gaming Phasing Out Horror Games?

[Strafe 594]

I meant gameplay-wise, not overall. I like the games well enough but their gameplay was horrible.

 

It's really hard to say you dislike a game's gameplay, but still enjoy the game overall. Want to explain?

Edited June 18, 2012 by Strafe

[Discordian 6,015]

The gameplay was terrible but it has a great atmosphere, story, design overall but it's far too restrictive for it's own good and requires you to be pixel perfect with everything, which is not the way to go imo. You wanna dodge anything? Gotta know the exact moves and there's no margin for error. You can't just bulldoze your way through the game because your healing items will run out nice and quick doing that, you can't shoot everything down at least to get them out of your way so you can run past so you'll run out of bullets too easily, the knife is pretty much useless...

 

I know it's possible to do these things, obviously people have done it, but it's not for me. I hate when games make it so hard that you have to be perfect to even beat the game, worse even if they put a ranking system on top of it. I will play the games still, but they are games I will never beat because of the horrible restrictions and difficulty that make it impossible. I play games to experience the game beginning to end, not work through a challenge that I didn't ask for. That aside there's still a lot to enjoy about the games which is why I still enjoy it but will never beat it.

[Killian Jones 2,655]

The problem with modern horror is the lack of atmosphere. Amnesia did this well, because it gave all of the horror without needing to show anything. to the player. much new horror, or better the AAA horror all works on scare horror, and miss the point of proper atmosphere. Which is why horror as a genre has changed and lost it's appeal.

[Eldritch 20]

As others have mentioned, we're seeing the same thing in the movie industry. IMHO, a large part of the problem comes from studios being unable to differentiate between suspense and horror. To me, games like the newest RE's, Doom 3, and Dead Space all rely on brief bursts of suspense, i.e. "OMG!!!1! There's a horrible monster that just jumped out at me! which initiate a fight or flight adrenaline spike. This is great if used sparingly, but when it's a game's primary gimmick, the body gets used to the adrenaline quickly and the mind becomes able to anticipate when the next scare will come based on the cues that the game has taught us to recognize.

 

Horror comes more from an overall atmosphere wherein the player is unable to determine what is to come next because it doesn't fit a recognizable framework. It's dread of the unknown, where anything is possible and nothing makes sense. It should evoke our primal fear of the dark and the unknown things growling in it. The first Silent Hill did this wonderfully for me. I hear Amnesia is much the same. The problem is, it takes a lot more work to set this sort of thing up effectively that most companies are willing to allow anymore. And it's hard to do as part of a franchise, where you get used to certain tropes that appear from game to game. Far better as one shot indie games, and I think that's where people are going to have start looking.

[Notan 1]

I want a horror game where, if you die, you have to start the game all over again--think about it--it would scare people shitless. But, then again, it would never happen in this era of gaming.

 

It's a neat idea, but it would be annoying rather than scary as soon as you actually did die. Saving every three seconds, or having frequent save points can kill tension, but having such a punishment for dying once (especially in a horror game because you're usually rather weak) is extremely harsh, and it would kill the mood in the long run if the player does the same bit over and over.

 

I feel like horror is being phased out of mainstream gaming, and being brought more into indie, such as Amnesia and the Penumbra series, because for one reason or another, large companies aren't making atmosphere-based games as much as independent people.

[The Milkman 186]

It seems like horror games are slowly but steadily going extinct as the gaming world expands. I'm starting to lose interest in all my favorite horror game franchises, because the 'horror' element is vanishing from them. For example, I liked the Silent Hill games because they were genuinely scary, and not in a temporary shock-value way. Now, with games like Silent Hill: Downpour, and Homecoming, the element of fear is gone, and the series is becoming more focused on puzzles and collectibles than anything else.

Resident Evil is another favorite series of mine, because the games were scary in a creative and universal way, but ever since Resident Evil 5, the series has gone from great survival/horror games to simply survival games. There's just no apparent effort to be scary anymore.

What does everyone think? Is the concept of a decent horror game dying, or are there still games out there keeping the idea alive?

You just won my heart.
New horror games suck (excluding Frictional Games productions).
Resident Evil went full crap.
Silent Hill, the same.
Project Zero, the same.
I want one new horror game, but HORROR game, not just a game with some creatures with blood in them (or RE5, black people, that's not even scary).
Gamers who are addicted to horror games like me and my sister, are very dissapointed.
It's boring to always play old games to get scared, because after a long time you play it, it's not scary anymore!
New experiences please!

Its simple, people aren't that scared of things anymore, many of those games would scare you a decade ago and won't let you sleep for weeks.

Horror games are not directed to children, there's a lot of people who want to play real horror games, and they ARE scared of those things, and if they are not, let the game create fear for them. Edited June 18, 2012 by The Milkman

[Strafe 594]

The gameplay was terrible but it has a great atmosphere, story, design overall but it's far too restrictive for it's own good and requires

I know it's possible to do these things, obviously people have done it, but it's not for me. I hate when games make it so hard that you have to be perfect to even beat the game, worse even if they put a ranking system on top of it. I will play the games still, but they are games I will never beat because of the horrible restrictions and difficulty that make it impossible. I play games to experience the game beginning to end, not work through a challenge that I didn't ask for. That aside there's still a lot to enjoy about the games which is why I still enjoy it but will never beat it.

 

So you don't enjoy challenge? These are video games not interactive movies.

 

BTW the knife is the best weapon in the game.

[Discordian 6,015]

I don't enjoy challenge, no. Not all gamers are like that, you know. I'm the type who likes to play games and see the whole thing and I don't particularly care if a game is easy or hard but when it's too hard that's when it just gets frustrating. I don't enjoy doing the same part over and over again because I keep failing because it's too hard, in most games I don't have to redo much at all but in some games like RE or Demon's Souls I do and it's nothing short of frustrating. There's no fun in challenge for me, absolutely none, I consider it a hindrance more than anything.

 

It's a fool's notion to believe every game has to be balls hard or even that a game is required to focus on gameplay. Video games are not movies, even if they focus more on story than gameplay, the fundamental difference in the way their stories play out is extremely different.

[Gigachip 148]

I want a horror game where, if you die, you have to start the game all over again--think about it--it would scare people shitless. But, then again, it would never happen in this era of gaming.

 

Closest to that would be the Dark Souls and Demons Souls games.

But I agree where games with more challenge are needed. Will it happen, possibly not, but I guess thats why in any game I crank up the difficulty to the max.

[Strafe 594]

but I guess thats why in any game I crank up the difficulty to the max.

 

And yet, it's still not hard enough...

[SonOfTheNorthe 412]

I've got the first Dead Space, and I refuse to play it very often because I'm almost always on the verge of shitting my pants.

But that's just me. I'm not sure ow other people react to Dead Space.

[The Milkman 186]

I've got the first Dead Space, and I refuse to play it very often because I'm almost always on the verge of shitting my pants.

But that's just me. I'm not sure ow other people react to Dead Space.

 

If you shit your pants playing Dead Space, get away from Silent Hill 1.

[SonOfTheNorthe 412]

If you shit your pants playing Dead Space, get away from Silent Hill 1.

 

Now I just HAVE to go play that game now, for the shits and giggles. (The former will happen much more frequently than the latter)

[The Milkman 186]

Now I just HAVE to go play that game now, for the shits and giggles. (The former will happen much more frequently than the latter)

 

You mean Dead Space or Silent Hill 1?

If you are going to play Silent Hill 1, good luck there.

[SonOfTheNorthe 412]

You mean Dead Space or Silent Hill 1?

If you are going to play Silent Hill 1, good luck there.

 

I meant Silent Hill.

Oh, and I should totally do it while shrooming out.

I'm pretty sure I'd never forget that night.

[GrooveBroove 680]

I want a horror game where, if you die, you have to start the game all over again--think about it--it would scare people shitless. But, then again, it would never happen in this era of gaming.

 

Look into ZombiU on the WiiU

[Fire_Fly 499]

 

You just won my heart.

New horror games suck (excluding Frictional Games productions).

Resident Evil went full crap.

Silent Hill, the same.

Project Zero, the same.

I want one new horror game, but HORROR game, not just a game with some creatures with blood in them (or RE5, black people, that's not even scary).

Gamers who are addicted to horror games like me and my sister, are very dissapointed.

It's boring to always play old games to get scared, because after a long time you play it, it's not scary anymore!

New experiences please!

 

 

Horror games are not directed to children, there's a lot of people who want to play real horror games, and they ARE scared of those things, and if they are not, let the game create fear for them.

 

I think the main problem is developers trying to appeal to a wider group than just horror game fans. Sure, the newer games are better for other gamers, but they're also turning away horror fans in the process. They're essentially giving up one group for another, really.