AMFP Member Review Thread

[Ashtoreth]

My review is mainly an open love-letter to the developers; I've enclosed it in spoiler tags so that it may be more easily ignored by tl;dr types

Spoiler below!

AAMFP is a game which will undoubtedly be appreciated and respected more and more with time. When the dust settles from the initial release's explosion of knee-jerk opinion and vitriol from bratty teenagers, most of whom haven't even played the game for them-fucking-selves, I have complete faith that it will be seen as a masterpiece if it isn't already.

Samuel Justice and Jessica Curry (and anyone else involved with giving me eargasms) should be bestowed with golden ass-scratchers made from melted-down Grammy awards, because their work is beyond amazing and no actual award would suffice.

Pinchbeck's writing is so strong and full of unique character that his hand is undeniably the guiding force of the game; had I not been told The Chinese Room were making the game and that Dan Pinchbeck was writing it I'd have come away from it saying "damn, that game could almost have been made by The Chinese Room!". Fuck me them's is some goodly-written words. And coupled with the voice acting? Bloody hell what a pleasure this game was to experience.

It's a sumptuous, nourishing, fattening experience which left me feeling fulfilled and exhilarated. The game felt so thick with presence and place, it was clear to me that an ungodly amount of effort and care had gone into it. The polish, skill and attention to detail slapped me in the face with its engorged vulva in every square foot of the world I explored (that means it was good, in case you were wondering).

I've been obsessively waiting for this game since February 2012 and although the game is not what I expected it to be (I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting) it has completely and thoroughly satisfied me. Had I waited another year for the game's release I'd have loved it just as much. Playing this game on release day was an event for me (one I enjoyed in tandem with my friend Ashteroth) and I'm still buzzing from it a day later. I don't remember the last time I was this jazzed up to play a game.

How does it stand up next to The Dark Descent? Well, that's the million dollar question, the answer to which is a resounding "who gives a shit?". TDD is the scariest game I've ever played, and I adore it to this day despite having played it 100 times over. AAMFP is a very different beast. The comparisons are forgiveable because they are obviously part of the same series, but I don't feel like it's fair to pitch them against each other because they each have their own distinct feel, style, nature, whatever you want to call it. TCR did exactly what they promised they'd do with the sequel and the game needs to be taken on its own merits. Had the game been released under a different name (perhaps the same name minus the "Amnesia" part) the response would be significantly more positive right off the bat. Most of the complaints are about the lack of an inventory, sanity meter, and so on. These points would never have been raised as negatives had TDD not been so front and centre in the minds of gamers and reviewers. BOLLOCKS, I say.

It might not be as important as I think it is, but the fact that the game is not called "Amnesia 2: A Machine for Pigs" should give you a sense of what I mean. This isn't a direct sequel - which has been stated numerous times by both TCR and FG - so we all need to stop judging it as if it were.

I don't care much for "ratings" but suffice it to say I love the game and appreciate the insane amount of work that went into it.

Who's that Ashteroth you're talking about? Are you cheating on me?! *takes whip out*

Anyway, I couldn't agree more with Paddy.

The sound design, music score, storytelling and atmosphere were absolutely amazing, definitely the high points of AAMFP. I also loved the voice acting, so rich and deep! I can see myself replaying the game many times more, just to experience all these elements together again.
I loved how the game created this feeling of discomfort and tension in me, as the story was progressing. The descriptions in the diaries were so disturbing that I felt there was no need to see gory scenes, the texts were enough to make me feel sick.
Also, the ending was extremely well achieved and satisfying, in my opinion (something The Dark Descent lacked).

The only weak point in the game for me was the monsters. I didn't find them scary at all. I was spotted by one (below the church, if I remember correctly) and he came for me and killed me, and I just didn't feel any fear.
The only times when I panicked a little were when being chased by more than one monster at the same time.

Also, the blue fog was annoying at the beginning but I got used to it and I think it even added to the atmosphere on later levels.

Overall, 8/10 from me!