Amnesia: Rebirth

Frictional Games - 2020

‘Amnesia: Rebirth’ by Swedish studio Frictional is the long-awaited sequel to 2010’s ‘Amnesia: The Dark Descent’. Set in 1937 you play Anastasie Trianon, an engineer who is on an expedition to the French Sudan. Unfortunately you don’t quite make it as the plane you’re travelling ends up crashing in the Algerian desert.

Surviving the crash, you awake to find that the crew and your husband are missing. So begins the game with Anastasie tryinging to establish just exactly what went wrong, why the crew and her husband are missing and how she is going to get home?

The game is far more open than that of the claustrophobic original and is set across the desert, caves, abandoned fortresses and alternate dimensions. As with the original, the aim of the game is to avoid the dark which can be achieved by using your lantern, matches or by lighting permanent sources which are a welcome addition.

The game does well to blend to together a mixture of puzzle-solving whilst you try to evade the terrifying monsters that lurk within the dark shadows. One word of warning — even if you think a monster is dead, do not assume it is. As the game progresses, every step you take becomes tenser and tenser; the further you explore, the greater the number of monsters that become a threat. ‘Amnesia: Rebirth’ is a good game with plenty of scares and is ultimately an atmospheric and thrilling addition to the series. The game has multiple endings and no matter which one you get; each will leave you feeling a sense of horror and dread.