Zero Punctuation: Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs

[KarlMonster]

... While I quite enjoyed the story of A Machine For Pigs, thechineseroom cut down so much gameplay that I really didn't find myself reveling in the game like I had been anticipating since the damn thing was announced in 2011. I kind of hope someone mods in limited resources later down the line so I can go at it again.

Quite the opposite, actually. Machine was a very modest concept at the beginning, and its highly likely that Frictional urged them to expand on the original concept. [Possibly adding the journey back into the machine?] Machine actually missed an original deadline - with Frictional's blessing - with the disclaimer that they wouldn't release a game that isn't finished.

Of all the games that Yahtzee didn't check the wiki, this was the worst one. Although, even the "official" account of the plot seems to me to be dead wrong in places. The fairest thing to say about it is that TCR was so overanxious to use metaphor, that the resultant narrative was confusing and disjoint.

The *GOOD* news is that while TCR was doing this, Frictional Games have been working on a completely different game, whose name and release date are not yet available.

Go! Go! Gadget sphincter!

 

[Clovus]

Different people want different things, we can both agree on that right?

If you bought a shooting game, and 99% of the game was racing. That'd be quite annoying right?

Or say you bought a racing game, and there was only 10% racing.

Distinction helps prevent confusion. People who want gameplay can be less worried about their purchases, people who want their interactive stories can buy them with ease.

I think my problem is that Dear Esther and, say, Bioshock: Infinite are the same thing in the same way that Eraserhead, The Godfather, and The Fast and the Furious are the same thing. There is a benefit to the art itself to have all of those as part of the same basic category: film. Sure, the writing is lacking in Fast, but I guess it has cool effects or something. Some movies don't have a real "plot", but that doesn't mean they aren't movies. It's not a problem to call all of those movies. Nobody goes to see Fast and comes out annoyed that it didn't address the basic impossiblities of communication in absurd world.

If you want such a strict definiton of "video game" you'll need to come up with some new word to describe the art as a whole. It's absolutely vital to discussion of gaming to be able to consider Dear Esther and Super Mario Bros. at the same time. There's no reason to come up with this phrase since "video games" already is the overwhelmingly accepted name. If you want to break "video game" down into various categories like "racing game" and "shooting game", that's fine.

 

[Tim Chuma]

Sounds good, hopefully will not be too many "let's plays" of it to ruin it.

Yahtzee is going over to the USA to the Escapist Expo next week so that is probably the reason he has not had the time to play GTA V yet and probably won't until afterwards either.

 

[Zombie_Moogle]

Machine for Pigs was never going to live up to Dark Decent; it was a smash hit out of nowhere & it's real hard to do that twice

Search your feelings, you know it to be true

But hey, if all the "Dear Amnesia" rants are being overly critical (which they very likely were/are), I'll pick up a copy

 

[Gunjester]

So.... did you like it? I'm a little unclear on that. I can usually tell, but on this one I'm a little unclear.

He said he liked the playthrough, but looking back feels that the game was not as good as it felt. In other words it's fun to play, but doesn't have replay-ability and lacks the the quality of the first one on the whole.

 

[flying_whimsy]

That image of that thing with it's jaw stapled to it's kneecaps actually scared me for a second....

Same here; it's one of the most disturbing things I've seen in a zero punctuation. And that's including the time he had that scary horror movie moment in his Little Big Planet review.

OT: I'm glad to finally hear that someone liked this game; especially since my own gaming tastes usually parallel Yahtzee's. I've enjoyed a number of things from The Chinese Room, and the first Amnesia scares me so much I've barely played it; looking forward to getting A Machine for Pigs on the next Steam sale.

Gotta remember to put a tarp over the furniture beforehand, though.

 

[Hutzpah Chicken]

A horror game that doesn't involve zombies? Does that mean the pigs have a flying machine?

 

[Lovely Mixture]

I think my problem is that Dear Esther and, say, Bioshock: Infinite are the same thing in the same way that Eraserhead, The Godfather, and The Fast and the Furious are the same thing. There is a benefit to the art itself to have all of those as part of the same basic category: film. Sure, the writing is lacking in Fast, but I guess it has cool effects or something. Some movies don't have a real "plot", but that doesn't mean they aren't movies. It's not a problem to call all of those movies. Nobody goes to see Fast and comes out annoyed that it didn't address the basic impossiblities of communication in absurd world.

But those all have something in common. You watch them, they require no input from you and are moving pictures with sound.

The input required for Dear Esther, Gone Home, or AMFP is minimal.

If you want such a strict definiton of "video game" you'll need to come up with some new word to describe the art as a whole. It's absolutely vital to discussion of gaming to be able to consider Dear Esther and Super Mario Bros. at the same time.

Well technically there already is, they're computer generated media/work

There's no reason to come up with this phrase since "video games" already is the overwhelmingly accepted name.

There's at least the need for distinction.

If you want to break "video game" down into various categories like "racing game" and "shooting game", that's fine.

True. How about unlaborious games or non-inputive games?

 

[DJShire]

Maybe I missed it, but it seems we missed the most important question: why was the terrier at that sex orgy?

 

[Bassplayer2014]

I guess I'm in the minority. I tried really hard to like AMFP but i just couldn't get into the game. The story starts off simply enough but towards the end of the game I got lost. On top of that the atmosphere in this wasn't nearly as good as DD. In DD it got to a point (especially in the second half when the brutes became the main enemy) where I couldn't look around a corner or open a door without the fear of death. But in AMFP I just never got to that point. And for me the only thing keeping this game off of my worst games i have ever play list is my respect for Frictional and the fact that I know that they currently working on a new IP which is why AMFP was developed by The China Room. And I'm hoping that what ever Frictional is working on will do the same thing Bioshock Infinite did. And that is completely erase my memory of ever having played the previous game. All in all not my worst gaming experience of all time (*cough* Bioshock 2 *cough*) but it's nothing to write home about either. Well nothing left to do expect go back to what i have been doing, play custom stories and wait for the announcement from Frictional.

 

[Lovely Mixture]

I guess I'm in the minority. I tried really hard to like AMFP but i just couldn't get into the game. The story starts off simply enough but towards the end of the game I got lost. On top of that the atmosphere in this wasn't nearly as good as DD. In DD it got to a point (especially in the second half when the brutes became the main enemy) where I couldn't look around a corner or open a door without the fear of death. But in AMFP I just never got to that point. And for me the only thing keeping this game off of my worst games i have ever play list is my respect for Frictional and the fact that I know that they currently working on a new IP which is why AMFP was developed by The China Room. And I'm hoping that what ever Frictional is working on will do the same thing Bioshock Infinite did. And that is completely erase my memory of ever having played the previous game. All in all not my worst gaming experience of all time (*cough* Bioshock 2 *cough*) but it's nothing to write home about either. Well nothing left to do expect go back to what i have been doing, play custom stories and wait for the announcement from Frictional.

You are not in the minority. If Steam and Metracritic are anything to buy, most players are very disappointed.

 

[Lovely Mixture]

But those all have something in common. You watch them, they require no input from you and are moving pictures with sound.

The input required for Dear Esther, Gone Home, or AMFP is minimal.

And there you've even admitted yourself that they require input. Sure it's minimal, but it's stil linput, hence, a game.

But I've addressed that.
You make choices in Choose Your Own Adventure Books, does that make it game?
You press a button on an elevator, does that make it a game?
You press the play button on a DVD player, does that make movies videogames?

If input is equivalent to gameplay, then everything is a game.

 

[Lovely Mixture]

A game is an interactive story, a story that you interact with.

No...It's really not. There are a couple thousand examples that say you're wrong.

A video game is a game but with, well, video, moving pictures, animation, whatever.

But you need GAMEPLAY.

Choose your own adventure books aren't, well, video, so they're not video game.

Read what I posted.

You make choices in Choose Your Own Adventure Books, does that make it game?

If input is equivalent to gameplay, then everything is a game.

We're not talking just about videogames here, we're talking about what a game is.

Story has never been required for a game.

 

[Vicioussama]

You liked this atrocious piece of garbage, Yahtzee? lol. Well to each their own, but TheChineseRoom can serious gtfo of the game industry considering it has never made a real game. Just interactive stories. Yes, there is a difference.

I admit this game doesn't hold a candle to The Dark Decent, but why this game gets so much hate mystifies me. I loved it, and yes, it wasn't "gamey" or as scary as the predecessor, but I felt that it was at least a good game by itself, at most a worthy enough sequel. And I'm gonna be honest, I preferred the Machine to the dark corridors of Brennenburg Castle; as Yahtzee said, the whole machine did feel like this groaning monster itself.

Here's the thing, it's not a game. Nor was Dear Esther.

It's a computer program, it's interactive, it uses animated picture (aka video) and sound as a feedback, you have to press a certain pattern of buttons in the right order to make progress and get to the end, so yeah I really don't see why it shouldn't be categorized as being a game. Besides whatever you call it the experience has to be judged on its own merits, not out of some expectations for what a game should be, or how scary it should be, or how it should be exaclty the same thing than the dark descent.
I really don't get all the hate for this game and really agree whith yathzee that despites its flaws it's still way above average of most of what's coming out of the "gaming industry" today (well maybe he didn't exactly say that).

Every book written about "what is play" and "what is a game" would never classify this kinda thing a game though. *shrugs* if people like it, so be it. But don't pretend it's a game or requires any real thought or skill when the most you do is press forward and at points grab something and move it elsewhere.

 

[Evonisia]

Well that opinion seems to be the minority, after the game came out all I heard was stuff like it's terrible, lacks pacing and it doesn't live up to the original Amnesia.

I might end up playing it eventually but have no motivation for it, for now I will stick with Amnesia: The Double D.

Oh it is very much play worthy experience. I recommend it - if just to see some grand visuals and atmosphere.
But yeah... There is less of it, also - you don't get threaten by pigmen that often. I "fought" a "boss" without knowing it (If you can call that thing something of a boss, more of a moving obstacle that goes away after certain actions)

Like.... It is a Chinese Room game... And that should tell you enough.

Hmm, I might consider buying it. Luckily it's on PC so the price drop isn't going to take that long as my interest still isn't really there right now, I have to play through Resident Evil 4 first.

 

[Korsgaard]

Funny review like always, glad to see Amnesia shook things up a little for the sequel, yet remains a solid, often scary game.