Support NeoGAF

[Guilty_AI]

Lots of horror games keep relying on cheap tricks like jump scares to be 'scary', so yeah, no wonder they suck.

Horror, terror, i've come to realize its less about feeling frightened and more about the mood.
I think a good scary game must make the player feel they're not in control, not just regarding the game itself but also on a psychological level. First make them think they already "understood" the game, only to then turn around and show they don't really know shit.

 

[MastaKiiLA]

I think it's the camera angles. Fixed cameras give the game director a chance to force the viewpoint, which allows for jump scares. Outside of some jump scares in the first 2 RE games, and the first couple of runs through PT, I don't find horror games scary. Then again, I don't find many horror movies to be scary. The original Blair Witch was the last time I felt legitimately scared during a movie, and that was even while knowing that it was fake. Something about the way that movie was shot did a good job on me. That and the shaky cam gave me a massive headache after seeing it in the theater.

 

[Duchess]

I actually found Alien Isolation quite scary at times. The first time I encountered the creature, I literally dropped my controller in fright (was then worried I'd broken it).

There were some real tense moments in that game where I would be walking about doing stuff, and not having seen the thing for an hour. Then you'd hear the motion tracker start to go and panic would set in.

Wonderful.

(although I'm in the club that believes the game went on far longer than it should've)

 

[EverydayBeast]

RIP OP are you crazy being scared is a great thing you can enjoy it more go play the 9/10 RE7 and report back.

 

[Null Persp]

Same for me, I am a fan of the genre and still play them for the atmosphere but I don't find them scary anymore.

IMO the best horror games are those that create an unsettling environment for the player rather than reliance on jump scares or any other typical horror game tropes.

With that in mind I'd recommend the following to anyone remotely interested in the genre:

Yeah, those two have a dreary and unsettling atmosphere.

Other suggestions:

 

[SCB3]

RIP OP are you crazy being scared is a great thing you can enjoy it more go play the 9/10 RE7 and report back.

What? I've played RE7

 

[Sidney Prescott]

I think games are even scarier these days. Outlast made me nearly crap my pants, especially with headphones on and how dark that game is. You can't fight back, which makes it so much worse.

The graphics getting more real increases the immersive factor for me.

 

[Keihart]

Hey OP SCB3 , if you are looking to get scared try playing some horror games in VR, even the smallest scares can have a big effect. For me, they still give me shivers sometimes and some games had even made me want to take off the headset, but just as when i first played SH1, i just keep going.

Yesterday i was playing transference, which is not such a great game nor a very scary one, but in VR holy shit, the sound design and the dark corners started to creep on me, i got really scared a couple of times, i kinda dreaded to keep going.

I recomend Orogan Quarter, Nevrosa and Dread Eye.

 

[Virt McPolygon]

Same for me, I am a fan of the genre and still play them for the atmosphere but I don't find them scary anymore.

Yeah, those two have a dreary and unsettling atmosphere.

Other suggestions:

+1 recommendation for Condemned. Nothing scarier than being in an abandoned building and you can hear the muffled, thumping footsteps of murderous tweakers on the floor above you.

 

[Keihart]

IMO the best horror games are those that create an unsettling environment for the player rather than reliance on jump scares or any other typical horror game tropes.

With that in mind I'd recommend the following to anyone remotely interested in the genre:

Darkwood it's such a good survival horror game, kinda hard to get into tho since graphics are not great and gameplay isn't all that thrilling at first, but it sure gets there.

 

[Arachnid]

Agreed. The days of Silent Hill, Fatal Frame, Siren, or even Dead Space are looooong over. They don't make em like they used to.

RE is the scariest it ever has been though (not much of a bar to clear admittedly).

 

[Keihart]

Agreed. The days of Silent Hill, Fatal Frame, Siren, or even Dead Space are looooong over. They don't make em like they used to.

RE is the scariest it ever has been though (not much of a bar to clear admittedly).

Man i wish ND made a full horror game, TLoU2 has some really cool ass survival horror set pieces like the descent with Abby and the rat king battle.

 

[MiguelItUp]

I love horror and these days too many games are focused on cheap jump scares. Much like the mainstream horror films. It's infuriating. You have games like Alien Isolation that genuinely made you feel scared at times. The tension is an off and on high throughout the entire game. The end game was insanely tense.

Hell, even RE7 had moments that didn't necessarily scare me, but I felt myself hesitating to do certain things. Like go back into the basement that was infested with Mold. So it had to of scared me in SOME way to instill hesitation, lol.

I want to play horror games that make me uncomfortable, tense, disgusted, etc. Just, all of the above. Not games that are just filled with cheap and ridiculous jump scares.

Silent Hill 2 was and is one of my favorite horror games of all times. It left several marks for good reason. Silent Hill 3 as well! If I played any of the many jump scare horror games in Silent Hill 2's place, I wouldn't remember them the same way whatsoever. I'd remember jump scares if anything, but that's it.

I hate sounding like an old man when I know I'm not even old. But man, they really don't make them like they used to...

 

[Dr.Morris79]

I cant play PT alone.

Neither can the rest of the world either, sadly.

 

[Strider311]

IMO the best horror games are those that create an unsettling environment for the player rather than reliance on jump scares or any other typical horror game tropes.

With that in mind I'd recommend the following to anyone remotely interested in the genre:

Both of these are great, but I would say go for Darkwood first. Pathologic can be...impenetrable.

 

[Solarstrike]

My brother too. He eats spicy foods like no tomorrow. He told me he doesn't find spicy food spicy anymore.

Send him a box of this popcorn. Have him call you the next day after eating a bag.

 

[Rickyiez]

OP you're not wrong . PT was the last actually scary title but sadly it's just a tech demo .

Agreed. The days of Silent Hill, Fatal Frame, Siren, or even Dead Space are looooong over. They don't make em like they used to.

RE is the scariest it ever has been though (not much of a bar to clear admittedly).

Agreed on the above too . Most of us horror fans wishes these games to make a comeback

Oh and how much I dislike walking simulator horror games like Amnesia or Outlast or whatever games spawned out of this genre. Boringggg

 

[belmarduk]

I can't think of any time a horror game actually scared me, nonetheless I still enjoy playing them from time to time.

 

[Omnipunctual Godot]

Play Alien: Isolation in VR and get back to me.

 

[levyjl1988]

Monsters aren’t scary when you are an adult.
Humans are scary, they have the potential to deceive. It’s like raising farm animals, you give resources to the chicken but then you go and slaughter them to eat them.
There are much more bigger dangers that are scary than monsters.
If humanity were to encounter something supernatural chances are that they would kill it, like most alien invasion movies, or fuck it, like in some alien movies like Species.

 

[BusierDonkey]

I was told to play Dead Space because it would scare my skeleton out of my body.

I was predicting every jump scare and it made me sad.

 

[Nickolaidas]

Keep in mind I've not seen much of The Medium and not touched the RE Village "Maiden" Demo yet (I plan on checking that out tonight) but I'm not sure fully what it is, but I just don't find horror games that scary anymore. I remember RE1 and 2 being scary as a kid but as I've gotten older, the effects just not that aside from maybe one example: Alien Isolation, and even that was because of VR. Dead Space was kinda close, but then 2 went more action and 3 being co op ruined that (I'll maintain that Co Op or AI partners in Horror makes games less scary as part of good horror is lonliness/isolation).

Browsing YT I came accross Joseph Andersons views on it:



Now, I will say I am a fan of his work and I think he has a great point in this video where, "you lose nothing and just come back" and he's right, once a scare had happened, it then fails to scare you a second time and becomes more an annoyance than a scare. I don't know what it is, maybe I've not found a decent scary game for awhile and I've played most of the best ones (for what its worth, I found SH to be more freaky and offputting than scary)

Anyone else have any thought on this?

Most RE games are more about tension, rather than horror. However, I booted re7 yesterday (beaten it twice) and I'm amazed at how much I was stressed and jumpy at the very beginning despite knowing how things turn out and when real danger comes forth. That's a testament to the game's amazing atmosphere.

I love dead space but I never found the games scary. Amazing gameplay formula and solid pacing, but it's hard to be scared when your character is able to dispatch 4-5 enemies in ten seconds with a weapon which is equivalent to a handgun. Isaac is simply too powerful to make you feel any kind of despair or fear.

I suggest to do what another user said above me. Try indie horror games - they are cheap and contain many hidden gems.

Try Dark Deception - you'll never see Pac-Man in the same way ever again.

 

[Nickolaidas]

I was told to play Dead Space because it would scare my skeleton out of my body.

I was predicting every jump scare and it made me sad.

Ha! Who said that, a ten year old? There are far more scarier games than DS.

 

[Arkam]

I am Just as susceptible to shock scares as I was during my first playthrough of Resident Evil on the PSX. Alien: Isolation scares the ever loving shit out of me still. Its one of my favorite aspect of games. It can place you in a situation where you feel a sense of natural survival instinct.

 

[Self]

I'm with you OP. Games which are meant to be scary don't scare me at all (RE, Outlast etc).

But for some strange reason Bloodborn hit deep within me. There is something tremendously unsettling about this game.

 

[SCB3]

I'm with you OP. Games which are meant to be scary don't scare me at all (RE, Outlast etc).

But for some strange reason Bloodborn hit deep within me. There is something tremendously unsettling about this game.

Unsettling is a bit different imo for example Dead Space, Amnesia, RE and SH are unsettling and SH in particular excels at that.

Bloodbornes themes also are enhanced by that if you've suffered with trauma or into cosmic horror, I don't find Lovecraft scary or particularly unsettling but it's super interesting

 

[UltimaKilo]

OP grew up and now is upset that they did. It’s part of life, horror games need good stories, puzzles, etc. to keep it interesting ala Silent Hill.

However, Silent Hill in VR?

 

[Self]

Bloodbornes themes also are enhanced by that if you've suffered with trauma or into cosmic horror, I don't find Lovecraft scary or particularly unsettling but it's super interesting

I have no clue about Lovecraft, nor have I suffered trauma in any way, nor do I know what you mean by cosmic horror, but Bloodborn is most certainly unsettling for me. I think it's this rabbit hole effect of going ever deeper and deeper to find... whatever, the absolut horror maybe.

Silent 1 and 2 I would agree are very unsettling experiences, but I don't know if they can still catch my attention today.

 

[I'm nobody]

Not since p.t demo onscreen

Move to Vr horror games
Much better

 

[Caio]

I would like more quality Horror Games. I enjoyed a lot games like The Evil Within, Outlast and RE7, and I think they are scary enough. I would like more, for me "Scary" is never enough, I love that tension and fear, and be taken by surprise and your blood freezes momentarily My dream is always the same, a brand new Horror game by Kojima Productions.

 

[Knightime_X]

You've grown up and desensitized.
The things it would take to scare you now would likely traumatize \ mentally damage a normal person.

Now you must learn how to disconnect and make the not scary stuff scary all over again.
Gotta train yourself.

 

[sncvsrtoip]

I'm still easly scarred by horror games and I don't even like it because of that. Lou2, Deathstranding or DaysGone is max of scaring that it's not too much for me ;d (tough I finished re2r and like itt very much but mr x fallowing you was little too much for me)

 

[The Cockatrice]

Nah I dont think growing up has that huge of an impact as some said. The horror genre has been pretty shit in the last 5 to 10 years. The genre has not evolved at all and look at Amnesia Rebirth from the masters of horror themselves. They just could not keep up with the times. It was pretty bad. You just need to keep looking for good horror games. Here's a recommendation:

 

[VulcanRaven]

Did you play P.T.? That was very scary.

 

[SCB3]

Nah I dont think growing up has that huge of an impact as some said. The horror genre has been pretty shit in the last 5 to 10 years. The genre has not evolved at all and look at Amnesia Rebirth from the masters of horror themselves. They just could not keep up with the times. It was pretty bad. You just need to keep looking for good horror games. Here's a recommendation:

Visage was good but not too scary, Phasmophbia was a good step for horror, I did enjoy that in co op

 

[The Cockatrice]

Visage was good but not too scary, Phasmophbia was a good step for horror, I did enjoy that in co op

Phasmophobia has huge potential but it will most likely not deliver.

 

[sublimit]

Ever since the rise of Twitch streams and the popularity of first person PC indie horror games (thanks to Twitch streamers) the genre has went downhill really fast and hard. The focus now is on cheap jumpscares rather than intelligent and subtle use of atmosphere,sound design and gameplay.

Just take any of these popular modern first person "horror" games and compare them with the original Silent Hill a game that was released 21 years ago. It's a night and day difference in terms of how the modern games try to scare you or shock you and how Silent Hill's creators did it so many years ago and with so many hardware limitations.

Actually (and that's a big subject for discussion) i always though that the graphic limitations of PS1 and PS2 games were just right for the horror genre. They required the imagination of both the developer as well as the player and that fit really well with the horror genre.
It's easier to feel scared when your mind and imagination is filling the graphical gaps than when everything is being handed to you down to the smallest detail.

Now due to how easily the can depict photorealistic graphics the imagination has been completely lost from both devs as well as players.

 

[llien]

You guys get used to things and they don't ring with you.

And then there are likes of me, who rarely watches horror movies (not least, cause my spouse tends to dislike the experience) and then we watch something like "White noise" and are scared like death, don't even watch it until the end, then get to a review site that it is totally not scary and it would only scare you if you are a kid that haven't seen anything at all in their life.

Yikes.

Perhaps we need "horror rating: novice", "horror rating: devil's nightmare".

 

[killatopak]

Alien Iso was scary for me.

I don’t think I have went by 5 minutes of playing without saving and hiding in a locker multiple times.

I haven’t finished it to this day in fear of my heart.

 

[RJMacready73]

Go play RE7 in VR with headphones and come back to me

 

[Nickolaidas]

Nah I dont think growing up has that huge of an impact as some said. The horror genre has been pretty shit in the last 5 to 10 years. The genre has not evolved at all and look at Amnesia Rebirth from the masters of horror themselves. They just could not keep up with the times. It was pretty bad. You just need to keep looking for good horror games. Here's a recommendation:

Masters of horror? The devs who made a horror game where if you die you respawn in the exact same spot you died and the killer despawns, basically rewarding you for dying and subconsciously making you eager to die in the game so that it can work as an easy mode?

Yeah, truly terrifying stuff.

 

[Valt7786]

More horror titles need a randomizer for multiple playthroughs. Dead Space could have been perfect for this, with the necro's crawling through vents etc, instead of having them being in the same spot every time, have it be random AND have it be a random enemy that comes out.
The RE remakes could have benefitted from this as well, not just the different placements they had on Inferno in RE 3, but truly random enemy and item placement could have been fantastic. (Obviously that doesnt count puzzle/key items, or at least keep them in various places that make sense).

 

[Lethal01]

Ever played RE7 in VR?

That's what I thought.

It was goofy and fun but not scary.

P.T was way scarier than RE7 VR

 

[The Cockatrice]

Masters of horror? The devs who made a horror game where if you die you respawn in the exact same spot you died and the killer despawns, basically rewarding you for dying and subconsciously making you eager to die in the game so that it can work as an easy mode?

Yeah, truly terrifying stuff.

You can cry all you want, Amnesia redefined and set the stone for the horror genre many years and even to this day. They also made Penumbra series which were fantastic not to mention Soma.

 

[Arachnid]

Alien Iso was scary for me.

I don’t think I have went by 5 minutes of playing without saving and hiding in a locker multiple times.

I haven’t finished it to this day in fear of my heart.

Can't believe I forgot about AI. That was the exception. Best survival horror game we've had since OG Silent Hill.

 

[Sander Cohen]

Just make serious repercussions for dying (Dead Space 2 three save playthrough for example), insert some psychological horror, not just physical and if possible implement constantly changing enemy and puzzle item placements so that every player has unique experience.

 

[Guardian's Light]

Lots of horror games keep relying on cheap tricks like jump scares to be 'scary', so yeah, no wonder they suck.

Horror, terror, i've come to realize its less about feeling frightened and more about the mood.
I think a good scary game must make the player feel they're not in control, not just regarding the game itself but also on a psychological level. First make them think they already "understood" the game, only to then turn around and show they don't really know shit.

It's not all their fault, many of us have 30 years worth of horrors, so we are more or less used to virtually every horror trick

 

[JCK75]

I think it's less about the games and more about the person, I've been a fan of horror movies since I was a child in the 80's.. I'm really not scared by any movies or games at all, but my wife would scream just watching me play one.

 

[Life]

That's cos real life is scarier.

 

[RJMacready73]

That's cos real life is scarier.

no shit, nothing as scarier than finding out you just fucked all the kids clothes in the washing machine when the wife asked you to and you forgot to sort out the whites....