Anna is a horror game that was released on PC some months ago. We even reviewed it but our author pramath felt it was a bit too derivative, however, the game does posses some good qualities.

“Anna is a victim of its ambition and its budget. The game clearly aimed high, but with the extremely limited budget, it couldn’t achieve its ambition,” he wrote.

“The game’s muddled mechanics leave it in the mud, which is a shame, because the story and the subtle and menacing undertones of growing fear are things to be enjoyed. As a game, Anna probably fails, but as a novelty, a work of art, it works just about well enough that you should probably check it out once after all.”

Mac users now get a chance to play this game in November. It contains three endings and unique physics based puzzle which can keep some players interested.

Here are the features of the game:

•  A haunting  tale of psychological terror
• Three possible endings, each determined by the player’s actions in the storyline
• Physics-based environmental puzzles
• A faithful 3D recreation of the Italian countryside and a sinister sawmill that await your exploration
• Atmospheric soundtrack
• Brain-twisting puzzles to solve and horrific clues to uncover

Regardless, Anna is out now. Set in an abandoned saw mill, you have to uncover clues regarding your character’s seemingly shadow-filled past. Three possible endings have been promised, along with “brain twisting puzzles” and a promise to make your character’s mental health a factor in the outcome.

No, not even creepy. Just intriguing. Now stop.

Kalypso Media has announced a digital distribution deal for Anna, the first person horror adventure title from developers Dreampainters. Anna will be available to purchase on PC and Mac through Kalypso’s digital distribution partners from 21st September 2012 for £7.99/€9.99/$9.99.

Here’s the game as described by the devs:

Anna is a first-person horror adventure that explores the darkest depths of the human psyche. Set in an abandoned sawmill nestled high in the mountains, Anna challenges you to uncover horrific clues and use them to solve puzzles related to your character’s dark past.  As you play, Anna will change locations and unveil new secrets. The way you play will not only determine the mental health of your main character, but will also lead to one of three possible endings.

Features:

• A haunting  tale of psychological terror
• Three possible endings, each determined by the player’s actions in the storyline
• Physics-based environmental puzzles
• A faithful 3D recreation of the Italian countryside and a sinister sawmill that await your exploration
• Atmospheric soundtrack
• Brain-twisting puzzles to solve and horrific clues to uncover

The digital version of Anna will also include the following bonus material:

• Photos of the real-world sawmill location
• Complete soundtrack
• Main character’s notebook in English and Italian

In the current climate, with horror games all but dying out, comes a new game with a similar promise: an unassuming indie game that promises to immerse the player with a dynamic world that changes to accommodate the player’s responses and decisions. This marketing angle, along with the game’s proud proclamation that it ‘has 3D graphics,’ might actually mislead the player into expecting a horror action adventure game, not unlike an earlier indie PC hit, another horror game called Amnesia. What you do get, however, is a point and click adventure game, which yes, admittedly, has 3D graphics. However, its problem is not its genre, or its graphics, or even its slightly misleading marketing, it is its complete failure to capitalize on its premise, although if one steps backwards and assesses Anna not as a game, but as a larger piece of art, they would probably appreciate it more.

Anna is a game that takes place in an Italian sawmill. The entire game has you explore the front yard, and the building itself, and that is it. Yes, in the tradition of timeless classics such as Resident Evil and Luigi’s Mansion, Anna too takes place entirely within one building. Unfortunately, unlike those games, Anna does not have the substance to back up this decision. As a point and click adventure, Anna is naturally limited in terms of how it plays, and its short length- the game lasts just a bit over two hours- doesn’t help.

To be fair, Anna has three separate endings, and at least one of them takes over three hours to achieve, adding some sort of replay value. The unfortunate truth of the matter, however, is that you probably simply won’t want to bother with the other endings. The game mechanics are bad and banal enough, in fact, that you probably won’t even see the game through to its first ending, which is kind of a shame, because Anna, for all that it lacks in the gameplay department, is supremely accomplished in the story department.

It’s really hard to even put a finger on just why its story does so well. Is it because of its sheer complexity? Is it because of its ambiguity that leaves something to the imagination, your imagination which always conjures up something more dreadful and ominous than any tangible proof could ever have managed.

Maybe it’s because of how well, in spite of all the limitations of the game (including a rather poor translation- the game’s developers are Italian) the game manages to convey a sense of dread and a sickly feeling of something that’s about to happen. The game’s static psuedo 3D head on illusion, coupled with the complete staticness of everything on screen, certainly adds to this feeling.

It is a pity then, that as good as the story is, the gameplay itself seems to be lacking, Anna is a first person point and click adventure game that relies primarily on puzzle solving. The puzzles themselves get obtuse- there is a locked door, how do you open it? By finding a key? Nope. You just go around clicking on everything, and eventually, you do something that triggers the door. What that something is, you have no idea, and there doesn’t even seem to be a required order. It just seems to be all random.

The game has a hint system that, in theory, should help you deal with situations like this, but it’s simply broken, and won’t work. Many times, it refuses to update, and you’re just left to figure your own way out. Which can take forever, because you have to explore every nook and cranny. It can get frustrating, and turn players off, which is a shame, because the game’s subtly growing underlying theme of menace, as well as its story, are really good and shouldn’t be missed.

Anna is a victim of its ambition and its budget. The game clearly aimed high, but with the extremely limited budget, it couldn’t achieve its ambition. The game’s muddled mechanics leave it in the mud, which is a shame, because the story and the subtle and menacing undertones of growing fear are things to be enjoyed. As a game, Anna probably fails, but as a novelty, a work of art, it works just about well enough that you should probably check it out once after all.

This game was reviewed on the PC.

Note: You guys can get this game from the Zodiac store over here.

Anna is a first person horror adventure with 3D graphics. The game is set in an old sawmill based between Champoluc and Periasc, a place actually existing in the Val D’Ayas in Valle d’Aosta, Italy. Here the main character will have to solve puzzles and ‘face’ the presences who inhabit the buildings. Depending on the mental health of the character, the locations will change and reveal different secrets, which will lead to one of the three possible endings.

***Please note this walkthrough was not uploaded by GamingBolt.com.

Special thanks to Youtube user riseofasoljatv for uploading this walkthrough.

Check out more video game walkthroughs here.

Without further ado, let’s begin!

Anna, the new horror game from Dreampainters, is now available for purchaseonline at the Zodiac store. The game costs $9.99 and € 7.90 and is available on the PC.

Anna is a first person horror adventure with 3D graphics. The game is set in an old sawmill based between Champoluc and Periasc, a place actually existing in the Val D’Ayas in Valle d’Aosta, Italy.

Here the main character will have to solve puzzles and ‘face’ the presences who inhabit the buildings. Depending on the mental health of the character, the locations will change and reveal different secrets, which will lead to one of the three possible endings.

It features an  evocative setting: a faithful reconstruction of an old sawmill actually existing in Valle d’Aosta, Italy; 3D real time graphics with dynamic light effects; 3 different endings based on the mental health of the main character, and a soundtrack composed by the Italian gothic/progressive band Chantry. Also extras like soundtrack and character’s diary!

Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Anna is inspired by ancient legends in Val D’Ayas and its location is set between Champoluc and Periasc, which is around 100Km from Cogne. The game features 3 different endings, which are triggered according to your behaviour in the game. Anna will provide you different paths, environments and puzzles according to the path you’re walking, providing you 3 different experiences, each one of around 3 hours. This means that exploring Anna will take you around 9 hours, or so. The game features real time rendering with explorable environments.

You can check more information on their official website here.