![]() Amnesia: Rebirth is all about world building It also gives the developers the chance to inject some body horror into the proceedings, even though the game is full of it elsewhere. While I'm tired of female characters' motivations being reduced to their children (it's unfortunately common in stories), it does its job here, especially with how the child's existence is weaved into not only the larger threat hunting the crew, but also Tasi and Salim's heartbreaking backstory, which is revealed as you recover your memories. So instead of a protagonist that just has to recover their memories and stop the evil that has overtaken their sense, Rebirth ups the stakes. I can't think of other games in recent memory that put you in the perspective of a character giving birth or having to breast feed, and considering breastfeeding in public is still taboo to many, this feels revolutionary. The pregnancy plays a huge role in the story, and while relying on it as an actual mechanic feels trivial compared to how powerful and life-changing it can be, the game uses it to its fullest extent. You see, Tasi is pregnant and the existence of said baby brings her comfort, so you can check in on the baby during frightful sequences to calm your nerves. Source: Windows Central (Image credit: Source: Windows Central) Soma sought to rectify this by introducing a Safe Mode that allows players to experience the game without worrying about monsters, but, unfortunately for many, Amnesia: Rebirth goes back to The Dark Descent's roots by creating something meant to haunt your nightmares. ![]() That lack of agency, along with the bleak, hopeless stories the studio crafts, can't be described as "fun." I know a lot of people who attempted to play The Dark Descent and shut it back down after a few minutes. When all you can do is run and hide from the monsters, how willing are you to push forward? When being in the dark causes the game itself to distort, can you manage to hold it together yourself? Can you handle the gruesome, unforgiving worlds you're thrust into? The Amnesia games (including A Machine for Pigs, which was developed by Chinese Room) and its 2015 release Soma are experiments in what taking away a player's ability to fight back or interact with does for both the narrative and gameplay. The studio makes horror games that like to trick the player into questioning what they're seeing or hearing, and that take away player agency. ![]() This has always been the case with games by Frictional, the company that first released Amnesia: The Dark Descent back in 2010.
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