Amnesia: The Bunker Review – Walking Forward Into the Abyss
Horror video games are changing. The way this genre continues to evolve is almost impressive, if you ask me. When you think about it, the way horror has been changing in both the indie space and the AAA space has been happening at its own pace compared to how the industry generally has. Things that used to scare us no longer do so because we're used to seeing them. So, what does Amnesia: The Bunker do? Evolve.
FrictionalGames probably saw the tepid reception that Amnesia: Rebirth got and decided to do something on par with The Dark Descent when making this new installment. From the very first trailer, I was excited about this game because it seemed to show a lot of promise. One of the most prominent aspects was the fact that you would be allowed to carry a weapon to defend yourself, and yet, it seemed as if you would manage to remain scary even with this in mind.
Fast forward to today, and I can confidently say that Amnesia: The Bunker is one of the best horror games I have played this year. Not only that, but I also will add that I believe that this game will be the first to shape what's coming to horror gaming in the future, much like The Dark Descent did all those years ago. How is this accomplished? Let's find out.
Amnesia: The Bunker offers excellent graphics for what's supposed to be a very dated engine. The game looks to use another iteration of the HPL Engine, which was part of the claim to fame seen by The Dark Descent and Rebirth. In other words, the game will be optimized well on PC for a better experience. Loading screens are quick, the game has a stable framerate, and there are barely any pop-in or texture loading issues.
However, the dated nature of the engine can be more appreciated than before. The game has some minimal physics issues that can be noticeable (such as random things breaking at points); it's locked at 60FPS, so this won't do much for higher framerate junkies; and the game will by no means take advantage of some of the more modern features that have been established in terms of graphics such as Ray Tracing and DLSS.
However, as someone who doesn't really care about these things and would rather have a more stable experience throughout, I'm happy to say that this engine iteration has still surprised me with how detailed its graphics are and how gruesome some scenes can look. The titular monster that haunts the bunker halls is a beautiful abomination that has given me goosebumps and filled me with panic the few times I could glance at it.
The game's presentation is only aided by the memorable atmosphere that permeates the whole game. Throughout, Amnesia: The Bunker has done a fantastic job of making its atmosphere dreadful and desolate. More often than not, I was always on edge, cautiously turning corners and feeling paranoid. The best part about the game is that it doesn't have jump scares. The game builds tension appropriately, and the payoff can be seen when you get scared of the explosions that go off at random points during the game (this is a warzone, after all) or when you find the monster that roams the halls which can be heard growling or scuttling around in the background, building the anticipation behind your inevitable encounter with it ever so beautifully.
The development team has done a great job at keeping consistent with the atmosphere that has defined Amnesia: The Dark Descent and made it a staple in the industry. I'm happy to report that this game will make you feel scared of exiting the only safe haven you ever have, and it does a great job of keeping you scared and paranoid as you go on your adventure inside the bunker. It also throws some significant but subtle swerves throughout the experience, making you more paranoid the moment you notice them.
One of my favorite examples of such happens during the late game, where the safe room music that used to help bring the uneasy calm begins to become absent. Obviously, you won't notice that the first few times until you begin to ask why this is happening. Once you look around the room, you realize the reason behind its absence (which I won't reveal due to spoilers), and you realize that the safe haven you once had is no longer safe.
Amnesia: The Bunker uses what I call the Equivalent Exchange system. It essentially gives you advantages that come with their drawbacks. For instance, you gain access to a flashlight that doesn't need batteries early on. However, it's a dynamo flashlight that needs to be wound up to work, meaning that you will make a lot of noise to maintain a light, bringing the attention of whatever is out there hunting you. You have access to a revolver, allowing you to defend yourself against outside threats. But not only is ammo scarce, you also will make tons of noise if you ever shoot it, and you will be deafened for a few seconds, meaning that if you unwittingly attracted something, you will not know until it's too late.
The biggest example of the Equivalent Exchange system comes in the form of the generator that you come across from the beginning. This generator will easily provide light to the entire bunker, meaning that you can easily traverse through the halls without the concern of being cornered by the monster since it hates the light. However, this generator runs on fuel, and not only that, but your only point of reference is a stopwatch that can only give you an approximate of how long you have before the lights go out. So, even if you are safe under the light, it's only a matter of time before you're forced to crawl into the darkness with whatever you've got.
The Equivalent Exchange system in Amnesia: The Bunker allows for a scarier experience to happen since you won't truly know what the right decision to make is. It makes you cautiously weigh your options to solve your problems and encourages you to think outside the box. Items can be combined to make pseudo-weapons like Molotov Cocktails but they also come at the cost of sacrificing precious resources that can be used to create bandages or provide more fuel to the generator. This can be seen in how the game is structured, as it allows you to go wherever you want to get the items you need to escape the bunker at any point.
The game takes on a semi-open-ended approach, making it stand out over other horror games in the current age. Since you're free to go wherever you want, that means multiple solutions to the same problem are available to you at any given time. You could use a brick to break a door open, or you could just throw a grenade at it and get your business done before the monster comes over to check what that huge explosion noise was.
Amnesia: The Bunker encourages a lot of creativity within its design. While it doesn't have much in terms of actual puzzles, it more than makes up for it with a level and environment design that needs you to think ahead and be prepared to pull a plan constantly. The game gives you this advice first and foremost: if something looks like it might work, it probably will. Every time I managed to create a solution to one of my problems, I always felt like I was doing something amazing because I did it with what I had, not with what the game wanted me to do.
This is way better than giving you progress markers that can be seen in games like Resident Evil 4 Remake, but it also doesn't come at the cost of being forcibly lost like in System Shock. The game's small enclosure lets you remember where everything is easy. Additionally, the game provides clues about the way forward through the game's notes, meaning that you will have to check them if you want to know where the items you're interested in are at the moment.
Of course, this game won't also give you an easy experience. The map is only found in the save room, and you will need to downright memorize where you need to go. Additionally, you won't be able to run recklessly through the bunker halls because the whole place is booby-trapped with tripwires that trigger a grenade, flare, or gas grenade that can also threaten your life.
You can also use these to your advantage, especially against the monster. As I said earlier, there are multiple solutions to the same problem, which extends to how the monster encounters work. This means that you can run through the tripwires you initially found during a chase and deliberately make the monster acquainted with a gas trap or an explosion to shake it off you.
This creativity encouragement is a breath of fresh air that has me floored at how it contributes to the atmosphere and makes whatever limitation you get (be it from the Equivalent Exchange system or from the way the game is designed in general) feel organic and part of the problem that needs to be solved. Additionally, the game is also randomized with each playthrough. While key items aren't going to be randomized, the supplemental items like fuel and bullets are, meaning that every playthrough will be different and a fresh experience, allowing you to take the horror head-on from scratch.
Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of the game's length, which only clocks in at a measly 4 hours of content overall. The game offers lots of supplementary material with logs read by excellent voice actors, but it doesn't offer much in terms of actual cutscenes. Additionally, you will be bound to learn the ins and outs of the game sooner or later, decreasing the horror factor during multiple playthroughs, even with the game's randomized nature taken into consideration.
Don't get me wrong. It's better to play this game multiple times to soak in the whole experience. But there won't be much to be done in subsequent playthroughs outside of achievement hunting, which can be an issue for some players. However, I still have found this experience quite endearing to play, even more so than other games in the genre.
Amnesia: The Bunker is a game that has tried and succeeded to become as legendary as its original iteration. While the game doesn't have the most amazing way of creating its story, it more than makes up for it with gameplay that encourages creative solutions and provides you with items that have their own sets of drawbacks attached to make you consider crafting or scavenging for them.
The game's atmosphere is one of the biggest highlights, making the titular bunker feel like a desolate place and forever printing this idea inside your head that you're alone and nobody is coming to save you. Once you realize some of the game's deeper aspects and read enough notes to know what's going on, the game takes a turn for the tragic as you learn more about what awful events befell the soldiers that once roamed the bunker halls before you woke up.
As I said before, horror is evolving, changing. Whether this approach will be a better way to address some of the problems it has faced over the years entirely depends on the audience's reception. But in my opinion, Amnesia: The Bunker has become one of the best horror games and a step in the right direction for horror experiences in the future. With how amazing the Resident Evil 4 Remake was and how great experimental games in the indie space, such as Endoparasitic, are, I can say that this year will be great for horror games, even in times of change.
Reviewed on PC (code provided by the publisher).
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