I'm probably not the only one, but I've noticed a decline in the quality of mainstream horror games of lately. For a while I couldn't quite figure out why. The games are still full of creepy monsters, or unnerving foes. They're still set in atmospheric locations that you wouldn't fancy visiting on your own, and if anything they're even more gruesome. So why aren't they scary anymore?
I remember certain games that weren't even supposed to be scary being absolutely terrifying. Take Tomb Raider (the original, not the re-boot) for example - when I was a kid, at times that game got so tense when my health was low I literally couldn't continue. I was just too scared, I'd have to get someone else to continue for me, or at the very least stay in the room with me until Lara's untimely-yet-inevitable demise. One rogue Tiger, one missed ledge, and that was it, dead Lara.
So, these days games are produced to be as user-friendly as possible. Death in video games just doesn't sit well with some folk. They die, and they think "I'm terrible at this, I'm not winning, it isn't fun. I won't buy any more video games". The huge money-grabbing corporations know this, and they have provided an answer - health regeneration.
Whilst health regen has it's place in certain games, it just doesn't click with horror games. Best way to make someone fearless? Make them feel invincible, which leads me on to the next point - weaponry.
Again, looking back to Tomb Raider, like medikits, ammo was gold-dust. You conserved every round, and only took shots if completely necessary. Another game that did this well was Resident Evil 4. Whilst ammo was less scarce, the "briefcase" inventory design limited you to carrying a realistic amount. Horror games just aren't scary if I'm storming through wave after wave of zombies like a minigun wielding beserker. I want to care about every bullet, not spray & pray because I've got enough bullets to sink a cargo ship.
And what's worse than one indestructible walking tank of a protagonist plowing through dozens of evil critters with ease? Two. Horror games should be about Isolation. I don't want a wing-man who's got my back at every corner. (What have you done to Resident Evil 6 Capcom?) The only instance in which a companion works in a horror game is if they're vulnerable and you need to keep them alive. Yeah Ashley was a pain in the arse in Resident Evil 4, but looking out for her added a new dynamic of urgency to the game. Better yet, complete isolation - I want to feel like there's no help coming, that the protagonist is the last person left alive, and I am deciding whether he retains that honour.
Horror games for me are all about the immersion created by pseudo-realism, anything that breaks the immersion breaks the tension & fear. One of the worst culprits of this, in horror, is the soundtrack. A little ambient music, or random sound bytes are fine, but a Disney style orchestral score hammering out in the background whilst you're chased down a corridor by axe brandishing cannibals just ruins this for me. I don't want an action movie sound track. Ideally in the above scenario, I'd like to hear the protagonists panicked breath, his footsteps, the cannibals' footsteps, and perhaps their maniacal laughter or insane ranting. Nothing more, nothing less.
The other immersion breaker is death itself. Not actually dying, that happens, and happens a lot when I play. But the lack of consequence after death. It makes for a carefree attitude. That guy in the hockey mask just put a machete through your skull? No problem! Respawn with full health and ammo, just far enough around the corner to give you the advantage next time. Again this phenomenon was borne of major corporations wanting to reach a wider audience. I understand that without that audience, video gaming wouldn't be what it is today. But at what cost? The permadeath of a genre? A constant stream of sequels that are essentially the same game with different box art? (Disclaimer: The previous sentence in no way alludes to Activision).
You want to know the scariest game I've played lately? Probably not but I'll tell you anyway 'cause it's my blog and I can. Minecraft. There, Minecraft has it all. Health doesn't regenerate, hell, you even starve to death if you don't regularly eat. You have weapons and items that aid in your survival, and every single one is of high value cause of the work you've put in to obtaining it. I guess the weapons and armour in Minecraft can get a little overpowered in the Overworld, so guess what? Check out the Nether, or The End, no matter how OP you are up top, life gets hard there. The sound design is perfect, you can hear yourself, your surroundings and you get the occasional random music which is both eerie yet soothing.
Finally, death. Death in Minecraft sucks, especially if you happen to fall in to lava and lose all your Diamond kit. You care about keeping well fed, you care about not running blindly in to a cave, you care about staying alive because death has consequence.
I hope that one day Resident Evil & Dead Space quit trying to be action games. That zombies don't get so over used they are actually scary, and while I'm on the subject, that one day people decide that sparkly vampires are a f*cking stupid idea too.
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