How can i say this...

[Yarashiel]

Frictional really needs to make something new, their games have been pretty much carbon copies of each other. Amnesia is pretty much like Penumbra but with minor gameplay tweaks, new story and new setting. After awhile it gets boring to run down corridors, hide in a closet from flappy faces and occasionaly solve a puzzle or two.

I've got to agree with yathzee, it's not a very good game. If you take away the great scares and excellent sound design it will just be bunch of linear levels tied together. What they have done with limited people is pretty impressive but eh.

Frictional games are not only about great sound design (which is done by another firm), their gameplay loop and gameplay mechanics are innovative and fit perfectly with the survival horror games.
Have you noticed the camera effects?
Have you noticed your movements sped down while your sanity was down ?
Do you know that you can fall to the ground if your sanity is way too low, which lead to noise and attract monsters?
Didn't you used the "q" and "e" button to look beyond a corridor?
Was lighting up a candle a decisive choice for you while playing?
edit : no weapons.

All these elements are Game Design choices (even the First Person is intentional) and are not so obvious (why weren't they in other games?).

If you had these feelings then you can understand which emotion and "intention/experience" the Frictional team wanted to give us by designing those games.