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Scared Stiff: Amnesia and the evolution of the modern horror game
If it's horror, Colette Bennett knows it. This column is dedicated to everything frightening gaming has to offer, from ghostly little Japanese girls to flesh eating zombie dogs. You fumble through the darkness, your feet slopping in the rain. You have no idea where you are or how you even got here. An unfamiliar sound reverberates in the distance, its tinny undertones stinging your ears and furthering your sense of confusion. You're alone and have nothing to defend yourself with. And the only sound you can hear is that of your breathing, ragged with panic.There's no mistaking it – this is survival horror.Unlike the basic action and platform genre, the evolution of horror titles has followed a slow, twisty path. By the mid-nineties, it was known for its signature talent: the ability to reel you into a dark, unknown world like a helpless fish. Titles like Silent Hill and Resident Evil acted as some of the first passports into the journey we now refer to as "psychological horror." System Shock, Parasite Eve, Fatal Frame, and Siren were memorable trips into less-than-reassuring territory. Throw in some unexplained, mysterious figures, watch the world spin out of control, and you've got one hell of a recipe for an addictive genre. Who would have thought that fog-choked towns and shambling creatures who greet you with a spray of vomit could be so appealing?%Gallery-148212%
Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs dev teases ... um, a pig monster
The terror of Frictional's first Amnesia game never involved the almost comical squeals of a pig wielding what sounds like an axe. In Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, that's all gonna change. See – er, hear – for yourself in the latest teaser, above.
Dear Esther sales crash against 100,000
Dear Esther, the atmospheric indie title from thechineseroom, has sold more than 100,000 copies, shortly following the title's launch for Mac on Steam. Developer Robert Briscoe shared the news on Dear Esther's official site: "I have to admit I was a little unsure as to what to expect from sales of Dear Esther once we went to retail, we all were – there was no real benchmark to go by at the time, so I'm extremely pleased to see so many people enjoying the game, and most importantly, proving that gamers are open and eager to new ideas and experiences outside of the boundaries of 'traditional' gameplay. Thanks to everyone who has supported us through this journey, and who will hopefully continue to support us in the future!"Dear Esther is half off through Thursday, May 17 in Steam's Midweek Madness sale, running just $5.
Dear Esther comes to Mac on Steam, is half off through Thursday
Dear Esther has finally wandered across the barren PC wasteland to end up on Mac as part of the larger Steam island system. Dear Esther, developed by current Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs team thechineseroom, now supports SteamPlay and is half off for Midweek Madness, through May 17.
Amnesia dev shares secrets of evolving the horror genre
Frictional Games proved it knows how to make a game that would scare the bejeezus out of Beelzebub himself with Amnesia: The Dark Descent, but there's always room for improvement. Frictional's Thomas Grip has compiled a list of 10 items that can "take horror games to the next level," and (surprisingly) it doesn't begin with "Everything opposite of Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City." It does, however, touch on a few points that could have put the "horror" back into that particular survival-horror title.Grip suggests "minimal combat," "long build-up" and "doubt" are essential to evolve the horror genre, and we've already seen these aspects work wonderfully in Amnesia. Another aspect Grip notes is "no enemies," which he clarifies as follows: "What I mean is that we need to stop thinking of any creatures that we put into the game as 'enemies.' The word enemy makes us think about war and physical conflict, which is really not the focus in a horror game."Grip's list seems to focus on different approaches to immersion and connecting to players on an emotional, human level before ensuring they won't be able to sleep properly for a few weeks at least. All 10 points are described in full on Frictional's blog.Perhaps we'll see a few of these fleshed out in Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs, a sequel in development by thechineseroom and overseen by Frictional itself.
Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs aims to frighten you, even if you know what to expect
Amnesia proved, among other things, that atmosphere is one of the most important aspects in a horror title, trumping jumpy music, grotesque character designs and top-of-the-line graphics -- but now imagine Amnesia's panicked, clammy tone coming from a game as dark and beautiful as Dear Esther. Pure terror.This is what Amnesia developer Frictional Games has charged Dear Esther's thechineseroom with accomplishing in Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs."The thing is, if we don't frighten people as much as the original, then we've failed," Dan Pinchbeck of thechineseroom told Gamasutra. "But now we have to frighten people that know what to expect. The big design challenge is: How do we protect the things that make Amnesia great, and how do we evolve everything else to make a really fresh experience?"Pinchbeck wants players to be reminded of the original Amnesia with each shiver of fear, but to be so enthralled by the new, horrific world that it will feel as if "something has burrowed into your head and is just scratching its nails at you. But you're so hooked. Inside, you're peeling away like bodies from a pile and you just can't stop yourself," Pinchbeck said.Now that sounds like fun.
Building A Machine for Pigs and expanding the universe of Amnesia
It takes place sixty years after Amnesia: The Dark Descent at the turn of the twentieth century, yet the next game to carry the franchise's moniker will feel like familiar territory in one major respect: it is built to scare you senseless.It's six-o-clock in the morning. My tea jolts me awake. The street outside is silent. It's serene and peaceful all around me, until I call Frictional Games designer Thomas Grip. His voice booms in my headset; he's obviously excited. This is the first time his team can talk about his upcoming project. This is how I was introduced to Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs.
Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is the next title from Frictional Games and Dear Esther dev
The power of two crowned indie developer darlings have joined together to form one team, set to bring the Amnesia franchise into a new era.Speaking exclusively with Joystiq, Frictional Games and Dear Esther's thechineseroom have revealed their latest project, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs.Developed by thechineseroom and produced by Frictional Games, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is planned for a debut on PC later this year. No firm date has been set, but internally the two studios hope to launch before Halloween. A recent alternate reality game has been teasing the the next Amnesia's reveal, sending fans into a frenzy."It's not a direct sequel, in terms of it doesn't follow on from the story of Amnesia. It doesn't involve the same characters," Dear Esther writer Dan Pinchbeck told me. Instead, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs will be set in the same "alternate history and set in the same universe." In short, the game will look to scare your pants off.Set in 1899, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs follows the "wealthy industrialist" Oswald Mandus, who has returned home from "a disastrous expedition to Mexico, which has ended in tragedy." Struck by a destructive fever, Mandus is haunted by dreams of a dark machine until he mysteriously regains consciousness. Months have passed, unbeknownst to the industry tycoon, and as he emerges from his slumber the roaring engine of a mysterious machine sputters to life.A detailed interview with Frictional Games designer Thomas Grip and thechineseroom's Dan Pinchbeck is coming later today, delving deeper into the darkness with Amnesia's next chapter. And yes, the two discuss what A Machine for Pigs means.%Gallery-148212%
Dear Esther turned a profit in just 5 hours, 30 minutes
Last year Indie Fund voted to support Dear Esther, a rebuild of the popular Half-Life 2 mod, and it gave developer thechineseroom $55,000 in one lump sum. Indie Fund had its reservations: In an email to thechineseroom's Dan Pinchbeck before handing over the money, Indie Fund said the Steam audience may not understand Dear Esther and it proposed a release on PSN instead. This didn't happen, and thankfully so.Dear Esther recouped Indie Fund's $55,000 investment yesterday in just 5 hours and 30 minutes, selling 16,000 copies and becoming the top-selling title on Steam for the entire day. This means all the sales now are going directly to thechineseroom, whether to fund another game, add to this one or take a team-building sky-diving trip, we'll have to wait and see.
PSA: Dear Esther has wandered onto Steam
Moving away from de rigueur violence, we're excited to hear about the re-release of Dear Esther, a moody game and former mod that is -- last we checked -- in no way about explosions and wars.Dear Esther is available for $9.99 right now on Steam. It's an adventure game for the Windows PC where, as a lost man, you explore a massive and beautiful island. Go ahead and thank Valve's Source engine, which powered Portal 2, for the "beautiful" part.
'Dear Esther' now launching in early 2012, moved over to Portal 2 engine
It's strange, isn't it? The day after we're supposed to give thanks for all the special things in life, we subject ourselves to unknown abuse all in the name of saving a buck. Let's instead give thanks for indie game projects that you won't ever find under the heel of a particularly ill-tempered Walmart shopper on this or any other Black Friday. Like Dear Esther for example, the promising Half Life 2 mod turned real boy, coming to Steam ... when exactly? The more calendrically challenged amongst you may not have realized this, but Dear Esther has already missed its proposed summer 2011 release window so you'll be glad to know it hasn't been summarily forgotten. Developer Dan Pinchbeck says the project has been successfully ported to the Portal 2 engine, and discussions with Valve indicate a release "very likely to be either the end of January or the beginning of February next year." Right alongside Episode 3, right guys? Guys? %Gallery-140285%
Dear Esther HL2 mod remake to be commercially released this summer
Selected in December as Mod DB's annual "Best Upcoming Mod," Dear Esther is actually a remake of a 2008 Half-Life 2 Source-engine mod by the same name. The original mod was developed by indie studio thechineseroom (at the University of Portsmouth, UK) and was "stumbled across" by Robert Briscoe, a former level designer at DICE who had worked on Mirror's Edge. While "far from perfect," Dear Esther had both intrigued and inspired Briscoe, he wrote in May 2009, describing it as "an interactive painting or story, told through the eyes of a dying man on a journey to try and make peace with his tormented mind." "The whole thing is enveloped in deep mystery and hidden meanings," he continued, "I had the idea of taking the groundwork for the mod and develop [sic] it into a fully fledged, production-quality product." Briscoe took his idea to the original creative director Dan Pinchbeck, who "was very enthusiastic about it, giving me his full support on the project." 21 months of steady development later and the Dear Esther remake is on track for a commercial release this summer on Steam. That's right -- Pinchbeck and Briscoe approached Valve, which was "impressed enough to grant a Source license for a full independent release," recounts today's announcement (oddly dated July 30, 2010) on the just launched dear-esther.com. "Rob was creating something so extraordinary," Pinchbeck told PC Gamer UK in the new issue (via Beefjack), "[that] it deserved a wider audience than we could give it as a mod." You can get a glimpse of Briscoe's recreation in the June 2010 test footage postead after the break. [Pictured: work-in-progress screenshot; source: Robert Briscoe's Devblog]
