After playing Amnesia, is Penumbra any good?

[ShadowXOR]

I'm getting close to the end of Amnesia (not finished yet, no spoilers) and I want more. I went ahead and bought the entire Penumbra trilogy (I beat the Tech Demo four years ago, then again a few days ago).

How does Penumbra stand up? Am I going to be thrilled with it or does it definitely feel worse than Amnesia (since it was first)?

[suibriel]

Better

Definitely better

[Crabski]

YES, play it. Penumbra's definitely more dated and less polished (since they had less money to work with and all), but I still consider Black Plague to be the scariest game of the three. Having the flashlight instead of the lantern just makes everything more terrifying

I still consider the Kennel section of Black Plague to be the single most frightening thing I've ever experienced.

[theDARKW0LF]

Penumbra is cool, but I found Amnesia so much scarier and much more polished (obviously).

[OO Agent]

Amnesia is definitely more frightening than Penumbra, but Penumbra is still my favorite so far. I love the setting and environment puzzles, not to mention the scares :3

Youll also get to see the only game where you have a weapon to defend yourself with (Episode 1), then they take it away to make you absolutely defenseless in BP (to intensify the suspense). and at $20 for three games, its hard not to go wrong.

Also, IMO, they have alot of replay value just for the experience they provide.

[Daniel]

Run Forest Run..... The dogs are sweet and gentle; Don't hesitate to pet them. lol

Penumbra is a super game.. love it.

[graykin]

I have a feeling the community is split down the middle in regards to which series is their favorite, but mine personally is Penumbra. I enjoyed Amnesia immensely, but I felt it wasn't as immersive as Penumbra, despite Amnesia's superior polish and technology.

I will say this: I have never played Requiem (though I plan to in the near future), but be prepared for an experience vastly different from Overture and Black Plague.

[Scraper]

Absolutely. Penumbra is a MUST play!
I enjoyed Penumbra more than Amnesia, to be honest.

...and I say it straight about Requiem:
If you wait the same than from Overture and Black Plague, you dissapoint. But if you wait the same than from Portal, you love it!
I liked Requiem. Mostly because I knew what to expect. Others waited for more horror... I wanted more puzzles, and there it was: Requiem.

[CD Set]

Well I do like both, and while Amnesia is arguably scarier, the Penumbra series had the better setting in my opinion.

While I wasn't super-fond of Overture, it's worth playing just so you can experience Black Plague, which is by far the best installment. Requiem is a completely different experience (and doesn't really drive the story forward in any way), but should still be played for completion (and interesting puzzles) alone.

[Crabski]

(09-15-2010 07:33 PM)Scraper Wrote:  Absolutely. Penumbra is a MUST play!
I enjoyed Penumbra more than Amnesia, to be honest.

...and I say it straight about Requiem:
If you wait the same than from Overture and Black Plague, you dissapoint. But if you wait the same than from Portal, you love it!
I liked Requiem. Mostly because I knew what to expect. Others waited for more horror... I wanted more puzzles, and there it was: Requiem.

I'll do the fluent English speakers here a favor and clarify this a bit more (no insult intended, just so everyone can understand).

Requiem is a puzzle off-shoot with little to no horror in it. It's much more similar to Portal then it is to the other Penumbra games; so don't expect it to be something it's not!