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[sam27368]

For new readers - Frictional Games (creators of Amnesia the Dark Descent) have created a viral/ARG campaign to reveal their next game, including a website, C64 emulator and tons of interesting clues. The community have set up a wiki for this ARG http://fgsarg.wikidot.com/start and an IRC chat https://cbe005.chat.mibbit.com/?url=irc://irc.gamesurge.net/FGSarg and a history of the ARG so far - http://fgsarg.wikidot.com/history

Final update (I think) - So the ARG is over http://tinyurl.com/frictional64 now says

TO: THEWORLD@NEXTFRICTIONALGAME.COM
FROM: COMMUNITY@NEXTFRICTIONALGAME.COM
CC: TCR@NEXTFRICTIONALGAME.COM
BCC: FG@NEXTFRICTIONALGAME.COM

SUBJECT: AMNESIA

A MACHINE FOR PIGS COMING FALL TWO THOUSAND TWELVE.

Notice the CC email is TCR - which is widely believed to be The Chinese Room - http://thechineseroom.co.uk/?page_id=53 is the site widely believed to be the next Amnesia

Final Concept Artworks

Update - 19th Feb
People are now waiting for the timer in the bottom left corner to end - http://tinyurl.com/frictional64

EDIT: 19th Feb - And here is the deciphered code! Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs coming Fall 2012
http://www.frictionalgames.com/forum/thread-13197-post-119275.html#pid119275

Update - 19th Feb 2012 - Image cracked

So they've gone and worked out the password to the last archive which revealed the full art

Also the two texts were deciphered -

LZW WNAD ESQ ZAVW LZW YJWSLWJ WNAD. TML LZW WNAD SDKG ZAVWK LZW YJWSLWJ YGGV.
THE EVIL MAY HIDE THE GREATER EVIL. BUT THE EVIL ALSO HIDES THE GREATER GOOD.

from the CSS and...

XTCN KVMED CN S FSZTCHR. S FSZTCHR QVM WCYN. QCX VHEP QVM XTR NESOYTXRMCHY VQ WCYN.
THIS WORLD IS A MACHINE. A MACHINE FOR PIGS. FIT ONLY FOR THE SLAUGHTERING OF PIGS.

18th Feb 2012 - And more!

It would appear that more images have been revealed. It's actually hard to follow the thread since a lot of it has been moved to an irc chat. But here's the link for any interested

http://www.frictionalgames.com/forum/thread-13197-page-83.html

Another update -

http://www.frictionalgames.com/forum/thread-13197-post-118496.html#pid118496

HOLY CRAP YOU GUYS, VERY SIGNIFICANT FIND!!!

By a coincidence, I've discovered something. I was browsing this thread, seeing stuff about this building in Seattle with 'the Chinese Room', when a friend sent me a link to a game that just came out on steam called Dear Esther http://dear-esther.com/ . I thought it was cool, so I went to read their 'about Dear Esther' section. You can't imagine my surprise when I find a section at the bottom called "The Chinese Room"!!! The Chinese Room is a game development group with a website at http://thechineseroom.co.uk/ . From their front page:

"We currently have three titles in development. Dear Esther, the commercial remake of the award-winning, critically acclaimed mod will be released on PC via Steam in early 2012. Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture, an openworld game for PC and possibly PS3 starts development in January 2012, and gameB is a secret project due for development and release sometime in late 2012."

If you go to the page for this 'gameB', you find this page http://thechineseroom.co.uk/?page_id=53 , where it says:

"gameB is the codename for a top secret game we’re working on that will be due out in Q4 2012. All we can tell you is that it’s a survival horror and we have a fantastic development team working hard right now. More information will be released in the new year. The concept art is by Ben Andrews"

I think the evidence is overwhelming that there is a connection here! I am so excited typing this... my hands are shaking... I literally stumbled across all of this completely by accident...

Can an admin change the title to reflect the new direction, something along the lines of "Frictional Viral Campaign for Next Amnesia"
Thanks!

EDIT - 17th Feb - Even more!

from left to right
c p f g o i i c m n i g s

Guys i think i found something. Zoom in at those letters you can see that certain letters got a tiny dot besides them and some got a tiny yield or pin next to them. This could have something to do with the order of the letters

EDIT - 17th Feb - More!

type in
PROMOTE THOMAS

then close the page and load it again.
and then type in
USER THOMAS
This will give you a rar file which contains a screenshot.

EDIT - 17th Feb
Another update
it goes further!

http://www.frictionalgames.com/forum/thread-13197-post-118242.html#pid118242

The address in Seattle is Smith Tower... or more accurately the CHINESE (!!) rooms at the smith tower.
It's clear that the new Amnesia will be set sometime after the happenings in the original. Metal is the primary resource and there is a transportation system hooked to the roof of the sewer. Maybe it's just me who's colourblind, but isn't the water red?

The forum have discovered this - http://www.nextfrictionalgame.com/inject_db.php?select_user=' or '1'='1 a C64 emulator

Edit- 17th FEB - Big site update!
takes you to - http://maps.google.com/maps?q=506+2...6+2nd+Ave,+Seattle,+Washington+98104&t=h&z=16
and the image is now unblurred.

Edit- 14th Feb - site updated

Image is more clear http://nextfrictionalgame.com/ goes to the UK - Boreray

http://www.nextfrictionalgame.com/

Just went up in the last day, seems to be a viral campaign. I would post a new thread but have been bumped to junior

I posted this in the Amnesia thread, but I think this might be related:

http://thedarkswarm.com/

nextfrictionalgame.com is pointing to the nameservers ns1.thedarkswarm.com and ns2.thedarkswarm.com. That page looks like something right out of a typical viral campaign...especially with that timer and everything at the bottom.

 

[Dascu]

http://www.nextfrictionalgame.com/

Just went up in the last day, seems to be a viral campaign. I would post a new thread but have been bumped to junior

Chinese setting? Would be interesting.

 

[Vinterbird]

I talked to them last year about their new game, and they said they were taking some inspiration from Heavy Rain and how it did branched story telling and ingame storytelling without too much dialogue management.

 

[Buttonbasher]

http://www.nextfrictionalgame.com/

Just went up in the last day, seems to be a viral campaign. I would post a new thread but have been bumped to junior

Hype! China? Hmm.

Day one so hard. Loved the Penumbra games and Amnesia + Justine were fantastic. Can't wait to see what they have next.

Wonder why the Amnesia logo is there. Think it'll be a sequel? I remember they were working on Grass tech at one point.

 

[Clevinger]

Awesome. I love Chinese game settings (excluding the horrible Dynasty Warriors bullshit, of course).

 

[KAOz]

Really interested in this game. The guys deserve it.

Going to be interesting to see them move away from the horror-genre, as they have said they will with this upcoming game. Can't wait to see what they can cook up.

 

[SparkTR]

Really interested in this game. The guys deserve it.

Going to be interesting to see them move away from the horror-genre, as they have said they will with this upcoming game. Can't wait to see what they can cook up.

I'm interested why they're still using the Amnesia name if this isn't a horror game, I would've thought they'd start fresh to not give false impressions.

 

[plagiarize]

i hope it's more like Justine, and less like Amnesia. i'll give it a chance, but all you babies going on about how you couldn't play Amnesia really made me hate it when i found out it wasn't remotely scary.

and that last 'boss' fight. bah.

 

[afternoon delight]

i'll give it a chance, but all you babies going on about how you couldn't play Amnesia really made me hate it when i found out it wasn't remotely scary.

 

[sam27368]

New thread worthy?

 

[subversus]

lol, what a dramatic thread title. I'd be glad if mods edit this into something like "Friction teases their new game".

 

[Laurentius]

djYue

 

[TheExodu5]

i hope it's more like Justine, and less like Amnesia. i'll give it a chance, but all you babies going on about how you couldn't play Amnesia really made me hate it when i found out it wasn't remotely scary.

and that last 'boss' fight. bah.

Man, fuck Justine. I had to modify the game files and remove the monsters to do the potato hunt achievement. That shit was scary.

 

[Nirolak]

Split bump.

 

[gabbo]

Can't wait. Nobody does horror quite like Frictional, and ancient/Chinese setting or aesthetic is always a plus in my books.
Image looks like two candles in a strangely shaped room or sunlight seeping into a cavern.

 

[Alexios]

Neat.

 

[sam27368]

I wonder when the next update will be

 

[RyanReedyMusic]

Super stoked for this one. They said that with Amnesia. It was make it or break it. So Im guessing they definitely had enough money from that to keep the team alive. Such a great team.

 

[Kuran]

I couldn't continue Amnesia any more when the water level started.. I just couldn't.

Perhaps I should give it another go and man up.

 

[Dyni Crippler]

Oh yeah. Amnesia is simply amazing.
Can't wait for this.

 

[Night_Trekker]

Buying for certain. Penumbra and Amnesia are awesome.

 

[SOME-MIST]

still have to beat justine..but regardless I'm excited!

 

[Cydonian__Knight]

Frictional is one of my favorite developers, this will be a day 1 purchase for sure. An Amnesia type of game in a Chinese setting sounds like it could be really interesting.

 

[theinfinityissue]

the Chinese tease doesn't necessarily reflect a new amnesia game's setting, but could rather be an esoteric clue to the nature of the viral event. These guys took part in Potato Day to a huge degree, and there are no better mentors in the world than Valve when it comes to this sort of thing.

also I'M LOSING MY FUCKING MIND WITH EXCITEMENT.

 

[Maladict]

Really looking forward to this. Amnesia was without a doubt one of the best games 2010. Would also be really cool to kickstart this so they don't risk running into problems like during the Amnesia development.

 

[Foliorum Viridum]

I have no idea how they will top Amnesia. Such a scary game. Playing that all the way through in the dark is an experience I'll never forget.

After playing Amnesia I couldn't go back and enjoy the Penumbra games, they just didn't compare.

I have faith, though. I'm sure they'll make me shit myself all over again!

 

[flowsnake]

I just tried Justine since I never did before for some reason.

 

[-WindYoshi-]

Wonder why the Amnesia logo is there. Think it'll be a sequel? I remember they were working on Grass tech at one point.

Think about it. Whether or not it is a sequel it's a really good idea to let people know, "Hey, were the guys who made Amnesia" because looking around the internet at places like reddit and such, it is pretty clear that Amnesia was a near social phenomenon, known everywhere through word of mouth as "that really scary game". A real breakthough.

 

[afternoon delight]

Think about it. Whether or not it is a sequel it's a really good idea to let people know, "Hey, were the guys who made Amnesia" because looking around the internet at places like reddit and such, it is pretty clear that Amnesia was a near social phenomenon, known everywhere through word of mouth as "that really scary game". A real breakthough.

This coupled with their post-write up saying that there really wasn't a real amount of crossover sales with the Penumbra titles. They're definitely not going to make the same mistake twice/ encourage the same consumer mentality.

Also, can we haz reveal yet?

 

[sam27368]

Site updated! http://nextfrictionalgame.com/ image is more clear and it takes you to Boreray in the UK

 

[xHAASx]

Engrossing. An eery one, similar to Amnesia?

 

[sam27368]

Who knows, China.. now Boreray.. where could it be??

 

[Alexios]

I dunno how it can be not-horror as people say with this sort of teasing. Doesn't seem like Amnesia is just there for brand recognition either since it's all you can see. Maybe they just don't think they'll make it quite as scary since we've already been through Amnesia and a similar game won't do as much, but it's still gonna be in the same style with the mood and danger...

 

[sam27368]

I dunno how it can be not-horror as people say with this sort of teasing. Doesn't seem like Amnesia is just there for brand recognition either since it's all you can see. Maybe they just don't think they'll make it quite as scary since we've already been through Amnesia and a similar game won't do as much, but it's still gonna be in the same style with the mood and danger...

It'll be horror..
"something is coming" is a tagline for a horror game

 

[Ihya]

Wow, bring it on. Hopefully they just expand on the brilliance that is Amnesia.

 

[xHAASx]

Wow, bring it on. Hopefully they just expand on the brilliance that is Amnesia.

Amnesia 2 would be greeted hospitably.

 

[plagiarize]

wow. enjoying the reaction to Justine from people in here.

anyone who finds Amnesia 'too scary' really really confuses me. the penalty for being caught is close to zero, and sometimes you get rewarded for being caught. Deadly Premonition is scarier despite being completely utterly ridiculous, because the enemies actually kill you, and they do so in the nastiest goddamn way.

see, that's all i want from Amnesia. enemies that do something really nasty to me, and for dying to actually MEAN something other than 'we put you in a room right nearby with all the stuff you had, and without undoing your progress at all'.

that's why i loved Justine. i mean, they don't have to go to THAT level of penalty for dying... but damn. maybe i'll replay Amnesia and set it up so that when i die someone shoots me with a BB gun and formats my hard drive.

i'm just really hoping Amnesia 2 is a teeeeeny bit meaner, to go along with the solid level design, enemy design, and incredible atmosphere. then i won't have to be jealous of all you babies that were scared by it

oh and a good final encounter next time too please.

 

[theBishop]

Better have gamepad support.

I'm a little pissed Amnesia doesn't have gamepad since they added it to the OnLive version.

 

[flowsnake]

see, that's all i want from Amnesia. enemies that do something really nasty to me, and for dying to actually MEAN something other than 'we put you in a room right nearby with all the stuff you had, and without undoing your progress at all'.

That didn't annoy me so much as the fact that the game makes it easier for you by making the enemy that killed you disappear.

 

[plagiarize]

That didn't annoy me so much as the fact that the game makes it easier for you by making the enemy that killed you disappear.

sometimes it even puts you nearer to your goal afterwards. the first time i 'died' it destroyed the tension completely for me. i can see a game in there that i'd love, but it needed some sort of threat to get there, and Justine confirmed that.

 

[BeesEight]

still have to beat justine..but regardless I'm excited!

Isn't Justine like forty minutes long? What's the hold up?

Amnesia was really heavy on atmosphere but just couldn't go that extra bit to be scary for me. However, it was a fantastic game and I would still be willing to buy another if only to support talented devs.

Hopefully the ending won't be as lackluster.

 

[TouchMyBox]

wow. enjoying the reaction to Justine from people in here.

anyone who finds Amnesia 'too scary' really really confuses me. the penalty for being caught is close to zero, and sometimes you get rewarded for being caught. Deadly Premonition is scarier despite being completely utterly ridiculous, because the enemies actually kill you, and they do so in the nastiest goddamn way.

see, that's all i want from Amnesia. enemies that do something really nasty to me, and for dying to actually MEAN something other than 'we put you in a room right nearby with all the stuff you had, and without undoing your progress at all'.

that's why i loved Justine. i mean, they don't have to go to THAT level of penalty for dying... but damn. maybe i'll replay Amnesia and set it up so that when i die someone shoots me with a BB gun and formats my hard drive.

i'm just really hoping Amnesia 2 is a teeeeeny bit meaner, to go along with the solid level design, enemy design, and incredible atmosphere. then i won't have to be jealous of all you babies that were scared by it

oh and a good final encounter next time too please.

Real men don't ever find out what the death penalty to a game is.

 

[sam27368]

Isn't Boreray part of the Hebrides?

 

[plagiarize]

Real men don't ever find out what the death penalty to a game is.

hmmn? you mean you don't let every new enemy type kill you in a horror game at least once just to see if it has death animations? if you don't, i totally recommend it. the Resident Evil series and the Dead Space series have some great ones.

 

[loganclaws]

hmmn? you mean you don't let every new enemy type kill you in a horror game at least once just to see if it has death animations? if you don't, i totally recommend it. the Resident Evil series and the Dead Space series have some great ones.

That's actually pretty terrible game design.

 

[Krabardaf]

Didn't have the ball to finish Amnesia yet, but excited anyway.

 

[Spectacular Dr Dawg]

I loved Amnesia so I'll be happy if they are doing another horror game, but I thought they said that their next game wouldn't be a horror game? Maybe they changed their mind after it started selling better.

http://www.buzzfocus.com/2011/05/05...escent-horror-and-life-as-an-indie-developer/

Yeah for our next project we are going to create something that is not as horror concentrated as the games have been before. We feel an urge to explore a bit, especially in terms of story and experience for the users, to see if we can expand a bit on some ideas we have had beyond a horror setting. However, it will definitely be a game with horror and dark settings, meant for an adult audience.

 

[kurtrussell]

1 - Read all the GAFfers posting anecdotal stories about how the game made them soil their Calvin Kleins and how they couldn't even bare to complete it.

2 - Booted it up, spent an hour wandering around a low rez environment, battling a clunky interface, not being able to interact with most things and fighting through horrible gamma issues

3 - Tried it on Onlive. Even worse.

4 - Decided that 99% of GAF are pussies and went back to Cities in Motion.

 

[Alexios]

Clunky interface? Its controls are basically standard FPS lite + clicking on items to acquire them or physically interact with them...

As for your issues with the visuals, you'd think you could have seen those in all the media, official and otherwise, before getting it.

The demo also has remixed elements and isn't as nicely paced or as moody as the full game, which you would probably like less...

 

[sam27368]

Boreray islands, or China... hmm