Overview
Reading this guide might just keep you alive an area, or two longer.
Introduction
So you want to test yourself, prove yourself not to be the cry-baby you are?
or maybe you’re a true fan of horror and finally wanted to give Amnesia a try?
Regardless of your reasoning behind purchasing one of the scariest games made in the last three years, here are a few tips, and tricks to keep you alive inside the world of; The Dark Descent.
Tip #1 Perception
Amnesia is full of screamers, and ghost around every corner, this first tip, is how to be ready for them.
Say you’re in a room with a couple of candles, two wooden doors on each side, and an important tool laid in the center of the room you need to obtain before you can progress? Instead of thinking, you walk right up to the item, get it in your Inventory, then suddenly a Grunt knocks your head off…Could have avoided that….
I’ve learned that the best tool to survive in Amnesia is to be perceptive, and try to see things before they happen. When walking a long, dark hallway, I’m sure to light up every third torch that I pass, becuase if I do get chased down that hallway, I can see where I’m running, and I won’t waste lantern fuel.
A good method of protecting yourself against the Gatherers, is whenever you’re in a room with a closet you can jump into, leave one door of it open, so you can quickly hop into it when you hear a Grunt trying to break into the room. Always expect to encounter one if you ever see a wardrobe.
Another way to be more perceptive, is to always play in a well-lit area.
Basements in Custom Stories are usually unusually dark, but you have something that can light it up rather quickly, if you chose to use it…
Tinderboxes
Most people collect them, but out of some kind of fear that they won’t find anymore, only use them for emergencies. Tinderboxes are there to help you, it’s a slap in the face to the devs. who put them in if you don’t.
In an area like a pitch-black basement, lighting up every candle you see can really help you get your bearings when a monster comes ‘knock knocking’
Don’t light candles that are right next to each other, but keep them kind of connected so you can have a patch of light that you can see at all times.
Knowing where you’re going in a dimly lit room, can be very important.
The little things….
If you’re playing Amnesia, I’m assuming you’ve watched a couple teen slasher movies in your time?
Yeah well the rules that get them killed, are the same in amnesia….
1. Close the doors!
Just like ole’ idiot Fred, being chased by the killer, running through rooms, and never thinks about buying himself a little time by simply closing the doors behind him.
Doon’t be fred. When you’re being chased through multiple rooms by a Grunt, the best thing to do is just close the doors in it’s face, this tactic might save your life.
2. Running into a knife.
Just like Sally, you turn a corner too quick, and find yourself impailed on the killer’s trap…
Don’t be like Sally; You have peek buttons in Amnesia for a reason, use them when you feel threatened. You can see a monster before they see you, and this might save your life.
3. “Is he gone?”
Like poor Billy, thinks the killer is gone, then dies checking to see if he was or not…
Don’t be Billy. If you think the monster is still out there, don’t come out of you’re hiding spot to see. Most monsters do de-spwan but only after an amount of time. So give them a few minutes before stepping out of the closet….
4. The noisy floorboard…
Like Jamie, who steps on the last step of the stairs, and the noise gets her gutted….
Don’t be like Jamie, when you’re caught outside of a closet while a monster is after you, the best thing to do is not move, and to sit tight. This could save your life.
Tip #2
Using the enviroment to your advantage.
Amnesia is full of ruined halls, and cramped spaces, this little Tip is all about how to use these areas to your advantage.
You first look for something you can hide behind; a bookshelf, an overturned desk, anything that you can hide behind, look straight ahead, and not see the monster while you’re behind it.
Next, grab yourself an item; a book, cross, Stephano, anything around you in grabbing distance, grab it, and hold on to it, you’re going to need it later.
Now, when the bad guy starts ripping through the door, prepare your Stephano, and get ready to toss the golden statue to the other side of the room.
As soon as he comes in, the monster will be looking for you, but thanks to the AI in this game, noise attracts them to an area, see where I’m going?
Throw the golden statue (or whatever you have) to an opposite corner, then haul ass down the hallway into another room.
If you come across another room like the one you just left, rinse, and repeat.
Another way to use the enviroment is this;
Say your in a dining room, a grunt broke down the only door…the only exit. What do you do?
It’s actually really simple.
Run around the table!
Yes, the Grunt will try to corner you, but keep at it, and eventually it will make a move for you, when it does hop over the table and make a bee-line for a room with a closet in it.
Easy-peasy.
How NOT to become a Mental patient….
Sanity is a big part of this game, when it’s good, you’re good. You move quicker, you think quicker, and you don’t see damn bugs everywhere!
When it’s bad however, you move slower, the camera turns upside down, and pictured look a bit….wrong…It’s all about how you keep your mental health in Amnesia, beleive it or not, it actually is more important to your survival than you think.
Playing Amnesia, I can tell you that some things just should not be interacted with, for example; torture devices.
9/10 there’s going to be a loss of sanity coming from a torture device, so I try not to look at them, let alone touch them.
I also try to stay away from human bodies I see in the distance, they also are a big player in lowering your sanity when you get too close.
Sometimes, loss of sanity just happens, mainly for a plot element, or as a cheap screamer put in by a Custom Story dev, either way you also need to know how to get it back.
The Sanity potions are a no brainer, pick one of these babies up, and use it to recover your sanity to the next highest level.
What if you don’t have any sanity potions? Well there are ways to bring yourself back, a bit harder, but they work all the same.
1. Progress
Just progressing in the story brings your sanity up a level, finding a tool, opening a certain door. Just pushing forward in the game, or custom story you’re in will help get that sanity back up.
2. Candlelight
When you’re at the ‘…’ state of mind, not much can be done to bring you back, so a good thing to do is just wait beside candlelight, any kind of light really.
About three minutes of waiting, and your sanity will return to the next highest level. (second to lowest level.)
3. Lantern
I’ve played a couple custom stories, where finding the Lantern restors your Sanity to the highest level, but only a couple.
The main reason the lantern is on here, is because not only can you use it to combat the darkness, you can also use it in a simular fashion to candlelight.
If you’re out of tinderboxes, and your sanity is ‘…’ sacrifice a couple of minutes of lantern oil to make yourself right as rain once more.
Closing…
Hopefully this short, little guide will help save the life of an Amnesia player one day, if I save one player from re-spwaning the guide would have been a succsess…
Until we meet again..
“Carry on…”
