can't defend yourself and the only way to avoid getting a toe tag is if you hid, I was intrigued. Since then, I've been hooked on finding games that follow the same suit and they're my favorite horror games (I gave this genre my own title - "Hide or Die." I thought it was clever. I mean, a little.) Amnesia didn't do it first (for example, Haunting Ground came out almost a decade before Amnesia and it's the same principle) but it changed the game for all horror. 

Horror to me doesn't have to rely on cheap jumpscares, blood and viscera. The best horrors are what lies in the mind. I know, I'm pulling some psychological crap on you, but to me those are the best horror games. The ones that mess with your mind. Oh, sure, The Dark Descent has its share of monsters, but it's the environment that is the scariest part of the game. The way the wind blows, the screams coming from torture chambers, the fact that you're all alone and your only company wants nothing but death for you. The dark halls, the prison, the torture cells, even a kitchen is scary in this game. 

The Dark Descent proves that horror games do not have to follow the same set of rules that have been implemented by other AAA games. How do I know? When you look at top 10 lists of scary games, you won't see very many commercial games (exp. Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Left 4 Dead) in the number one slot. You will see Amnesia: The Dark Descent though. A game that went from being independently developed by a small team at Frictional Games to being considered the one that changed horror games forever. You see other games pulling the Amnesia shtick, whether it's Outlast or the Silent Hills demo, P.T. They're all following pursuit because of this little independent game. Some have tried to pull it off (Daylight - not a terrible game, but not great - review soon!) or Outlast, but much like Resident Evil or Silent Hill, Amensia: The Dark Descent will live on in video gaming infamy. 

I have forgone rating games, but this game is a masterpiece. Some people like to poo on it and say, it isn't scary. Well, opinions are subjective. It all depends on what a person likes. People think Silent Hill and Resident Evil are scary, I don't. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of both franchises, but they don't get to me like Amnesia-like games do. I think I've shown you how much I like Amnesia and I think if you watch it or play it, you will enjoy it. Hopefully. Much like all my other reviews, I've only given a tip of the iceberg. You want to know more? Go on Steam, buy it and download it. Watch it on Youtube. Enjoy! 

Until next time, this has been another Scary Game Review. If you have a scary game you would like for me to review, comment down below. Thanks for reading!