There’s a new Amnesia game, and it’s probably terrifying

Fantastic 2010 horror game Amnesia: The Dark Descent is getting a sequel this fall. Developer Frictional Games just announced Amnesia: Rebirth with a short trailer and a little detail on the new project. According to a synopsis, Rebirth follows a new protagonist named Tasi Trianon through the Algerian desert. Some trailer art implies that it takes place in the early to mid-20th century, instead of The Dark Descent’s 19th century Prussia.

The trailer and description suggest that some familiar Amnesia elements are back, including monsters shrouded in darkness, weird glowing machines, interfaces that mess with your head, and — as the name implies — a protagonist piecing together their past. (Part of The Dark Descent’s backstory involves Algeria as well. ) Unlike Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, which was set in the Amnesia world but created by outside studio The Chinese Room, this is being developed by Frictional itself. It’s a world the studio hasn’t visited since Justine, the combination Amnesia expansion / Portal 2 Easter egg / Marquis de Sade homage from 2011.

Frictional’s most recent title was Soma, a survival horror game that was terrifying in more subtle and less mechanics-heavy ways than The Dark Descent. We don’t know how much Rebirth will hew to the original Amnesia formula, but the trailer doesn’t rule out some reinterpretation of it. Amnesia: Rebirth will be released in “autumn 2020” for PC and PlayStation 4. Here’s the full description: Amnesia: Rebirth is a new descent into darkness from the creators of the iconic Amnesia series.

Set in the desolate landscape of the Algerian desert, the game will focus on new character Tasi Trianon as she sets out on a harrowing journey through devastation and despair, personal terror and pain, while exploring the limits of human resilience. You can’t let out a breath. The creature is only inches away. Its sole purpose - to feed off your terror.

And so you crouch in the dark, trying to stop the fear rising, trying to silence what lies within you. Retracing Tasi’s journey and pulling together the fragments of a shattered past will be the only chance to survive the pitiless horror that threatens to devour you. Time is against you. Still, you must continue, step by step, knowing that if you fail you will lose everything.