Amnesia: The Bunker shaken by delay

Who’s in the bunker, who’s in the bunker?

We’re going to have to wait a bit longer to take shelter in Amnesia: The Bunker, as Frictional Games has announced that the title will be pushed back to May 16, 2023 from its March release date.

In a statement posted to Twitter, they say that “Frictional has had a tough winter with a slew of illnesses that has affected the development. We are a small team and things like this heavily impacts production.” We don’t often hear illness as a reason for delays in this industry, which is rather unfortunate, because it seems like a perfectly valid one considering our games are made by humans who have the tendency to fall ill.

Amnesia: The Bunker is the latest game in the series that began in 2010 with Amnesia: The Dark Descent. In a big change to the formula, The Bunker includes both combat and a semi-open world map promising to present more of a sandbox horror game. Players will be stalked by an “ever-present gruesome creature,” and resources will shift in every playthrough. Sounds like another immersive sim for the growing sub-genre, and I welcome it.

Set during WWI, the narrative follows French Soldier Henri Clement as he finds himself trapped in an abandoned military bunker. He then must find a way to avoid the aforementioned gruesome creature and escape. I’m not sure if returning to the frontline could really be considered an improvement, but I guess Henri can climb that razor-wire when he comes to it.

Amnesia: The Bunker will be available on PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam, GOG, and the Epic Games Store on May 16, 2023.