Penumbra: Overture

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Hide in the dark of a Greenland mine where something hunts you.

Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux
Price: Paid
Rated: Very Positive on Steam (90% of 4,192 reviews); Metacritic 73
Length: a few hours
Players: 1
Made by: Frictional Games
Released: 2009

What frightens Alone in an abandoned mine under the Greenland ice, you hide in the dark from feral dogs, giant spiders and worse, with a flashlight that dims and little to fight back with.
Content: gore, violence, jumpscares.

Penumbra: Overture is a first-person survival horror game from Frictional Games, the studio that later made Amnesia. Following a letter from his dead father, Philip travels to Greenland and climbs down into an abandoned mine, where he must solve physical puzzles and hide from the creatures in the tunnels.

About Penumbra: Overture

Penumbra: Overture is the first game of Frictional Games, the Swedish studio later known for Amnesia: The Dark Descent and SOMA. It is the first episode of the Penumbra series and is sold on Steam for Windows, Mac and Linux.

You play Philip, a man who receives a letter from his father, who he believed was dead, and follows it to a remote spot in Greenland. A storm drives him underground into an old mine, and the hatch above will not open again. From there he has to work his way deeper through tunnels, storerooms and caverns, guided by a strange voice on the radio.

The game is built around its physics. You open drawers, turn valves, stack boxes and swing objects by moving the mouse as if your hand were doing it, and most puzzles ask you to use the world in this direct way. The same system handles combat: you can swing a hammer or pickaxe, but it is clumsy, and the creatures often win a straight fight.

The better answer is to stay unseen. Crouching in the dark makes you hard to spot, and staring at a creature for too long can give you away. The flashlight and glowstick help you see, but light draws attention and batteries run out. That leaves you sitting still in the dark, listening to dogs pad through the next tunnel. It suits players who liked the Amnesia games and want to see where that way of making horror began, and who do not mind dated graphics and an older game's rough edges.

How to play Penumbra: Overture

Read the opening letter and notes, then head down into the mine when the storm drives you inside.
Move objects, open doors and turn valves by holding the mouse button and moving the mouse in the direction you would push or pull.
Pick up batteries, tools and notes and check your inventory to combine and use them on puzzles.
When you hear or see a creature, crouch in a dark spot and wait for it to pass instead of fighting.

Screenshots

Penumbra: Overture screenshot: a dim concrete stairwell with a rusty handrail leading down to a misty landing lit by a single wall lamp

Penumbra: Overture screenshot: a carcass hangs behind a wire fence in a brick storeroom with blood on the floor and a rat in the corner

Penumbra: Overture screenshot: a large pale spider crawls across a rocky mine cavern lit by work lamps on tripods, near crates and a fallen ladder

Tips

Turn the flashlight off when a creature is near; light makes you easier to spot.
Do not stare at an enemy for long while hiding, and look away until it has gone.
Read every note: they often hold the answer to the next puzzle.

Questions

Who made Penumbra: Overture?

Frictional Games, the studio that later made Amnesia: The Dark Descent, SOMA and Amnesia: The Bunker. Penumbra: Overture was its first commercial game.

Can I play Penumbra: Overture on Mac or Linux?

Yes. The Steam version supports Windows, Mac and Linux.

Is Penumbra: Overture like Amnesia?

It is the game Amnesia grew from: first person, physics puzzles, hiding from creatures you cannot fight well. Penumbra still lets you swing a weapon, which Amnesia later dropped.

Do I need to play anything before Penumbra: Overture?

No. It is the first episode of the series; Penumbra: Black Plague continues the story.