Amnesia The Dark Descent & Crashlands Free on Epic Games Store

The two games that Epic Games are offering for free on their store this week are Amnesia: The Dark Descent and Crashlands. If they were going for variety, then this really is a success, because those two games could not be further away from each other. Both of them have a lot to offer, of course.

The time is upon us yet again when the Epic Games Store offers a new set of free games for all who want them. This week, the two games on offer could not be more different from one another. The first one is Amnesia: The Dark Descent, and the other is Crashlands. The offer times out on May 7th, at which point the Final Destination-inspired puzzle game Death Coming will take over. I’m really excited about that one, but that’s not what we’re focusing on today.

Amnesia: The Dark Descent needs no special introduction, I think. When it came out back in 2010, it simultaneously revived and transformed the horror genre. It’s terrifying and uses several (at the time) relatively unique gameplay mechanics to heighten the tension, inspiring future titles from low-budget games like Slenderman to tripe-A hard-hitters like Alien: Isolation. I could never finish it, because the view distortion mechanic makes me nauseous, and also because I’m too scared. Anyway, if you haven’t played it yet, do it now.

As for Crashlands, that is a totally different story, and I mean the polar opposite of Amnesia. It’s bright, colorful, and filled to the brim with (admittedly, sometimes dark) humor. It’s basically an open world survival game where you go out, harvest creatures, and come back to build your home and upgrade your gear. A fairly basic premise, but that’s not necessarily bad. I’ve never played this one, but I did grab it since it’s free. Since not as many people are familiar with it, here’s a trailer to explain things briefly.