r/1666Amsterdam

This is so dissapointing, especially to me, the man who created one of my favorite things ever choosing to taint his passion project like this...

(not to mention that the AI use is not disclaimed on the Steam page)

Platform: Steam
Date played: 6/7/2026
Time played: 78 minutes 
Gameplay: 3.5/5 - early look so not many mechanics to use yet
Sound Design: 4/5 - music fit the vibes
Graphics: 3.7/5 - early look!
Controls: 5/5 - easy to use controller friendly
User Interface: 5/5 - what was demonstrated was easy to use

Summary: “This prologue is a narrative experience lasting approximately 30 minutes. It introduces the world, characters, and mystery of 1666: Amsterdam. The core gameplay loop, i.e. investigation, tracking, and confronting the Originals during the Esbat begins in the full game”.

Thoughts: With the summer games showcases in full swing, I have been updating my wishlists adding the upcoming titles that caught my eye and this year’s Summer Game Fest was packed with promising looking titles. Being a massive Resident Evil and Stellar Blade fan those of course stole the show for me, but a few newer titles made it onto my radar as well. Among those was 1666: Amsterdam developed and published by Panache Digital Games which promised a witchy narrative and spoiled us with a free prologue allowing us to get a glimpse at the story, characters, and gameplay. After a few days I installed it and, at the time of writing this, I have spent a little over an hour in the world. And I have to admit, I am optimistic about what’s to come.

Before I get too far ahead a sentiment I must share and will repeat several more times, is that this is a very early demonstration of the game and should not be deemed the final product. I will be omitting graphical complaints and other critiques that hold no real analysis at this time since it is still too early to judge. I will share my observations and about the narrative presented to us but again, this is and should be subject to change as the game evolves.

We begin with a woman in red on her way to a ceremony, it is December 1665. The woman we later learn is named Noa, also known as The Collector and descendant of a tribe called the Zaindaris. Noa possesses unique abilities that allow her to collect energy and interact with the materials and people around her in unusual ways. Her bio which we acquire at the end of the prologue tells us about her heritage and her purpose, “to receive NUX and spread it upon the Earth”. She chooses a feline to accompany her with each cat option seeming to have their own personality traits. Having played it twice, once choosing the Spirit cat and another time the Page there were no noticeable differences but I am hopeful that this will have implications for the full release. Before we can see the end of the ceremony though we are taken forward in time to the modern era. 

We are introduced to Clio, a young woman searching for help translating a document left behind by her recently deceased father. She turns to an old friend of the family Professor Lucas, an expert in Paleography (the academic pursuit of deciphering historical writings), with the hope that he can read the document. We learn that the letter Clio brings consists of symbols as well as a seemingly organic element making the text itself look alive. The professor tells Clio that this text descends from the Zaindaris tribe and requires a special tool to decipher it. After using our investigation skills to find the tool, Clio enters a trance-like state hearing her father’s voice as he tells her about his past interactions with the tribe. 

Right away it is implied that the tribe is still active in the modern age and may not exist on a linear timeline. While Clio is in her trance, we experience the letter through playing as her father and later as the very cat we chose at the beginning. This tells us that her father, whose story told in the letter was set in the year 2000, was somehow transported back to the 1600s and played an active role in Noa’s story. The prologue ends with their union and we are left with plenty of questions for the full-game to answer. 

As stated previously, this is an early view of the game so consider the following observations rather than judgements. Visually, the game has a lot of promise with the use of harsh reds and darker lighting forcing you to pay attention to what is on the screen. Noa’s character design is powerful, donned in red robes with a veil covering her face while Clio looks young and studious. For environments we get to explore a library, a massive hotel, and the forest that takes us to the ceremony site. The library shows 2 levels of shelves which we can investigate, walls lined with old artworks and beautiful stained glass windows. The forest is lit dimly by torches and fire pits with the ominous glow of the mood adding to the sense of mystery. NPCs fill the spaces and remind us that the actions of this tribe are not separate from humanity but intertwined with it. Sound design completes the scene with ominous chants and hums, a very fitting choice for the magical themes of the game. At this time there is room for improvement but the ambience established is promising. 

The gameplay is simplistic with us being directed to investigate, read, ignite, and search all of which is done through holding or pressing the designated button. Combat is demonstrated in the main trailer but we don’t get to sample that in the prologue. The game plays well with controllers but supports mouse and keyboard as well. I experienced no issues on the technical side minus the occasional frame jumps but again, I’ll attribute it to being an early look and easily forgivable. 

The prologue does what it sets out to do, give us a taste of what’s to come and the mystery at hand. We are given plenty of terms to build the world and to start learning the practices of the tribe. Additionally we are given character connections without being told the entirety of how the pieces fit together. While it was not the most impressive display, the narrative for me makes it compelling enough to want to see where it goes. This to me is always more important than having demanding combat or 4K visuals. A beautiful game is only good until you realize it lacks substance. 1666: Amsterdam promises substance and beauty. I like a good story with magic and witchy elements, the Hex girls from Scooby-Doo did in fact have a lasting impact on me so I am excited to see more use of magic and Noa’s powers in addition to unraveling what promises to be an intriguing narrative. 

Links:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3949550/1666_Amsterdam/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palaeography

333,000 wishlists. In just over 24 hours.

We don't have the words yet. We're still trying to find them.

1666: Amsterdam has lived in Patrice's heart for 16 years. Through everything and we mean everything. This game never stopped being worth fighting for.

Standing on the Summer Game Fest stage to finally share it with the world... there were tears. We won't pretend otherwise.

At the studio we watched it together as a team with our friends and family, proudly waiting for Patrice's moment. We are a relatively small indie studio, and moments like this remind us exactly why we do this. And you showed up. 333k of you.

This game belongs to all of us now. We cannot wait to build it with you

I absolutely love the atmosphere and setting, the mysticism has me hooked on the story. Some really great ideas here, the main characters and the cat are so intriguing, excited to see how the story unfolds. I am very positive on this.

If you guys consider a kickstarter or something where people can support this project, that would be great because I wanna show some support.

Pros:

- Great setting and atmosphere

- Art direction is great

- Intriguing modern day segment, hopefully its not just the intro and there are multiple segments set in MD

- Great character designs

- Great facial animations

- Noa character animations are good

- Cat controls are good

- Good environments

Cons:

- Mouse and Keyboard controls are a bit weird, feels like the camera is fighting me

- Character movement feels a bit off for the modern day segments, like not a lot of momentum when moving, did not understand what the 'locomotion' button does

- Did not like the constant hints that the professor was giving, would've preferred if he gave hints only when we analyze him or talk to him and not every 30 secs

- Graphics aren't a problem at all, but some lighting feels off, noticed pop-ins in certain areas

- Cat fur looks off

- I know its just a story focused demo but would've preferred some combat gameplay just to get a feel for it

Other than these, I am fully looking forward to the early access release and eventual 1.0 release of the game, excited to see more in the future and the journey of this dev team. Love to the boss man Patrice Desilets!

When I see this game, I freaked the fuck out and did a deep dive, I’m so inanely happy for Patrice and so inanely satisfied that Ubisoft is most likely seething out of frustration the inspiration for Hexe was released before them. Here you are This is crazy, important context The Drama with Ubisoft: Désilets originally started making 1666: Amsterdam at THQ. When THQ went bankrupt, Ubisoft bought the studio and the game's rights, only to fire Désilets and put the game on ice. Désilets spent years in a legal battle before winning back full creative ownership of the IP in 2016.

When Ubisoft bought the studio in 2013, they acquired the full design documents, concept art, and gameplay prototypes for 1666: Amsterdam.They knew exactly what Patrice was building: a dark, atmospheric game about controlling animals (ravens, cats, rats) and dealing with the Devil.

2010:The First Breakup (2010): The "Cash Cow" Dispute
You guessed that Ubisoft wanted "loads of future titles" and he disagreed. This is exactly why he quit the first time. [1, 2, 3]
The Trilogy Vision: Patrice Désilets always envisioned Assassin's Creed as a tight trilogy. His plan was roughly: AC1 (Altaïr), AC2 (Ezio), and AC3 (Desmond in modern day) to finish the story. [1]
The Annualization Demand: After AC2 became a massive hit, Ubisoft’s CEO Yves Guillemot demanded an annual release schedule. They wanted a new Assassin's Creed on the shelves every single year.
The Breaking Point: Patrice was forced to make Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (a game he didn't originally plan) to meet this annual quota. Realizing Ubisoft would never let the story "end" because it was too profitable, he quit in 2010 to join THQ, seeking a place where he could actually finish a game on his own terms.

2013 Escorted Out: They viewed it as a threat: Internal sources from the 2013 lawsuit suggested Ubisoft felt 1666 was too similar to Assassin's Creed. They couldn't have their "star creator" launching a competing historical franchise from a rival studio. [1]

When Ubisoft bought THQ (and accidentally bought Patrice back), they discovered he had signed a "Golden Ticket" contract with THQ that terrified them.Total Creative Control: THQ was so desperate for a hit that they gave Patrice 100% creative freedom. Ubisoft, a company famous for "design by committee" and editorial mandates, could not legally tell him what to do on 1666: Amsterdam.The Ultimatum: Ubisoft tried to force him to tear up that contract and sign a standard "employee" contract that would let them interfere with the game.The Refusal: Patrice reportedly asked his girlfriend, "Do I want to be the guy who bent over or not?" He refused to sign away his creative freedom.The Result: Because he wouldn't submit to their control, Ubisoft fired him for "failure to align visions" and had security escort him out. When Ubisoft fired Patrice (again) in 2013, they didn't just let him go. Security guards reportedly escorted him out of the building immediately, preventing him from saying goodbye to his team or collecting his personal belongings.The "Indefinite" Limbo: They didn't cancel the game initially. They "suspended" it indefinitely. This was a legal loophole to keep the IP rights without actually making the game, effectively holding Patrice's life's work hostage so he couldn't take it elsewhere. He had to sue them for years just to get the right to make his own game.

2016: He won the rights back, after a shit Tom of money and time went by. Ubsofy begrudgingly gave the rights back, and less than 2 years later out of fear or of him doing better than them and out of desperation due to the franchise going down hill, they started making their own copycat version.
**Ubisoft didn't just see a competitor—they saw their ex-creator's playbook.**Immediately after winning the rights back in 2016, Désilets went to a conference (Reboot Develop) and showed the original prototype footage to the public. That footage showed the character controlling ravens and rats

2016 till now: After winning the rights in 2016, Patrice shocked everyone by not making the game immediately. He said he needed to build his new studio (Panache) with a smaller project first (Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey). [1, 2]
For the last ~8 years, the game was effectively "dormant." People assumed it might never happen.
Many fans theorized that 1666 was what Assassin's Creed would have become if Patrice hadn't left—a game that leaned harder into supernatural mystery (like the Apple of Eden) rather than the RPG-stats focus Ubisoft later adopted with Origins and Odyssey.

Yannis Mallat's Quote: The CEO of Ubisoft Montreal said at the time, "Putting aside our past differences, Patrice and I are above all interested in the creation of videogames." It was a cold, lawyer-drafted statement that lacked any warmth or genuine support.
In summary: Ubisoft likely feels outmaneuvered. They spent years trying to bury this game, only for it to rise from the grave exactly when it could do the most damage to their own upcoming witch-themed Assassin's Creed.

The cycle has begun.
Play the Prologue now live and free on Steam and Epic Games Store.

Wishlist the full game and follow its development toward Early Access on PC later in 2026.

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4519690/1666_Amsterdam__Prologue/
Epic Game Store : https://store.epicgames.com/p/1666-amsterdam-1666-amsterdam-prologue-ec3a88

#1666Amsterdam