The runaway success of Amnesia: The Dark Descent seems to have practically spawned a cottage industry of first person adventure games. Not that we're complaining — it's always nice to seen more attention being paid to a criminally overlooked genre.
The latest pretender to the Amensia throne is Anna, the debut project from Italian indies Dreampainters Software. The mechanics will be familiar to anyone who's played an adventure game, with quite a bit of puzzle solving, item-hunting, and exploration. Where Anna sets itself apart, though, is in its unique branching storyline.
The game will feature three different endings, triggered by your actions within the game. As you explore, the game will automatically select which storyline best fits the path you're following and react accordingly. In essence, the game builds its narrative around you, rather than forcing you to slog your way down an elaborately disguised linear corridor.
Though the game lacks some of the polish and heavy ambience of Amnesia, the premise and branching storyline definitely sound promising. We'll have to see how it all pays off when Anna releases for the PC on May 18.
