Jump Scares: The Dark Secrets of Amanda the Adventurer
Move over, Dora, there’s a new girl in town.
Did you ever watch Dora the Explorer as a kid?
Do you remember that weird feeling you got from it? Dora would stare at you, waiting for an answer to her question, as you sat there hopelessly unsure. The pause felt like an entirety, and although her eyes were merely brown dots, it felt as if she were impatient in her wait.
It was as if taking too long would prompt something to happen. As a child, you had to answer before she did. If you didn’t, you knew something would happen.
Something just always felt wrong.
That’s the feeling that the game Amanda the Adventurer captures perfectly. It somehow takes that unnerving nostalgia and amps it up tenfold.
If Dora gets impatient, she’ll just give you the answer. If Amanda gets impatient, you need to run.
Her innocent character design is only a facade, luring the player into comfort. Sure, she may look sweet and friendly, but testing her limits will get you nothing but heartache—or a trip to the butcher.
Throughout the game, you’re tasked to help Amanda and do puzzles in between each VHS tape you find. Upsetting Amanda will result in her getting frustrated with you, with her sheepish companion Wooly only getting more and more worried. Poke the bear enough, and Amanda will attack the player either through visual body horror or through a demonic surprise.
One of the more disturbing parts of the game is Amanda playing “doctor” with Wooly, asking the player to pick one of three medical tools so she can “fix” Wooly’s head. It doesn’t matter what you choose, though, as Amanda decided before even asking you that she was going to use all three of them anyway.
Amanda then forces you to choose if you will help her kill Wooly or betray her, with Wooly staring at the camera helplessly as if he already knows his fate.
Now, you’d never see Dora trying to off Boots with a hacksaw, but it’s certainly an interesting and fresh take in comparison to other big horror games right now. It’s not a walking simulator, it’s not a fetch quest, it’s not another “kid-friendly” horror clone—it’s just a puzzle game with some spooks and a pretty cool story thrown in.
Oh, and there’s secret tapes. Yeah, I didn’t mention that, did I? One of my favorites includes a child mysteriously disappearing while watching Amanda the Adventurer, leaving the player to piece together the story.
If you’re interested in learning more about Amanda, I highly recommend checking out the game on Steam. Not only will you be supporting the creators, but you’ll be able to experience the game yourself (and find a lot of secrets I didn’t mention here).