Survival horror games are definitely some of my favorite games. Also Silent Hill is imo an incredible series to take notes on for being the best psychological horror game series (even more so Silent Hill 2).
I've noticed many developers find it difficult to create a horror game because it demands so much. Most horror games require top notch graphics for it to be believable, a well made story to actually care about what's going on, and of course frightening gameplay. What I think is key though is atmosphere. The general feel or mood of the game is critical and can vary from time to time. For instance the "fog" world in Silent hill is creepy and mysterious. The "hell" part is just as it sounds. Sound, music, and ambiance also play a huge role in horror games.
Anyway, I think I've taken a step away from Starcraft 1 and moved towards Starcraft 2 for map making. It's hard to make a horror game that really goes deep with such limited resources. Keep in mind that what really drives the horror games in SC1 is definitely the sound design.
In Starcraft 2 much more opportunity is possible. What I would like though is textures and models. I am not willing to use plain infested terrans or aberrations and pass them off as surprising and scary. Horror games need to be unique.
Another bad thing is probably Blizzard who might get touchy if people find something about the game offensive, story or otherwise. I could imagine a incredibly horrifying and disturbing game that would get marred by Blizzard in some way. Not sure of all this cause I didn't read any of the stuff about terms of service or whatever
The worst of all is probably my lack of experience with the SC2 editor .
Just wanted to add my thoughts on horror games and the situation of it in SC. Ask any questions cause I got quite a bit of horror game expertise.
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Hey Tux the Creepy Watson reminded me of the Weeping Angels in Dr Who!! That is a sick effect for an FPS game.
Yo EzTerix you say you are an expert do you think having a timed event in a horror game would detract from the horror or add to it? Like having to progress through a horrifying area faster because you are on a schedule, rather than perhaps slowly edging your way through if you are too scared?
Master has given Dobby a doctorate! Dobby is free!
Don't make it as obvious as a timer. Think Left 4 Dead, where you would be harassed more if you idled. Basically if you sat in one area for too long, they would send a massive wave of zombies at you. Bad form for scaring, it's true, but you should think of a way to include the element of a subtle timer over an overt one.
Hey Tux the Creepy Watson reminded me of the Weeping Angels in Dr Who!! That is a sick effect for an FPS game.
Yo EzTerix you say you are an expert do you think having a timed event in a horror game would detract from the horror or add to it? Like having to progress through a horrifying area faster because you are on a schedule, rather than perhaps slowly edging your way through if you are too scared?
I think having a timed event adds a sense of urgency. There are a couple examples of this such as the falling spiked ceiling in Resident Evil 4 where you had to quickly shoot the red lights to stop it from falling, or in Silent Hill 5 where you had to get to Elle before she gets sawed in half. Time events are more to add urgency, panic, and even confusion. If the area is meant to be creepy, disturbing, or atmospheric then I don't recommend forcing the player to rush through it which could make them miss otherwise memorable details.
Making an entire chapter have to be completed in a set time is a bad idea since the player will rush through it without attention to any details. However though just a few well placed timed events can definitely put the player in a panic
Master has given Dobby a doctorate! Dobby is free!
In HD it's so much better:
Also, found this jewel:
Namely the way crazy ass people keep coming at you repeatedly from 1:15-->1:38 and the mannequin scene at the end. The environment itself was psychologically creepy, though that's because areas that are usually busy like subways are far more disturbing empty. The nonstop action I liked due to the constant adrenaline rush, and this needs to be balanced with parts like the mannequin scene. The way they kept flashing behind you was a little cliché, but my hair was still standing up as the player rounded the corner, and I imagine I'd be very freaked out by the hanged mannequin at the end.
Post has been edited 1 time(s), last time on Feb 9 2011, 2:28 am by poison_us.
Yeah, Condemned has its fair share of creepy/shocking scenes. Serial killers are scary anyway, but there was one scene where I practically browned my pants - I dunno if it's in that youtube vid.
Basically an ex gym teacher mentions to a newspaper that the description of a serial killer sounds a bit like one of his old pupils from years ago. A few days later the gym teacher goes missing, and because you know the killer's MO, you suspect that he'll have taken the guy to his old school (now abandoned) to torture him. Sure enough, your trip through the school is marked with the evidence of the killer's actions - "Loose Lips Sink Ships" is written on a blackboard, and underneath are the teacher's sliced-off lips etc. The level builds up to a climax where you have a flashback of the teacher, terrified and by this point mortally wounded, trying to find somewhere to hide from the killer. What this particular killer likes to do is release his victim, capture him, cut off a body part, rinse and repeat. Anyway, the guy hides in a school locker, and you open it to find his horribly mutilated corpse, missing an arm, ears, lips, and nose. You call it in to the forensic lab and you get your camera out to photograph the body - you're looking down the lens and all of a sudden the guy looks up, grabs your arm and does the whole "YOU GOTTA HELP ME!" routine. It was so completely unexpected and so scary.
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