![]() All you have to work with are implications it’s heavily implied that the three human hostages and the three… less human… monsters are tied heavily to Justine. You’ll find clues in letters and documents scattered about the place, but don’t expect a complete treatise on every last detail. The DLC is even vaguer in its narrative than The Dark Descent. I’ve gone over pretty much all there is to the story of Amnesia: Justine. Permanent death is a risky feature to have in a video game. Reading into the clues you find and using the environment around you will guide you to victory, as will hiding from the monsters, of course. Though permanent death is an intimidating feature, don’t let it sway you away from Justine. And I’ve had Amnesia in my Steam library for a long time. Indeed, that challenging puzzle combined with permanent death is the reason I haven’t even finished this DLC, much less reviewed it, until the last few weeks. The terror of this knowledge adds much to the game’s horror, but it becomes a problem in the third and last puzzle, which is difficult and requires much trial and error. If you die, you have to start Justine all over again. ![]() The environment of Justine is balanced to accommodate the lack of resources, but even this couldn’t compare to the most damning of all this DLC’s challenges: permanent death. Unlike in The Dark Descent, you don’t lose sanity by hiding in the dark, but you’ll begin to lose your marbles if you stare at the monsters or witness disturbing events, like the slow deaths of the hostages. You can’t defend yourself, of course your only means of self-preservation is to run and hide. Justine features no lantern, health, or tinderboxes, stripping your stealth and progression capabilities down several notches. And yes, that dude’s schlong is indeed visible, but let’s be mature here.Ĭore to Amnesia‘s tension and difficulty is the gameplay, the removal of which was my biggest gripe about Machine for Pigs. I wasn’t about to offer them hugs, but I kept wondering what happened to them. The monsters are tragic figures in their own right. The hostages will plead for their lives even as the monsters draw near, creating a heartrending dilemma. Each has been imprisoned by Justine for unspecified reasons, and it’s heavily implied that the three monsters you encounter were once her lovers or admirers. The one time this game encourages you to be compassionate is with the captives themselves. ![]() More difficult challenges include reconstructing a slideshow and taking first place in the world’s screamiest obstacle course. The puzzles in each of the three areas are hard certainly more so than the simplistic challenges in Machine for Pigs and even the more elaborate ones in The Dark Descent. I appreciated them for rewarding conventional thinking, as in one case where you simply stack stuff to reach a ladder. Everything the game throws at you is a whisper urging you to simply kill the hostage and minimize risk to yourself. Solve the puzzle and save the victim’s life, or kill him to save yourself?Īmnesia‘s hallmark atmosphere of oppression comes to new life in this DLC. Sounds simple enough, right?Ī hard choice. She tells you that you’re a little off your rocker, and that if you can pass the psych exams set before you, you’ll be allowed to leave. You, a young French woman, are awoken by a cheerful gramophone recording made by another woman named Justine. Justine is set in 1858, in a kinky murder dungeon/insane asylum beneath the streets of Paris. It was somewhat cathartic to return to the game world of the first Amnesia after the agonizing love/hate relationship I developed for Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. It’s actually a DLC for the original Amnesia: The Dark Descent, set in the same universe but with a new story and setting. Justine is not some spontaneous third installment in the Amnesia series. What’s that? I’m desensitized? YOU’RE desensitized! I don’t have a problem, I can quit horror whenever I want! I woke up with a smile on my face and immediately began writing a review for this game. By day, they were fine, but by night, I had to lay in bed listening to their scratches on my door. Few horror settings are more fitting than a freshman dorm, and in my dream, my roommates contracted a strain of influenza that turned them into pus-riddled freaks. Last night I had a dream that I was once again living in my old college dorm, a structure that will fall apart the day a butterfly glances at it the wrong way. Pass a series of psych tests in a bid for your freedom.
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