We’ve had a few future classics arrive in recent years. Baldur’s Gate 3 will jump first to most PC players’ minds. Elden Ring will also be up there, and maybe Cyberpunk 2077 and Phantom Liberty. But rising above all of these games is Frictional’s Amnesia The Bunker. It’s a better horror experience than Resident Evil or Silent Hill, with writing that is superior to triple-A sacred cows like The Last of Us and God of War. Frightening, punchy, and unique, it’s one of the best games I’ve played in years and potentially one of the high points of the last decade. If you haven’t tried it yourself, now is the perfect time as it’s available for a historically low price on Steam.
So, what makes Frictional’s latest so good? Our article on Amnesia The Bunker and WW1 provides comprehensive analysis, but in short, the horror game, more than any other, creates a remarkable and tangible sense of stakes. Bullets are counted one by one. The location is small, dense, and full of character – there’s not a single idle moment in Amnesia The Bunker.
And your purpose is always clear. In a world of live-service, open world, and various other ‘forever’ games, Amnesia The Bunker gives you a single objective right at the beginning and once it’s completed, the game ends. It feels like an ultra tight, 80-minute horror movie, or a visionary short story, like Harlan Ellison’s I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream, which the author famously wrote in a single night.
I say this as someone who has always been agnostic about the Amnesia series: The Bunker is one of the all-time great videogames. It seems redundant to explain that it’s scary, but it is, incredibly so. More impressive however is Frictional’s vision, the studio’s ability to create an affecting, punchy short story and deliver it without any unnecessary diversions – without falling victim to the trend towards ‘content’ and player agency for the sake of it that exists today.
If you haven’t played it already, Amnesia The Bunker is now available for the historically low price of $12.49 / £10.49 – just head here. If you like The Bunker, I’d also highly recommend Soma, another Frictional game and one of the best of the last 20 years.
Otherwise, try some of the other best PC games of all time, or maybe look ahead with the best upcoming PC games making their way to you.
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