Sadly, it pains me to say that none of these awesomely terrifying things about the first game make a reappearance here in A Machine for Pigs, and their noticeable absence from the game quickly falls under the category of “What were the developers thinking?” First of all, your lantern never runs out of fuel, so you can cast yourself in a comforting light for the entirety of the game’s four-hour story. Let me just say there’s nothing scarier than hiding in a dark corner, your lantern turned off, listening to nothing but your own terrified breathing, and praying to any higher being that the creature won’t find where you’re hiding. And of course, let’s not forget to mention the fact that your lantern would also attract the attention of those faceless demon monsters that roam the halls at every turn. This also gave way to a great exploration component, as you would always feel the need to scour every room you came across for little oil refill canisters that might be hiding in cabinets or desk drawers. A simple idea, yes, but one of the most precarious and unnerving situations I’ve ever found myself in a video game to date.
What made The Dark Descentso utterly terrifying and unique was the fact that you were constantly running out of fuel for your lantern, forcing you to ration what little oil you had left by periodically switching off your light and knowingly casting yourself in the surrounding darkness. With most of the core elements from the first game completely removed, and a few new ones added instead that just never take a firm enough hold. In many ways, A Machine for Pigs can be seen as an easier, almost dumbed-down version of The Dark Descent for people who think they might want to get into the horror genre of gaming, but don’t actually want to be scared until they can decide if they really like it or not. This time around, we take control of Oswald Mandus, a wealthy London man living in 1899 who is plagued by haunting dreams of grinding machines and the vacant memories of two twin boys that he can never quite catch up with. With countless “reaction videos” popping up on YouTube of people playing The Dark Descent and completely losing their cool, the promise of a sequel to one of the greatest horror PC games out there was simply just too desirable for most. With once true horror franchises turning more and more towards their action-oriented counterparts, 2010’s Amnesia: The Dark Descent was a breath of fresh air for those of us who like a little scare with their gameplay.
We all know that the horror genre in video games has become a dying scene.
Release Date: SeptemPlatform: PC and Mac Developer: The Chinese Room Publisher: Frictional Games Genre: Survival Horror
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