Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs Discussion Topic Part 1

[Diz]

Get rid of the "monster has spawned and is looking for you" music. I mean, all you have to do is wait in a closet 'till the music stops, and you know it's safe to continue.

I disagree. Music, even monster themes, has too big of a potential in games like these, in my opinion. If exploiting the music is a problem, I think it would be a better idea to come up with a new system for introducing music rather than getting rid of it.

I would definitely like for scripted monster encounters to be de-emphasized.

Hehe, I'm the complete opposite. Scripted monster encounters are swell, just make them less predictable. :)

Kotch: I believe you can already play Amnesia without the blurry effects - you can turn them off in the settings.

I also like the monster music because it's very ambient and sets the mood, but it does lead to the kind of playstyle that Dogfood described. I think the best solution would be to link monster music to perceived monster proximity: if the monster is close enough that the player can hear it or see it, start ambient music. :)

This would be the best solution, I feel. If possible, link the music as far as possible to what the player/character can see or hear. If the player hides and stays out of sight or can no longer hear any sign of the creature, have the music fade away, even if it might still be there. If it is possible to introduce such a system, you not only eliminate the fact that players can get any actual aid in the music, but also potentially maximize the emotion and feeling, like horror.

Another thing in TDD is that the monsters have a tendency of simply despawning and not really coming back on their own, and I think this is a bigger issue than actually having a monster track for whenever a monster is in the near.

Another thing which could be done, I believe, is having the monster theme for the first 1/3 of the game, and then have it more subtle or disappear for the rest of the game and keep terrifying ambience music instead, so that those who think "no monster music = safety" will have a surprise.

Edit:

Though come to think of it, I don't recall any sort of fear music in the gameplay trailer with that pig-monster encounter.

The first teaser has what appears to be search music when it breaks in the door and walks into the room, and a very creepy piece at that, however this may merely be temporary music as part of the teaser. ;)