The Amnesia series from developer Frictional Games sits comfortably among the scariest horror games ever. Each entry tells a personal story about survival against supernatural forces, injecting a palpable sense of dread as you carefully move in near-darkness, constantly staying one step ahead of nightmarish monsters nipping at your heels or the growing anxiety that slowly chips away at the sanity of the protagonist.
But the upcoming sequel, Amnesia: The Bunker, takes a unique approach to story-driven survival horror, focusing more on the moment-to-moment actions and choices you make taking that daring plunge into the unknown. After my hands-on time with it, I felt more unnerved and impressed with what tricks this series has yet to show off.
Amnesia: The Bunker takes place during the height of World War 1. Playing as the French soldier Henri Clement caught in the trenches during a grueling battle, he finds himself in a seemingly abandoned bunker's infirmary, with little memory of what occurred since the conflict. Planning an escape, he procures resources and uncovers the creepy experiments that have occurred in the facility, including an encounter with a monster known as "The Beast," which lurks throughout the bunker while avoiding the light.
According to game director Fredrik Olsson, he stated that he wants The Bunker to be a game that you'll want to play multiple times over, with each run leading to different moments in the "player story."
"It's a game where the gameplay is definitely in the center, and the story has a bit of a backseat," said Olsson. "However, it's more about the player story. Even in the early stages of design, we talked about how everything in this game should be fun to play a second time. Even up until the ending of the game, there is really not that many strictly narrative-driven walking moments, and I'm super happy we managed to do that. Everything is a bit of a challenge, and we even put a custom mode for you to tune the game how you want, so we put a lot of effort into replayability for this one."
After the more cinematic and plot-heavy Amnesia: Rebirth, The Bunker feels more like a back-to-basics approach with a more streamlined narrative. This is to give way for the new world design, which features a less guided and semi-open setting to explore. As Henri, you'll need to collect resources and ammo to survive in the base, all while keeping the bunker's power on. In an added twist, the placement of collectible items like bullets and fuel, are also randomly placed around the environment to ensure you will stay comfortable within the base.
What I found truly unique and intriguing about The Bunker is that it moves the moody aesthetic of the Amnesia series to a more traditional survival horror experience. Compared to previous entries, this sequel is closer in the vein of classic Resident Evil but with that deliberate and steadfast pace that Amnesia is known for. Henri, who you'll learn more about from the game's many diary entries and bits of storytelling, is a soldier and more capable of survival than other protagonists from the series. Along with a gun, Henri can also use grenades, flares, and other makeshift instruments to defend himself.
However, as with Amnesia, you're much better off avoiding conflict and laying low. For instance, using your revolver will require careful aim, and to check your ammo, you'll need to unfasten the ammo cylinder to count how many bullets you have. It's all very Amnesia in how it carefully and deliberately gets you to interact with the world, which adds to the tension.
During my first hour, I had to find some explosives and a detonator to blow open a collapsed exit. Both key items were in different areas of the bunker, requiring some maneuvering to get to. Outside of the safe room in the administration office, which has the storage container and the bunker's generator, some tunnels led deeper into the bunker. While checking the rooms, I could find some precious fuel for the generator and cloth to craft healing items, but just as I was about to descend further, the lights in the halls began to dim, and the growing roars of the beast filled the halls. I immediately returned to the safe room and locked the door behind me.
Therein lies the core of what sets The Bunker apart from the rest of the Amnesia series, in that it's a game of extremely careful resource management in an open setting, as opposed to a tight, linear narrative experience. Every time you decide to leave your safe haven, you're on the clock before the generator runs out, so you'll need to make your moves outside count.
One more terrifying and unsettling moment came when I had an almost face-to-face encounter with The Beast. As I hid in a room near a booby-trapped officer's quarters, it came and inadvertently triggered an explosive device, destroying several doors, which sent it scurrying away. I immediately picked up any stray items and bolted back to the safe room.
I did enjoy the expansive nature of the game and its freeform approach to careful navigation, but sometimes I felt that it caused a paralyzing feeling. In addition, there were some moments when I felt overwhelmed by the game's scope and relentless vibe, which ended up making me make some wasted trips because I was too careful. This did cause some feelings of minor frustration, but I always managed to find my footing again and made some progress.
The Bunker, so far, feels like an exciting and still terrifying move forward for the Amnesia series. However, I do appreciate the change in scope in gameplay, and its larger storytelling. This isn't to say that the game ditches the narrative in favor of open-ended exploration, but Henri's survival story serves as the bedrock for a more front-facing focus on the story that the player will see as they explore the bunker.
Blending the dense and unnerving atmosphere of Amnesia with the resource management and the act of carefully navigating into danger is a potent mix for a horror game, and Amnesia: The Bunker so far feels like an exciting turn for the franchise that I've got my eye on.