The 2015 horror game Soma has remained known for its specific style of horror, quite unlike anything in the game industry. Its style was a lot less “in-your-face” than that of its predecessor, the classic Amnesia: The Dark Descent, but a lot more terrifying for a thematic point of view. How this works is through a very well-thought bait-and-switch mechanic. This truly shows how Frictional Games’ developers have progressed from one game to another and are coming up with wilder and wilder concepts.
The next game in the series is going to be Amnesia: Rebirth, and the developers seem to indicate that this game is going to be a lot like Soma. Amnesia: The Dark Descent was well-known for its jumpscares, which became quite viral in their day, but Thomas Grip, creative director of Frictional Games, said in an interview with Gamestop that the jumpscare style is not what they are currently aiming for.
Grip also mentioned how there were some elements that the developers initially thought that people enjoyed in Amnesia: The Dark Descent, but there are also some parts of the game which the team believes that can be implemented much better to create a more immersive experience. By combining these two, Grip really believes that the new horror game in the series can be something spectacular.
The public’s original reaction to Amnesia: The Dark Descent is one of the reasons why the developers are looking to approach Amnesia: Rebirth from a different angle. The theme of the game was meant to be “human evil,” but a lot of people did not notice it, as all of their attention was focused on screaming and reaction videos.
The concept of Rebirth is thus a horror game that does not rely on short-term horror but rather on an atmospheric horror that grows over time. Grip hopes that this time, the message of the game will be clearer.