Face your fears in Amnesia: The Dark Descent Penumbra series creators will chill your bones with their newest hit By TK Kwon " : ou wake up in a cold empty corridor in what appears to be a medieval castle. Your vision is blurry and the corridor, dimly lit, is splayed with blood and a mysterious pink liquid. Welcome to the world of Amnesia. As you would in any survival horror game, you have one goal, to survive to see the end of the game. Resident Evil? Silent Hill? Oh please, as far as I’m concerned, any game that arms you with weapons to defend yourself is a mockery to the genre. But the creators of the popular Penumbra series, Frictional Games, take a different approach to their titles; they want to rekindle the fears you’ve had since you were a child. They want you to fear the feeling of helplessness, of uncertain, and mostly, of darkness. This is the true face of the survival horror genre. _ In Amnesia, you start by collecting small tins of tinder to light torches in pitch-black rooms and corridors (use them sparingly, they are scarce). After being rewarded a lantern upon reaching your first checkpoint—to which many players breathe a sigh of relief, until they discover that keeping it lit will quickly burn away what little fuel is inside—the player must then venture onward through winding corridors and dimly lit spaces as they continue to scavenge for further munitions in order to better navigate the seemingly sentient castle. The general game-play follows a young London man named Daniel, whom the players control, as he mysteriously awakens in an empty hallway inside Brennenburg Castle. The goal of the game is to solve the mystery of his amnesia and as to why these events came to be by collecting information through various mediums and by solving puzzles throughout the castle. As the game progresses the player will experience hallucinogenic flashbacks that act as a device to further explain the plot as well as give hints to players. Unlike traditional survival horror games, developers Frictional Games have added their own signature twist to the tried and true health meter system. When players access their inventory menu they will see two pictures: a human brain and heart. These are essentially the player’s overall health or, wellness indicator. The heart indicates the player’s general well- being, as traditional health meters do, however, the brain meter also factors into the game-play as a means to measure the player’s sanity level. If the player is exposed to long durations of darkness or frequent encounters with monsters, they will find their sanity meter greatly stressed. When the stress meter is high the player will attract monsters more easily as well as suffer from periods of intense hallucinations. Nevertheless, avoiding the darkness is a trial in itself, for the castle will ruthlessly send random gales of wind to extinguish what little light is available. As stated before, Amnesia doesn’t play around when it comes to enveloping players in the fear experience. The studio stays true to 8 their intent and it is reflected in the game’s combat system. Simply put, there is no combat system. Unlike other survival horror titles, players cannot fight against their enemies, their only option is to run and hide in the hopes that their predators will eventually lose interest and wander off. By successfully fleshing out the ambiance and tones that make a bone- chilling experience, Frictional Games has crafted another favourite that survival horror fans will be clamouring about for quite some time. This game is truly a juggernaut in a genre saturated with zombies and semi- automatic firearms and will completely engross gamers in an environment that will make them jump, scream, and cower behind their sheets as they play. So turn off the lights and grab your friend or sweetie (because you aren’t going to want to be alone) and plunge yourself into the dark descent that is Amnesia. You can grab the game online and at select retailers for $19.99; that is if you think you can face your fears. Rating: 4.5/5 Are audiences ready to Scream again? Or will fourth instalment be a dull roar? By Jacey Gibb he beast that is unnecessary | Hollywood sequels continues its rampage as ten years after the ‘final’ Scream movie hit theatres, a new chapter in the saga prepares to be unleashed. Just recently at Spike TV’s Scream 2010 Awards, the teaser trailer for Scream 4 debuted and, as it has become the standard, the clip was leaked onto the internet. During the sneak peek we got our first look at the latest cast of characters to fall prey to the serial killer Ghostface. Now I’m not sure you can find anyone that had a positive reaction to news that a new Scream was in the works. The original film debuted in 1996 and was a clever combination of suspense and comedy that ignited a new generation of slasher films. Though unwarranted, Scream 2 built successfully off this universe and deemed itself to be indeed a worthy sequel. But, by the time that the third entry arrived, it seemed that the franchise was running on empty, becoming the very cliché they had initially set out to parody. The question running through most fans’ minds: do we really need a fourth Scream? | went through this initial scepticism phase myself, but have slowly come to warm to the idea. Here are a couple reasons why: ¢ The three leads remain the same. Sure, it’s not like Neve Campbell or David Arquette had to struggle to find the time to return to the franchise, but securing Courtney Cox must have been difficult seeing as she now has her own television show, Cougar Town. We’re lucky all three are returning though because a Scream movie without Sydney, Gale Weathers, and Deputy Dewey would be like a machine without any working parts. Unfortunately, it’s been stated that Jamie Kennedy will not be reprising his role as Randy in any form. ¢ Wes Craven is back behind the camera. Though his newest film is getting slaughtered by audiences and critics alike, his statement early on that he would not return unless the new script was as good as the original is comforting. Have faith. Have people already forgotten all this man has done for the horror genre? ¢ The “next generation” promise. Arguably bloated with new comers, you'll see some recognizable faces like Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Alison Brie, and Mary McDonnell. How effectively these new characters get utilized will remain unknown until the film comes out. Hopefully, they don’t take too much screen time away from our original favourites. It’s been said that Scream 4 will be a standalone film with a definite ending but that based on financial success this could be the first of a set of three (we’ll cross that bridge when we get there). The question still remains the same though: almost fifteen years since the first one revived an entire genre, can this latest instalment breathe life into the franchise and give birth to a new trilogy? I’m hoping for sunny skies on this one, but I’m still packing my umbrella.