A dated engine mixed with a dated concept
249425
Amnesia: The Bunker (Reviewed)
Developer: Frictional Games
Publisher: Frictional Games
Released: June 6th, 2023
Price: $25 USD
Amnesia: The Bunker is a familiar approach to the Amnesia genre, with minimal differences from previous entries. It's a walking simulator that eventually leads to puzzles and solutions that are rather weak and easy to solve, along with fairly linear short (3 hours) progression and some elements of horror, but old horror that needs to be updated for this generation and especially the games engine.
Story
Nothing special
You take on the role of Henri, a French infantryman during World War I. In the midst of a firefight, you become separated from your battalion and pursued by Germans. You are eventually rescued and taken to a nearby bunker, where you had fallen into a coma, while a monster lurks around the corners, taking out your other companions one by one you awake to an empty rat infested bunker.
You can locate notes and recordings of soldiers, which will give you an indication of what happened, when it happened, and how scared they were. Because much of it is quite long and slowly narrated, I didn't waste much time sitting around while the generator was turned on and squandering earlier resources it's not really something you want to get into when you're not here to waste time.
Gameplay
Shallow
I've mentioned it before, but the game is basically made up of one thing: an ever-present monster that isn't scary and only appears to actively hunt you when the power goes out and is attracted to noise. The only actual mechanic you need is to know where you need to go, rush there when the lights are on, complete the location quickly and quietly. If you make too much noise, it will appear and attempt to kill you but all it feels like is a stall for time so the generator will shut down and make it harder, sit around and wait preferably without a blood trail.
Same Engine
The shallow gameplay is due to the fact that it still uses the same engine as the prior games. It's difficult to stand out when you're using the same mechanics and visual / physical gameplay as a 2009 game with very few changes other than handing you a gun to stun the monster or explosives to burst open doors. It becomes tedious and repetitive showing how games that refuse to add new elements over the years will always be destined to be outclassed by new ideas.
Very Short
It has three hours of gameplay. I expected it to go a little longer, but it was only 3-4 hours for a very little amount of playtime, while everything is random it really doesn't offer much replay-ability outside of your initial first playthrough.
Conclusion
Not scary or anything
When Frictional Games has a new release it is oftentimes visually uninteresting while severely lacking atmosphere. This game depicts a developer attempting to make an old concept work in an age where graphics and audio are frequently spectacular to the point of realism. The game really lacks in a lot of departments.
I'll give the game credit for recreating a war-torn overworld where you can hear explosions while within the bunker, which doesn't surprise you but rather gives you a sensation of being in a battle zone and not trapped in a bunker.
The game did not appeal to me. It was too short, lacked puzzles, and lacked hazards other than "Oh no, look out for a trap wire that will alert the beast!" moments and bothersome rodents that would cause you bleed and alert the beast. The pricing simply isn't right for what's being offered forward. It was more amusing than frightening, and more aggravating than tense.
This concludes my views of this game; while my opinions may be met with criticism, that is what distinguishes gamers; you don't have to like the same things as others, nor do you have to agree with them.
If you want to catch me on one of my streams or locate me on social media, you may do so at the following locations, I'm always playing something new.
- Pawkt
Mentioned games
