Amnesia: Rebirth

I remember Rebirth being met with a lot of criticism and now that I finished the next piece in the series, The Bunker, I would like to review Rebirth. My favourite game in the series so far is Rebirth.
TDD is the classic. AMFP is sometimes bizarre, but with some cool stuff and concepts. Bunker is mechanically great, with the best resource management system and less linear gameplay. Rebirth is my favourite because of how much more lore and world building it has. It follows up so many loose ends and questions from the original and creates important elements of the setting for The Bunker. Rebirth is also pretty long and varied with different environments. Some sections are pretty calm and there are more outside time, which can be a good break. The scary stuff here are more scripted than in The Bunker, but it worked great for me anyway. The horror is more intermittent, but therefore created a few more intense scares for me compared with the hostile presence in the Bunker that you have to be aware of all the time, with less surprises as a result (at least in normal difficulty).
Rebirth is also much bigger game. I had almost twice as much gameplay in this one as for The Bunker (The Bunker has more replay value with different game modes and randomization though if that's your thing).
So if you enjoy the lore part, uncovering the mysteries of the earlier game and so on, Rebirth might be your favourite too. If you enjoy the resource side and dislike the more scripted sequences and voices during gameplay you might prefer The Bunker. The Rebirth is necessary to understand the lore though which enhances both TDD and Bunker, and I would recommend it to anyone who cares at all about piecing together the stories.

No clue why this gets the hate it does. Runs fine, story and atmosphere are good. Great game - give it maybe a 8.

NOTE: Play The Bunker first, it is a better game (both mechanically and as a horror experience), and Rebirth's plot basically removes any mystery from The Bunker's story.
Tentative recommend.
It's not much of a horror game, more of a light sci-fi adventure with some sparse spooks, but nonetheless compelling.
The puzzling is not super involved, but I found the environments were intriguing and fun to explore as a setting, just be warned there's not much actual doing involved.
I liked the game overall, but it suffers from being an Amnesia game. Tasi's story is compelling and the deeper Amnesia lore is interesting, but by tying them together they end up both being diluted. This could have been either a great horror story with a unique protagonist (how often do you get X to commune with babby) or a cool exploration of Amnesia's backstory, but it kinda ends up in an uncomfortable middle where it's neither.
Still, it has some memorable moments, but it's the definitely on the weaker side for the studio.

Honestly, it is not bad as people say it is. It has some good horror sequences, puzzles, sound, and story telling. There was some frustrating bits like having to watch long cutscenes when you die.

Hush now, LullabyThis was my first dive into the Amnesia franchise, and I finished the game in one sitting — 8 straight hours. They didn’t let me catch a breath when it came to the scary part, but that’s what made it so captivating. I truly loved it because this survival horror game blends deep emotional storytelling about motherhood, loss, and resilience.
You play as Tasi, a woman who wakes up after a plane crash with no memory of the events leading up to it. As she searches for her missing team, Tasi discovers she’s pregnant and begins experiencing terrifying visions and encounters with otherworldly forces that intertwine with her trauma. In other words, she’s a woman struggling with her past and a mysterious pregnancy.
Tasi’s fear of darkness and her pregnancy aren’t just plot devices but key mechanics that shape the gameplay and narrative. Fear and darkness affect her physical and mental state, so you need to manage your matches and lantern carefully. Save your matches.
You also need to check on the baby by physically feeling her stomach, calming both Tasi and the child. This bond adds emotional tension, making survival feel urgent and personal rather than just mechanical. A small detail can be seen during loading screen, you can see the infant growing as you progress through the story.
The game has a few puzzles, but they’re not too difficult. It also offers multiple endings, each based on how you protect Tasi’s child. I was shocked by the ending I got on my first run, I didn’t expect it to work but it felt beautiful.My ending, killing the Empress and dying with the baby, felt like the best possible resolution. In this ending, you save all the tortured souls, prevent yourself from becoming a monster (which I think is worse than death), and save the baby from living a life of suffering due to her illness.
Death was the best outcome for both Tasi and her child, granting them eternal peace rather than endless suffering. And Tasi would finally be able to reunite with her husband, wherever the dead go. A mother and a child. A mother that would do anything, risking her life for his lovely child.

Pretty good! Certainly better than A Machine for Pigs. This is easily the best world-building of the series by far, even if the visuals leave a lot to be desired. I find it's too easy, as you don't really die if you fail an escape from an encounter... you just collect yourself from fear enveloping you. I do think the game's third act runs a bit too long for my liking, but that's where my complaints end. Aside from that, Amnesia: Rebirth retains the character designs, ominous alien settings, and tense monster encounters/chases The Dark Descent was so successful at crafting.

Out of all Frictional games, even Soma, Rebirth is their most spectacular. As in, it has the most spectacle, grand environnement, a sense of scale unmatched by the other games.
It's not as scary as the Penumbra games and the original Amnesia because of it, and Soma is more about existential questions.
Some who just want survival horror mixed with chases and jumpscare will indeed be disappointed. That's okay too, this game is more of an adventure though not a walking sim, there's too much gameplay to be called as such.
As for the horror type... Unlike Amnesia TDD, where the eldritch horror chase you down until you reach the bottom, this game isn't actually about that, the horror... is the victims made along the way I suppose. The protagonist is innocent, unlike TDD, and the antagonist is both victim and perpetrator.
It was a very enjoyable experience to me, so I recommend it. Just don't expect the same tense gameplay of The Dark Descent.