Horror Games

What makes a Horror Game?

A horror game is a game that has a cycle of building tension and releasing it. The build up is created by placing the character in an uneasy position, suggesting a threat. The release is created by giving the player a direct scare, addressing all of the tension created.

Tension can be created by many factors, including Music, limited perception and resources, creating sounds that suggests something, or someone, is nearby and times where nothing is happening – this makes the player constantly overthink and elevate the tension themselves.

“The kind of creeping dread you feel in a good Lovecraft story is different than the startling scares and disturbing imagery of film horror like Psycho or Ringu, just as the more tense horror you experience playing Silent Hill or Left 4 Dead is unique to games,” he observes.

Examples of Horror Games

Alien: Isolation

Alien: Isolation builds tension by using long corridors where not much happens, ambient noises, automatic doors

 

P.T.

P.T. Creates tension by using limited perception, restricted movement, sound effects, closed quarters, things changing without player input and taking control of the situation away from the player. The perception makes people turn and check the corners , which also makes them vulnerable.