Cynical gamers and tough guys need not apply – you best be willing to turn the light off, use the recommended gamma settings, and crank up the surround sound to fully enjoy this title.Īmnesia thoroughly works the two-way relationship between player imagination and developer intentions. Of course, in order to make any of this work, the viewer, reader, or gamer, is asked to suspend their disbelief, and allow themselves to be immersed in the horrific world.Īmnesia: The Dark Descent hits all these key notes and if you allow your imagination to run free, it will require nerves of steel and intestinal fortitude to complete. Be it film, book, or video game, the protagonist is thrown into a strange environment and struggles to overcome the odds presented by a very real yet ambiguous threat or enemy. For now, head over the bridge we already lowered and enter the Cistern.A core characteristic of the psychological horror genre is disempowerment. If you try pulling the lever for the bridge, you'll find it goes halfway and then jams.

Leave the area and go back to the Cistern Entrance. Use the Wooden Crank you picked up earlier to replace it and open the door. When you go to open the crank-wheel door, you'll find that the wheel comes right off. Now, exit the area and try going back to the Cistern Entrance. Congratulations, Daniel receives some sanity. The pipes should essentially look like 'I+'. Finally, take the U-pipe with the short corner extensions and place it vertically to the left of the prior two. You should now have a '+' sign on the wall. Now, take the U-pipe with the long corner extensions and place it horizontally across the pipe you just placed. First, take the long pipe with almost no corners and place it vertically in the middle of the wall. You'll need to align the pipes here in order to restore steam flow to the bridge machine. On the left side of this room, you should see several holes in the wall. Make sure to bring your three (3) pipes in with you. From the left to right, the levers need to be: Down, Up, Up, Down.Īfter aligning the levers, exit the room and head through the door on your left. On the left side, you need to align the levers with those in the previous room in order to push the large cylinder into the floor. Once down the stairs, take a right and grab the Wooden Crank on the table. Now, go into the room on the other side of the hall. If you go to the right side, you can find a Tinderbox and the Machine note on a small table. Facing up the stairs, you can find an Oil along the left side on the ground. You'll find another pipe at the bottom of the stairs throw this pipe back with the others. Once you and the pipes are inside, I'd recommend keeping the pipes in the middle of the room, as you'll be collecting more. Make sure to bring the pipes with you into this room as well. Note that you have to use a crank-wheel to open this door and the door will slowly close down. Once all three are aligned, you'll hear steam start flowing through the pipes in the room.Įxit this room and enter the door on your left.

However, the game makes it easier for you: all you have to do is rotate the handles until you hear a click. Now, the purpose of this room is to balance the hanging sand bags using the rotary handles on the left (you essentially have to match the configuration that the prior room used). On the left side of the room, you'll also find a Tinderbox sitting on a large crate with a lit candle. The right corner closest to the door has another U-shaped pipe again, pick it up and throw it into the hallway. Now, enter the room directly across the hallway.

Amnesia the dark descent wooden crank