So You Want To/Write a Survival Horror Game: Difference between revisions

 

Also consider that a big part of horror is the familiar acting in an unexpected and horrifying way. Thus, a familiar location that has been distorted may be more effective than strange architecture or locations that most of the audience will never see. Also has the advantage of making people squeamish when they return to these places in real life, thanks to the [[Tetris Effect]].

 

=== '''Props Department''' ===

* ''[[Resident Evil]]'' and ''[[Silent Hill]]'' are the [[Trope Codifier|trope codifiers]] for the genre. ''Resident Evil'''s brand of horror is heavily focused on [[Body Horror|grotesque abominations]] and [[Zombie Apocalypse|zombie mayhem]], while ''Silent Hill'' helped pioneer the more psychological brand of survival horror. Both spawned [[Long Runners|long-running]] franchises that continue strong to this day, with several installments of varying quality each under their belts.

* The ''[[Penumbra (video game series)|Penumbra]]'' series and its spiritual successor, ''[[Amnesia: The Dark Descent|Amnesia the Dark Descent]]'', made by Frictional Games. They are played from a first-person perspective, but the similarities to contemporary FPS games end there. Combat is almost non-existent, and certainly not advisable, forcing the player to rely on stealth and good old-fashioned running like hell. ''Amnesia'' in particular has developed quite the reputation for being possibly the most pants-wettingly terrifying game ever made, with [[Zero Punctuation|Yahtzee]] describing it as being "unmatched as [[Bring My Brown Pants|a constipation aid]]".

* ''[[Metro 2033 (video game)|Metro 2033]]'' is a prime example for having all the proper trappings of the genre. Ammo is scarce, [[Scavenger World|things you need are always in short supply,]] fights almost always end in a net loss, and [[Crapsack World|there is no solution to the world's problem.]] The gameplay elements are taken [[Up to Eleven]] in Ranger Mode, where every shot will be carefully aimed, each filter will be used to its limit, the knife will be used more than guns, and attempts will be made to avoid each unnecessary fight. Oh, and the mutants are [[Nausea Fuel|horrific and nauseating]] to the fullest extent of the words.

 

=== '''The Epic Fails''' ===

* ''[[Vampire Rain]]'' from AQ Interactive. A failed attempt to mash [[Metal Gear Solid]] with [[Survival Horror]], the game is especially notorious for having a thinly-written plot with wooden voice acting, dreadful dialogue, lousy gameplay, horrendous enemy A.I. and [[Schizophrenic Difficulty|inconsistent difficulty]]. Moreover, the most innovative thing in the game is that your knife (a ''melee'' weapon) actually requires ''ammo'' to use. ([[Face Palm]])

* ''Ju-On: The Grudge'', a game also from AQ Interactive. Notorious for having cheap scares that a 12-year old won't scream at, horrid controls, ludicrously short amount of gameplay, and poor sound effects, it will more likely put the player to sleep than wet his or her pants.

 

=== '''Honorable Mentions''' ===

* ''[[F.E.A.R.]]'' is a combination of the tropes of FPS games and Japanese ghost movies a la ''[[The Ring]]''. While it's quite possibly the most action-heavy game on this list, and only included here because of its supernatural horror elements, the two genres it draws from go together well enough to make it a worthwhile experience.

* The ''[[Siren (video game)|Siren]]'' games are a decidedly Japanese take on the [[Zombie Apocalypse]], with a heavy focus on stealth rather than combat.

* ''Call of Cthulhu: [[Dark Corners of the Earth]]''. While quite buggy, it is still widely regarded as one of the best adaptations of the works of [[H.P. Lovecraft]] ever made.

[[Category:Write A Survival Horror Game]]

[[Category:So You Want To]]