Alice Mesmerising Episodes of Neurosis (AMEN) – A Weird Wonderland

“You’re not the same as you were before,” he said. You were much more… muchier… you’ve lost your muchness.” – Lewis Carroll

Overview

Alice Mesmerising Episode of Neurosis (AMEN) is a new game from Sons of Welder, a prolific development studio and creators of games such as Magnus Imago and 100 Hidden Cthulhu Fish. It is a surreal hidden object game with a dark take on the Alice in Wonderland Stories by Lewis Carroll.

Narrative

AMEN has a slightly obscure narrative that draws on the themes and motifs of Alice in Wonderland but features an Alice trapped in an abyss, beyond the event horizon, struggling with neuroticism. There appears to be no way back for Alice, unless that is, the player can help her by finding a vast array of keys that are dotted through the abstract and symbolic depiction of Wonderland and its well-known characters.

Gameplay

AMEN consists of 6 levels each with between 24 and 45 keys to find. The levels are navigated from a separate screen and represent Alice’s journey through Wonderland. Each level must be completed before the player can progress to the next. The keys are hidden well within the hand-drawn artwork and while some are easy to find, others are a bit trickier helping to provide a satisfying experience. There is no hint system provided, so the only solution is to keep looking!

Each level also contains a number of secrets and achievements. These usually involve interacting with the scene in an unconventional way, such as clicking a closed eyeball to open it.

The game uses simple, intuitive, mouse-only controls so it is very accessible in a physical sense. Players can click on items, move the camera, and zoom in and out.

Styling

Detailed black and white drawings with pops of red make up the bulk of the visuals in AMEN, certainly, they dominate the screen and are the focal point within each level. They often depict characters from Lewis Carroll’s books such as the Mad Hatter, Queen of Hearts, the Jabberwocky, Tweedledum and Tweedledee. The illustrations are somewhat sketchy, but in a deliberate way, they transform familiar characters into grotesque iterations of their classic selves. The backgrounds are mostly black with vibrant, psychedelic scribbles creating a high-contrast and somewhat surreal overall effect. One level actually introduces plasticine and coloured felt tips for a bit of variety!

The music is incredibly well-suited to the game. It sits in the background and does not overpower the overall experience. It features eerie droning, creepy clicking noises, echoey crescendos, and light, sporadic piano, and twinkling. The soundtrack is somewhat reminiscent of the Donnie Darko Score by Michael Andrews, which should be considered high praise.

AMEN has a considered and stylised aesthetic that is consistent with the developer’s previous games. It has a darkness and edginess that suits the narrative and gameplay very well and is a highlight of the game.

Summary

AMEN is a great example of a hidden object game. As with Sons of Welder’s other games in the genre, it steps away from the more common wholesome themes and aesthetics and presents something a bit darker. It also expands on their previous titles with more of a narrative aspect and some added secrets. The visuals and soundtrack are stand-out features of the game and are executed brilliantly. The narrative is surreal and sinister and really helps make AMEN feel like a complete experience. It will take around 30 minutes to complete and offers more than enough to justify its low price tag. I thoroughly enjoyed this ominous and psychedelic retelling of Alice in Wonderland and am happy to recommend it to fans of the stories or of the hidden object genre.

Enjoy hidden object games? You may also like to read these articles:
Top 5 Hidden Object Games – The Best in the Genre! – Please, Touch the Artwork 2 – A Visual Feast with Puzzles! – A Tower Full of Cats – A Feline-Filled Journey through Time!

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