• Publisher: THQ
  • Release Date: Feb 17, 2011
Amnesia: The Dark Descent Image
Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 44 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 717 Ratings

  • Summary: The last remaining memories fade away into darkness. Your mind is a mess and only a feeling of being hunted remains. You must escape. Awake... Amnesia: The Dark Descent, a first person survival horror. A game about immersion, discovery and living through a nightmare. An experience that will chill you to the core. Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 42 out of 44
  2. Negative: 0 out of 44
  1. Jan 18, 2011
    100
    It was without a doubt one of the most difficult, draining, and stressful gaming experiences I have ever had, but it's also an absolute masterpiece.
  2. 100
    Reminds us how interactivity, perspective, and player disempowerment can be highly engaging, and that a slow creep of fear with abrupt spikes of terror is ultimately the essence of the horror experience.
  3. 85
    This is one of the scariest games in recent memory.
  4. Amnesia is a very difficult game to sum up. The best way to describe it is the slow, spooky, chilling, atmospheric train ride to Hell rather than the insane, kill all monsters action game concept usually associated with the Land of the Dead.

See all 44 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Negative: 14 out of 248
  1. The "Survival-Horror" genre is losing its touch. These days, games that carry the title are much less about horror and more about things jumping out at you for a cheap scare. Even the survival aspect is often pushed to the back burner in favor of making an easier game accessible to a more general audience. As a result survival-horror fans are getting action games with a few scary moments shoved down their throats.

    Amnesia isn't like that. Amnesia focuses on three things: atmosphere, survival, and, above all else, horror. Before players start the game, a warning is given that the game should not be played to win. It should be played to allow one's self to be absorbed into the world of Amnesia. Those that follow this advice will be in for the ride of their life. From the very beginning of the game, Amnesia's immersive and completely unsettling world will have you questioning if that sound is something moving, or if you're just going insane. You'll be afraid to go around the next corner, lest something horrifying is there. But you won't be able to stop.

    With the recent release of the same development tool kit that the creators used to make the game, players can make their own stories. With a bit of creativity and just a bit of that sadistic love of horror, we'll be seeing good things come from Amnesia for a time to come.
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  2. A lot about the game-play is said already in the reviews. It's one of a disturbing game ! Frictional guys really invested themselves in making a very original gameplay. I just love the visual effects slightly distorting the first person view.
    But what I'd like to add about this game, and it's an important thing is the intercompatibility between windows, mac and linux. The penumbra games were restricted to a specific os from a purchase. So I'm happy they followed 2dboy in doing this way. However there was very annoying bugs in the first version and the linux patch were published much later than the windows one...

    Also about the story I'd like to say the end was quite frustrating. Some ends kick you to the credits only with a small comment. It's more like a game over... So I feel like it's a shame and it would have deserved more.
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  3. I didn't expect much out of this game as I am not a fan of the horror genre, but I was plesantly surprised by it. The ability to pick up and move a good amount of things in the environment was greatly executed. The slow pacing followed by sudden shrieks or lourd noises kept me on my toes throught the whole game. I just wish some of the puzzles were more well thought out. Some of them were very difficult while others were quite easy. I wish they had implemented the ablility to stack boxes or other items to reach other areas better. The story was quite interesting at first but it began to lose steam towards the end and i ended up kinda forgetting what was going on when i did reach the end. I also felt that the ending scene was unfulfilling as well, no matter which of the 3 different endings I received. Overall it was an enjoyable experience, those that are fans of the genre should definitely look into it. If you're looking for more action, then stay away. Expand
  4. This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I bought this game with because of all the acclaim it got and I figured, hey it's only 20 bucks for a great game. Wrong. Wrong. Where do I start? How about the really boring story. It seems they made the game and all the puzzles and then thought man, I need a reason to do all this. So uninteresting I've already checked somewhere in the water part. How are the creepy/scary qualities? It was creepy for all of 20 minutes. Then it was just stupid. Losing your sanity consists of a few more scratching sounds and a dumb filter put on the scree. Then sometimes the screen flashes and becomes a little more red while your lose control. Ah yes, control. The controls suck. Think Minecraft and you'd be nearly spot on. The only fun I started having with the game was running (which is more like fast walking) and jumping. Usually I tried to glitch the game and monsters. By the way, the monsters are not scary. Once again see Minecraft. Except sometimes they are invisible and can hurt you... but you can jump through them. Seriously don't be suckered like me by all these reviews. Compare this side by side to a serious game title (Dead Space) and it'll knock it out of the water. Lastly, I have a good graphics card and the settings are at the highest. Yeah, the graphics still suck. Is this company stuck in 2001? Thanks for reading. Summary: Unless you're 3 and have never played a half-decent video game before, don't waste your time. It's not fun, scary, creepy, a good story, or a cool experience. Expand

See all 248 User Reviews

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