If there is one thing that Frictional Games does very well, it's scaring the pants off unsuspecting gamers. A quick YouTube search for "amnesia" will provide hundreds of reaction videos for their most popular title, Amnesia: The Dark Descent, whose popularity has snowballed into "OMG, scariest game ever" status -- at least, judging by the many video comments relating to the instant-classic survival horror game.

A second game was teased last year, which has since been revealed as Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. Set 60 years after the events of The Dark Descent, the indirect sequel will follow a wealthy industrialist named Oswald Mandus, who has been plagued by dreams of a dark and terrifying machine. New screenshots of this sequel have recently surfaced, providing a brief and dimly lit view into what the game will look like. We brightened them up significantly in order to see what exactly is going on.

Based on a few of the screenshots, it appears that several outdoor locations will be playable, bringing variety and depth to the claustrophobic atmosphere of The Dark Descent. The facade of natural materials has given way to a more mechanical environment, no doubt citing a twisted alternate reality of the industrial revolution as a historical reference.

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Supernatural elements and chemical compounds also seem to have taken a backseat to electricity; so it will be interesting to see how the dynamic plays out between a slightly more modern aesthetic, and the more fantastical story elements that become more apparent in the latter half of The Dark Descent.

If you look closely at the street exterior screenshot, in the distance you'll notice the shape of what looks to be a tall stone wall or bridge with massive arches. Certainly the scope of A Machine for Pigs seems greater than the fleeting glimpses of outdoor settings players seldom saw in the first game.

Ranters, are you ready to be scared out of your wits a second time? What are your thoughts on these images, and how do you think the new setting will affect the survival horror gameplay we have been used to so far in The Dark Descent?

Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is currently in development by thechineseroom, responsible for the popular Dear Esther game modification for Half-Life 2. It is expected to be released in Q3 2013 through Frictional Games.

Are you a big horror genre fan? Get at me @superkyol and let's chat!

Source: Bloody-Disgusting.com