Jade Knight 08
Member
Can't choose.... it's either RE:Remake or Dead Space!
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The best horror game of all time is...
- Thread starter The perfect Dark
- Start date
Comfort Jones
Banned
Alien Isolation is prob the game to stress me out the most ever. Siren Blood Curse has some levels that really fucked with me as well.
If we're talking survival horror, ie allowing the player to regularly fight back and manage lots of stuff to add to the stress of staying alive I'd say either the REmake or RE3 for sure.
Silent Hill 2 has garbage combat. Really anything involving your survival in that game sucks. If that's the height of the genre it really shows just how barren that genre is. It has a great atmosphere and story but at some point you're just being a mark if you can't realize the game has nothing to throw at you that will really threaten your survival pretty quickly. Silent Hill 3 has more enemy and situation variety in its first hour than SH2 does through its whole run.
Edit-I've posted this opinion multiple times and honestly I can't remember a single time where someone refuted it. I feel like it's way too common for people to just drive by to go "Silent Hill 2 cuz atmosphere". There's more to horror than just a spooky atmosphere.
Also Dead Space is a straight forward third person shooter with horror elements plopped on top of it. Too many checkpoints, too much combat thrown in your face, and it's really linear. IMO it's RE4 but missing some of what made RE4 so great.
If we're talking survival horror, ie allowing the player to regularly fight back and manage lots of stuff to add to the stress of staying alive I'd say either the REmake or RE3 for sure.
Silent Hill 2 has garbage combat. Really anything involving your survival in that game sucks. If that's the height of the genre it really shows just how barren that genre is. It has a great atmosphere and story but at some point you're just being a mark if you can't realize the game has nothing to throw at you that will really threaten your survival pretty quickly. Silent Hill 3 has more enemy and situation variety in its first hour than SH2 does through its whole run.
Edit-I've posted this opinion multiple times and honestly I can't remember a single time where someone refuted it. I feel like it's way too common for people to just drive by to go "Silent Hill 2 cuz atmosphere". There's more to horror than just a spooky atmosphere.
Also Dead Space is a straight forward third person shooter with horror elements plopped on top of it. Too many checkpoints, too much combat thrown in your face, and it's really linear. IMO it's RE4 but missing some of what made RE4 so great.
Bustanen
Member
Scratches is very good horror. Captures the "alone in the spooky house" atmosphere perfectly.Lovecraftian horror: Scratches
SH2 was spooky, but I cannot say I loved it for its gameplay. It was frustrating and there was a ton of backtracking with trial and error if you didn't use a guide.
I love a mix of scary, humor, and action. Never been big on Resident Evil, Evil Within took itself to seriously and got dull, Outlast used all of its tricks too early, and The Forest is a gardening simulator once you learn how the tribes and mutants work.
I'm digging Until Dawn right now though. It's campy fun, but the frame rate at times feels like it's in the teens.
I love a mix of scary, humor, and action. Never been big on Resident Evil, Evil Within took itself to seriously and got dull, Outlast used all of its tricks too early, and The Forest is a gardening simulator once you learn how the tribes and mutants work.
I'm digging Until Dawn right now though. It's campy fun, but the frame rate at times feels like it's in the teens.
REmake and SH2 are borderline ties for best horror (and for my favorite game of all time; gotta love a good horror game) imo for completely different reasons. REmake perfected classic survival horror gameplay, while SH2 has, arguably, the best story and some of the best characters ever written in the medium, with an incredible atmosphere to neatly tie it all together. SH2 wins by an inch, based on my personal preferences, but I'm glad to see these two titles mentioned so prominently in this thread.
Se_7_eN
Member
I too might be a little biased (based on my avatar) but I completely agree... I have played nearly every worthwhile horror game and nothing compares, though there have been some very good ones.
Team Silent was insanely talented.
misericordia
Neo Member
The best one in my opinion:
_(En,Fr,De,Es,It)-4.jpg)
poodaddy
Member
The best one in my opinion:
The next step is stating the name of your choice.....
I know it's Eternal Darkness but some people won't, so just posting a picture with no context doesn't really do much good to involve them in the discussion
SlasherJPC
Banned
Being a huge horror fan in both games and movies, certain elements from certain games just freak me the fuck out.
Silent Hill 2: the symbolism of the story and tied into the areas, enemies. Just a creepy feeling throughout. That first time meeting pyramid head, forever ingrained.
Eternal Darkness: the sanity effects were fantastic and a great way to mess with players. Then a story that spans countless eras, it's no super scary but mighty interesting.
Call of Cthullu Dark Corners of the Earth: one scary shooter, puzzle, fps style game. It has mystery, intrigue, and a certain moment in the hotel was absolutely terrifying.
Silent Hill Downpour: yes this can't compare to the style of the originals but felt like an interesting enough take, though surprisingly two side quest stories were just tense as hell. One featured a record player in an old murder scene house, the other a beating heart. Both can be missed but are honestly some of the best parts of the game.
Resident Evil Remake: while it's a huge improvement in style, atmosphere, and pretry much everything from the original, it was the crimson heads that truly made me feel for my life. Absolutely scary.
Alien Isolation: While a bit too long, this game has shear moments that make you feel like your inside ALIEN the moview and for most that's not really a fun place to be if you catch my drift.
The Evil Within: superb horror theme and while it wasn't super scary in a OMG sense, it was interesting and thick with atmospher. Though the whole package gives me a WTF feeling and sense of being super uncomfortable. The enemy and stage designs in this are particularly scary. The chapter 3 is GOAT design.
Dead Space: In space no one can hear you scream but especially as Issac didn't talk. The sense of isolation in space and the moments being in space with pure silence was one of the more scary moments I've ever experienced. It's a great Sci-fi action game littered with pure amazing elements of horror.The Thing meets Space!
I have more I could mention but these are what crossed my mind first.
Silent Hill 2: the symbolism of the story and tied into the areas, enemies. Just a creepy feeling throughout. That first time meeting pyramid head, forever ingrained.
Eternal Darkness: the sanity effects were fantastic and a great way to mess with players. Then a story that spans countless eras, it's no super scary but mighty interesting.
Call of Cthullu Dark Corners of the Earth: one scary shooter, puzzle, fps style game. It has mystery, intrigue, and a certain moment in the hotel was absolutely terrifying.
Silent Hill Downpour: yes this can't compare to the style of the originals but felt like an interesting enough take, though surprisingly two side quest stories were just tense as hell. One featured a record player in an old murder scene house, the other a beating heart. Both can be missed but are honestly some of the best parts of the game.
Resident Evil Remake: while it's a huge improvement in style, atmosphere, and pretry much everything from the original, it was the crimson heads that truly made me feel for my life. Absolutely scary.
Alien Isolation: While a bit too long, this game has shear moments that make you feel like your inside ALIEN the moview and for most that's not really a fun place to be if you catch my drift.
The Evil Within: superb horror theme and while it wasn't super scary in a OMG sense, it was interesting and thick with atmospher. Though the whole package gives me a WTF feeling and sense of being super uncomfortable. The enemy and stage designs in this are particularly scary. The chapter 3 is GOAT design.
Dead Space: In space no one can hear you scream but especially as Issac didn't talk. The sense of isolation in space and the moments being in space with pure silence was one of the more scary moments I've ever experienced. It's a great Sci-fi action game littered with pure amazing elements of horror.The Thing meets Space!
I have more I could mention but these are what crossed my mind first.
These so many types of horror that I can't say this one or that one is the scariest.
You have the slowly building kind without you noticing like the first Silent Hill.
Then there is the fear of what is ahead like the first three Resident Evil games.
There is also the fear that you get from being this close to death, you can say it is a thrill but never the less the fear is there, games like Clock Tower and Amnesia are known for this.
You have the slowly building kind without you noticing like the first Silent Hill.
Then there is the fear of what is ahead like the first three Resident Evil games.
There is also the fear that you get from being this close to death, you can say it is a thrill but never the less the fear is there, games like Clock Tower and Amnesia are known for this.
Definitely the original Clock Tower for me.
The worst thing for horror is for the audience to become comfortable with it and sadly all too many horror games fall into this trap. Since most horror games involve some form of combat(for some reason), the minute the player becomes in any way proficient at said combat, the tension deflates. My initial experiences with the first Silent Hill are probably the scariest a game has ever been for me but sometime around the school(or thereabouts) the monsters become either trivial to fight or to run from. Resident Evil 1 becomes more action packed as it goes along(adding stupid one-hit kill monsters to try to keep up the tension). Eventually we get to the likes of Resident Evil 4(and 5 and 6) and the Dead Spaces, which expect you to kill pretty much everything you come across and nothing could be farther from horror than being an action hero.
Clock Tower makes the protagonist defenseless and gives the player very simple controls that are married to a character who seems to respond to them at her own speed and not the player's. Little pixelated Jennifer Connelly will walk, run, turn, and interact at your command but it feels like you are only telling her what to do and then she does it, putting you in an almost voyeur like role. The story is also kept to a minimum which helps to keep the playtime down which helps to limit the player's ability to become comfortable with the work. Add on some decent replayability, the requisite spooky atmosphere and jump scares and you have the tops.
DirtyLarry
Member
Yep, I believe I concur.
I personally also think the original Bioshock is up there and does not get a whole lot of mentions when this subject is discussed. It was absolutely not meant to be a horror game, but it had some damn creepy atmosphere going on that I just remember wearing headphones, being in complete darkness, and just really feeling on the edge of my seat walking around.
I also think The Evil Within had some fantastic levels that had a great, creepy atmosphere as well, but as a cohesive single game missed the mark overall.
For myself, horror is more about feeling creeped out and uneasy. If I am being truthful I feel like nothing has made me feel both at the same time, movies and games, in a very, very long time. When pale girls with long black hair and jump scares took over the horror genre, it has just never been the same since. This is of course just my humble opinion, but I feel like horror overall has taken a pretty big shift from disturbing and creepy in a physcological way to a much more physical way with the jump scares.
So this can perhaps explain my take on why I find the above games creepy.
I personally also think the original Bioshock is up there and does not get a whole lot of mentions when this subject is discussed. It was absolutely not meant to be a horror game, but it had some damn creepy atmosphere going on that I just remember wearing headphones, being in complete darkness, and just really feeling on the edge of my seat walking around.
I also think The Evil Within had some fantastic levels that had a great, creepy atmosphere as well, but as a cohesive single game missed the mark overall.
For myself, horror is more about feeling creeped out and uneasy. If I am being truthful I feel like nothing has made me feel both at the same time, movies and games, in a very, very long time. When pale girls with long black hair and jump scares took over the horror genre, it has just never been the same since. This is of course just my humble opinion, but I feel like horror overall has taken a pretty big shift from disturbing and creepy in a physcological way to a much more physical way with the jump scares.
So this can perhaps explain my take on why I find the above games creepy.
InfiniteCombo
Banned
To those saying RE4... No. I think RE4 is glorious (actually, the best video game ever made) but the best horror game it is not.
My vote goes to REmake. While Silent Hill games seem to have a great horror atmosphere, and unsettling narrative, the gameplay leaves something to be desired.
A lot of the cheesiness of the first RE was removed in REmake, giving it a more serious tone. The mansion is, of course, gorgeous with perfect "horror" lighting. (The original RE on PS1 was way too bright and colorful, WTF). New additions give newcomers and veterans alike reasons to be on edge... Lisa Trevor's chain-clanking sousound and her far reaching zombie groans are creepy as fuck, and of course crimson heads are... Well, they're crimson heads, by far one of the best types of "regular" (non-boss) enemies in horror games. It's also oozing with a horror atmosphere... Not as psychologically mind-fucking as the atmosphere in Silent Hill games, but a good horror atmosphere regardless.
And of course, gameplay in REmake is superior to anything the Silent Hill games have to offer. Of course that's my opinion but I'm gonna stick by it.
My vote goes to REmake. While Silent Hill games seem to have a great horror atmosphere, and unsettling narrative, the gameplay leaves something to be desired.
A lot of the cheesiness of the first RE was removed in REmake, giving it a more serious tone. The mansion is, of course, gorgeous with perfect "horror" lighting. (The original RE on PS1 was way too bright and colorful, WTF). New additions give newcomers and veterans alike reasons to be on edge... Lisa Trevor's chain-clanking sousound and her far reaching zombie groans are creepy as fuck, and of course crimson heads are... Well, they're crimson heads, by far one of the best types of "regular" (non-boss) enemies in horror games. It's also oozing with a horror atmosphere... Not as psychologically mind-fucking as the atmosphere in Silent Hill games, but a good horror atmosphere regardless.
And of course, gameplay in REmake is superior to anything the Silent Hill games have to offer. Of course that's my opinion but I'm gonna stick by it.
Cipher Peon
Banned
You know what horror game needs more love? Lone Survivor.
Aside from it being kinda short and anti climactic (and the fact I thought the protag was smiling the entire time), the game works wonders with its tech to build something truly scary and nervewracking.
I have no doubt that it's "2D Silent Hill 2 lite", but sometimes that's enough for me, and the game is wonderful on its own merits. Love it.
Wait, that was called The Forest :I
*looks up trailer for The Woods*
You know, I really hate The Police? It made it impossible to watch the trailer without rolling my eyes into the depths of my soul. But it looks interesting, might watch it on Netflix or earlier if it gets a ton of buzz. I loved You're Next and tolerated his work on VHS, VHS2, and ABCs of Death.
Also fun fact, Blair Witch 2 sits firmly in the ironic novelty camp that I described earlier. It's such a dumb movie and I can't help but adore its cheese.
I LOVE Texas, btdubbs. Favorite of the classic slashers (in fact the only of the classic slashers I really like aside from Halloween 3, which calling it a "classic slasher" is a stretch). And yes, I think games have an easier time with scares than movies because of the immersion factor.
Aside from it being kinda short and anti climactic (and the fact I thought the protag was smiling the entire time), the game works wonders with its tech to build something truly scary and nervewracking.
I have no doubt that it's "2D Silent Hill 2 lite", but sometimes that's enough for me, and the game is wonderful on its own merits. Love it.
I've heard of it, I thought it came out already. Thought it was the movie that tumblr was complaining about being cultural appropriation of Aokigahara... *looks it up*
Wait, that was called The Forest :I
*looks up trailer for The Woods*
You know, I really hate The Police? It made it impossible to watch the trailer without rolling my eyes into the depths of my soul. But it looks interesting, might watch it on Netflix or earlier if it gets a ton of buzz. I loved You're Next and tolerated his work on VHS, VHS2, and ABCs of Death.
Also fun fact, Blair Witch 2 sits firmly in the ironic novelty camp that I described earlier. It's such a dumb movie and I can't help but adore its cheese.
I don't need horror to be smart as much as I'd like to be engaged. I love me some "high art" horror, but I don't find it really correlating with scares for me. Nor gore either, but I love gore because I think it just makes for a grand ol' time.
I LOVE Texas, btdubbs. Favorite of the classic slashers (in fact the only of the classic slashers I really like aside from Halloween 3, which calling it a "classic slasher" is a stretch). And yes, I think games have an easier time with scares than movies because of the immersion factor.
Definitely the original Clock Tower for me.
The worst thing for horror is for the audience to become comfortable with it and sadly all too many horror games fall into this trap. Since most horror games involve some form of combat(for some reason), the minute the player becomes in any way proficient at said combat, the tension deflates. My initial experiences with the first Silent Hill are probably the scariest a game has ever been for me but sometime around the school(or thereabouts) the monsters become either trivial to fight or to run from. Resident Evil 1 becomes more action packed as it goes along(adding stupid one-hit kill monsters to try to keep up the tension). Eventually we get to the likes of Resident Evil 4(and 5 and 6) and the Dead Spaces, which expect you to kill pretty much everything you come across and nothing could be farther from horror than being an action hero.
Clock Tower makes the protagonist defenseless and gives the player very simple controls that are married to a character who seems to respond to them at her own speed and not the player's. Little pixelated Jennifer Connelly will walk, run, turn, and interact at your command but it feels like you are only telling her what to do and then she does it, putting you in an almost voyeur like role. The story is also kept to a minimum which helps to keep the playtime down which helps to limit the player's ability to become comfortable with the work. Add on some decent replayability, the requisite spooky atmosphere and jump scares and you have the tops.
CT1 is basically the Chrono Trigger of Survival Horrors to me, so good to play and you can still pick it up today and it still feels "fresh".
A shame it's not very popular compared to the sequels. (Which are EWWWW)
Silent Hill 1 is my all time favorite, but I will say Silent Hill 2 produced the most memorable scare I've ever had with a video game that wasnt intentional.
A few years ago i decided to play the SH series from square one going through each game, since i never played one before. I spent like a week or two playing Silent Hill 1 every night, just really immersed in it. I got really used to the way that world was presented and how it handled to the point I turned on the old tank controls on in 2 because it didnt feel right without it. Even with the improved graphics and new protagonist, the second I changed the controls Silent Hill 2 felt very familiar. I rolled into it the night after i wrapped up 1, and it kinda felt like i was continuing one long game.
So i get to the apartments, and in the corner of my eyes i see something dart by James that i cant quite process and it freaks me out. I jump out of my chair and for a split second i am just filled with dread and adrenaline. I take a moment, calm down, try to figure out what the fuck it was. In Silent Hill 1 theres no shadows. In Silent Hill 2 there are, and they react to light. I was so used to Silent Hill 1, and with 2 feeling similar enough, i managed to let myself get scared by my own shadow because i wasnt expecting it to be there.
A few years ago i decided to play the SH series from square one going through each game, since i never played one before. I spent like a week or two playing Silent Hill 1 every night, just really immersed in it. I got really used to the way that world was presented and how it handled to the point I turned on the old tank controls on in 2 because it didnt feel right without it. Even with the improved graphics and new protagonist, the second I changed the controls Silent Hill 2 felt very familiar. I rolled into it the night after i wrapped up 1, and it kinda felt like i was continuing one long game.
So i get to the apartments, and in the corner of my eyes i see something dart by James that i cant quite process and it freaks me out. I jump out of my chair and for a split second i am just filled with dread and adrenaline. I take a moment, calm down, try to figure out what the fuck it was. In Silent Hill 1 theres no shadows. In Silent Hill 2 there are, and they react to light. I was so used to Silent Hill 1, and with 2 feeling similar enough, i managed to let myself get scared by my own shadow because i wasnt expecting it to be there.
wild wild rice
Member
Silent Hill 2 and REmake are the GOATs as far as I'm concerned.
Magic Mushroom
Member
This. Best cosmic horror game ever.
BlindJesus
Member
For someone who has never played any of the resident evils besides RE4 and RE5, which RE would you guys recommend that is on PC?
Edit: And/Or Silent Hill...Never played any of those but the small amount of lore I have seen intrigues me(and I like the movie <_<)
Edit: And/Or Silent Hill...Never played any of those but the small amount of lore I have seen intrigues me(and I like the movie <_<)
Resident Evil King
Member
I go back and forth between Silent Hill and Silent Hill 2... but right now, Silent Hill 2.
Replayed the game (PS2 version) on my pretty big HDTV (with component cables for slightly better picture) earlier this year - it is such a timeless masterpiece...
I love Silent Hill more than pretty much any other fictional media. I love just listening to the soundtrack (including the FLAC "complete collection" or whatever that I found pretty recently which has all the music from the game, not just the OST tracks) as every track reminds me of the part it represents in the game.
I could gush just as much about the original Silent Hill though, both incredible games.
Replayed the game (PS2 version) on my pretty big HDTV (with component cables for slightly better picture) earlier this year - it is such a timeless masterpiece...
I love Silent Hill more than pretty much any other fictional media. I love just listening to the soundtrack (including the FLAC "complete collection" or whatever that I found pretty recently which has all the music from the game, not just the OST tracks) as every track reminds me of the part it represents in the game.
I could gush just as much about the original Silent Hill though, both incredible games.
SchrodingerC
Member
*Sigh*
Poor SH3, often ignored in favor for its predecessor. Maybe it's better to say the Silent Hill trilogy is the best horror game experience, since all three are excellent at horror in their own ways. SH4 can join too as the awkward red head child of the group.
Silent Hill Homecoming and Downpour can go burn though.
Poor SH3, often ignored in favor for its predecessor. Maybe it's better to say the Silent Hill trilogy is the best horror game experience, since all three are excellent at horror in their own ways. SH4 can join too as the awkward red head child of the group.
Silent Hill Homecoming and Downpour can go burn though.
MaverickHunterAsh
Member
Silent Hill 3 for me. SH 2 was fantastic for sure, but SH 3 pushed things farther in terms of sheer horror and left me shaking and feeling really disturbed and uneasy a lot more throughout than SH 2. Silent Hill 3 also neatly and satisfyingly wrapped up Alessa's story and brought full circle the events that began in SH 1. It provided a great sense of closure, which might be one reason why SH 4 felt so tacked on and forced by comparison (not to mention the fact that it didn't even begin life as an SH game).
I have to give a shoutout to Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water, though. Scariest horror game I've played in quite some time!
Don't worry! There are people out there who appreciate the true brilliance of Silent Hill 3 above and separate from SH 2.
I have to give a shoutout to Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water, though. Scariest horror game I've played in quite some time!
Don't worry! There are people out there who appreciate the true brilliance of Silent Hill 3 above and separate from SH 2.
That section might have had the most "scares", but I thought the Apple Orchard house was the creepiest part of the game.
I would say Silent Hill 2 by far is the best if we're talking about a well made game all around.
But if we consider evoking a sense of fear and tension as the main objective of horror fiction, then my vote goes to A Chair in A Room as its the best at achieving that from what I've experienced of the genre so far.
It's a flawed game with wonky physics that's ~2-3 hours long, but it's the closest a work of horror fiction got to making me feel legit shook. The brilliant thing about its design, aside from the excellent use of sound, is that every level in the game is room-scale. Meaning, if you have a 2.5mx2m play area you can play the entire game by physically moving around.
Check out this playthrough of chapter 3 if you don't care about spoilers (starting @ 48:36 until the end of the video). This is exactly halfway through the game. Keep in mind that what the player experiences through the HMD is on a completely different level to what you see here.
If a small budget VR game can achieve this much I wonder what a decently budgeted, fully fledged VR horror title would be like. Seriously, everything before VR was child's play. As a huge fan of the genre, from books to games to movies, this is where shit gets serious.
But if we consider evoking a sense of fear and tension as the main objective of horror fiction, then my vote goes to A Chair in A Room as its the best at achieving that from what I've experienced of the genre so far.
It's a flawed game with wonky physics that's ~2-3 hours long, but it's the closest a work of horror fiction got to making me feel legit shook. The brilliant thing about its design, aside from the excellent use of sound, is that every level in the game is room-scale. Meaning, if you have a 2.5mx2m play area you can play the entire game by physically moving around.
Check out this playthrough of chapter 3 if you don't care about spoilers (starting @ 48:36 until the end of the video). This is exactly halfway through the game. Keep in mind that what the player experiences through the HMD is on a completely different level to what you see here.
If a small budget VR game can achieve this much I wonder what a decently budgeted, fully fledged VR horror title would be like. Seriously, everything before VR was child's play. As a huge fan of the genre, from books to games to movies, this is where shit gets serious.
DragoonKain
Neighbours from Hell
Not sure I could pick a favorite, but I adored Eternal Darkness. Sad there won't be another.
Dusk Golem
A 21st Century Rockefeller
I always am away or sleeping when horror topics pop up.
Anyways, I can't choose a favorite. There are definitely favorites I have, but as a huge enthusiast on the genre who has developed pretty broad taste for different kinds of horror, there's too many games that strike a number of chords for me, it's difficult for me to choose a favorite (also probably doesn't help I am generally bad with favorites anyway).
But there definitely have been some absolute gems in horror, cult titles, rough gems, hidden gems, and a lot more. The thing I'll always find endlessly interesting is how many horror games there are, and keep being made, how there's the popular known ones, the lesser known cult hits, and the obscure titles out there, and they keep coming out, and in my opinion a lot of them are actually worth playing (depending on how your taste lines up with what it does). I love how absolutely a mixture the horror genre is with clones and unique efforts both, and how subjective people's opinion's on specific titles can be.
Anyways, I can't choose a favorite. There are definitely favorites I have, but as a huge enthusiast on the genre who has developed pretty broad taste for different kinds of horror, there's too many games that strike a number of chords for me, it's difficult for me to choose a favorite (also probably doesn't help I am generally bad with favorites anyway).
But there definitely have been some absolute gems in horror, cult titles, rough gems, hidden gems, and a lot more. The thing I'll always find endlessly interesting is how many horror games there are, and keep being made, how there's the popular known ones, the lesser known cult hits, and the obscure titles out there, and they keep coming out, and in my opinion a lot of them are actually worth playing (depending on how your taste lines up with what it does). I love how absolutely a mixture the horror genre is with clones and unique efforts both, and how subjective people's opinion's on specific titles can be.
Mobius and pet octopus
Member
I am thinking maybe alien isolation or amensia darkest decent, if we're judging on horror/scary elements primarily.
LiveFromKyoto
Member
I said the words "Silent Hill 2" to myself before opening this thread. OP is not wrong. If P.T. is large enough to qualify that's up there too. And I'll throw the first two Fatal Frames in there as well.
Sub_Level
wants to fuck an Asian grill.
I haven't played all that many. But I'd go with the original Silent Hill. The controls and camera were surprisingly good once you learn how the Look button works. In fact, the few hours of Silent Hill 2 I played somehow had a worse camera since it was more restrictive.
And yeah I've played through REmake twice.
And yeah I've played through REmake twice.
Still after all these years its my favorite game ever.
the REmake is awesome so i cant wait for the Remake 2 cause Resident Evil 2 was just perfect in everything back in the day. Man the hallway where MR X bash through the wall was just intense
.EatChildren
Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
"Horror" is such a broad genre that, especially in video games, can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Even the nature of scares, which isn't even necessary to define horror as a genre, is widely subjective. Video games muddy the waters further where horror, like all genres, can be simply one component of a work that encompasses many other genres too.
Nevertheless, mainly because I feel like typing a bunch of shit, here's a handful of games I consider to have "horror" qualities and have stuck with me as highly memorable and important to my gaming history.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Embodies militaristic horror far better than it has any right to. The atmosphere is rich with eery hopelessness, Chernobyl evoking a unsettling terror, a place actively hostile towards all inhabitants. You really feel like you're somewhere you're not supposed to be, seeing things that should be left dead and buried. Encounters with human opponents are intense firefights thanks to a high damage ratios, gun jamming, survivalist healing (like stopping bleeding), and weapon inaccuracy, and against monsters you have the same with the added intensity from fighting the unknown. Exploring undergrown silos and shelters is pants shitting terrifying, and some of the eery setpieces are haunting and memorable.
ZombiU: The best game at the Wii U's launch, and a return to form for the survival horror genre in my opinion, in that outside of a couple of rough patches fully embraces what the concept of survival horror actually is. Notes taken from Souls in the form of easy death and gear recovery are integrated with zombie genre specific smarts, putting legitimate value and pressure on actually surviving as the price of death is permanent. Plus it's nice to see a zombie game that's not in tiresome United States.
System Shock 2: Techno-horror role playing at its finest. SHODAN is a beautifully intimidating antagonist (who doesn't love a maniacal AI?), and The Many are a terrifying force to encounter, mainly due to the exceptional sound design put behind The Many's deranged murmuring. Being in part a role playing game contributed greatly to the game system loop of planning, survival, and scavenging. Resource management was essential, and using gear to fend off foes felt like a real loss.
Alien vs. Predator 1 and 2: Though quite different in production values, both of these games fully embody the fear and tension from an enemy that utterly overwhelms you with stealth and numbers. Honestly some of my scariest gaming memories come from fucking Xenomorphs. The Marine campaign in both games is edge-of-your-seat stuff from start to finish, routinely evoking scenes from Aliens where overwhelmed marines have nothing left other than to get the fuck out of there. I'll add bonus points to Alien Isolation, which is a legit survival horror gem, doing the same for the first film as AvP1+2 did for Aliens.
Manhunt: Genius game, as far as I'm concerned, and I'd argue an important one in the never ending (though widely popularised at the time) debate of video game violence. Manhunt wasn't Rockstar riding off the controversy of interactive ultraviolence; it's an interactive work that fully embraces just how utterly fucking horrifying violence can be, both as the aggressor and the defender. I think few games have so successfully walked the line between kills being both satisfying, disgusting, and intense, the reward often offset by the tension from having to actually pull them off. Risk/reward at its finest in the grimiest, rawest setting possible.
Silent Hill 2 and Shattered Memories: Anything I could say about Silent Hill 2 has already been said and better by people here, but it's certainly worthy of the praise. I do like to tip my hat to Shattered Memories, a game I'm deeply fond of despite its numerous issues, for fully embracing psychological horror in mechanically and narratively interesting ways (at least for the interactive medium) and coming together as an enthusiastic reboot of the franchise that, to me, embodied much of what Silent Hill should be about. All the right ideas, great ones at that, never fully realised.
Cryostasis: Eurojank through and through, but in all the best ways possible. Clumsy, brooding combat from fight fights to bold loaded rifles, Cryostasis really hits home runs through its unique setting and intriguing story that break spacetime via memories, flashbacks, and embodying the past. Cold and lonely, unique and memorable. A hidden gem I highly recommend.
Eternal Darkness: One of my favourite GameCube games. Brilliant (if heavily Lovecraftian ripoff) narrative with decent game systems that hold their own throughout. Like Shattered Memories I feel the insanity system is one of those genius ideas that was never fully realised, having aged a bit badly but nevertheless admirable in concept and novel for the time. Narrative beats have some memorable highs, particularly in how the stories intertwine. Perhaps the biggest highlight to me is how each chapter was essentially its own thing, often introducing new gimmicks (narrative or otherwise) to keep each fresh, yet the repeated locations offered a great insight into how places change over time. Being introduced to Oublie cathedral at the height of Charlemagne's rule, only to return over a thousand years later during WW1 to see it transformed into a makeshift hospital, did a fantastic job of highlighting the passage of time.
Vampire: Bloodlines: Troika's swansong and still one of the best first person role playing games ever made. A mix of juvenile and adult, Bloodlines is tonally absolutely perfectly on point with that old school Vampire pulp; sexed up, leather glad violence. It has some awful stretches of play due to a rushed production, but the mood and atmosphere is so thick you could take a bite. The cast is amazing and memorable, quest arcs are well written, dialogue engaging and performed perfectly, etc. There's legitimately nothing else like it, in the moods and atmosphere and feel it evokes, and I honestly don't think there ever will be.
Resident Evil 4: Still one of the greatest games ever made, holding up far, far better than it has any right to, taking a big steaming shit on a vast majority of other third person action games (especially in the horror genre).
Nevertheless, mainly because I feel like typing a bunch of shit, here's a handful of games I consider to have "horror" qualities and have stuck with me as highly memorable and important to my gaming history.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Embodies militaristic horror far better than it has any right to. The atmosphere is rich with eery hopelessness, Chernobyl evoking a unsettling terror, a place actively hostile towards all inhabitants. You really feel like you're somewhere you're not supposed to be, seeing things that should be left dead and buried. Encounters with human opponents are intense firefights thanks to a high damage ratios, gun jamming, survivalist healing (like stopping bleeding), and weapon inaccuracy, and against monsters you have the same with the added intensity from fighting the unknown. Exploring undergrown silos and shelters is pants shitting terrifying, and some of the eery setpieces are haunting and memorable.
ZombiU: The best game at the Wii U's launch, and a return to form for the survival horror genre in my opinion, in that outside of a couple of rough patches fully embraces what the concept of survival horror actually is. Notes taken from Souls in the form of easy death and gear recovery are integrated with zombie genre specific smarts, putting legitimate value and pressure on actually surviving as the price of death is permanent. Plus it's nice to see a zombie game that's not in tiresome United States.
System Shock 2: Techno-horror role playing at its finest. SHODAN is a beautifully intimidating antagonist (who doesn't love a maniacal AI?), and The Many are a terrifying force to encounter, mainly due to the exceptional sound design put behind The Many's deranged murmuring. Being in part a role playing game contributed greatly to the game system loop of planning, survival, and scavenging. Resource management was essential, and using gear to fend off foes felt like a real loss.
Alien vs. Predator 1 and 2: Though quite different in production values, both of these games fully embody the fear and tension from an enemy that utterly overwhelms you with stealth and numbers. Honestly some of my scariest gaming memories come from fucking Xenomorphs. The Marine campaign in both games is edge-of-your-seat stuff from start to finish, routinely evoking scenes from Aliens where overwhelmed marines have nothing left other than to get the fuck out of there. I'll add bonus points to Alien Isolation, which is a legit survival horror gem, doing the same for the first film as AvP1+2 did for Aliens.
Manhunt: Genius game, as far as I'm concerned, and I'd argue an important one in the never ending (though widely popularised at the time) debate of video game violence. Manhunt wasn't Rockstar riding off the controversy of interactive ultraviolence; it's an interactive work that fully embraces just how utterly fucking horrifying violence can be, both as the aggressor and the defender. I think few games have so successfully walked the line between kills being both satisfying, disgusting, and intense, the reward often offset by the tension from having to actually pull them off. Risk/reward at its finest in the grimiest, rawest setting possible.
Silent Hill 2 and Shattered Memories: Anything I could say about Silent Hill 2 has already been said and better by people here, but it's certainly worthy of the praise. I do like to tip my hat to Shattered Memories, a game I'm deeply fond of despite its numerous issues, for fully embracing psychological horror in mechanically and narratively interesting ways (at least for the interactive medium) and coming together as an enthusiastic reboot of the franchise that, to me, embodied much of what Silent Hill should be about. All the right ideas, great ones at that, never fully realised.
Cryostasis: Eurojank through and through, but in all the best ways possible. Clumsy, brooding combat from fight fights to bold loaded rifles, Cryostasis really hits home runs through its unique setting and intriguing story that break spacetime via memories, flashbacks, and embodying the past. Cold and lonely, unique and memorable. A hidden gem I highly recommend.
Eternal Darkness: One of my favourite GameCube games. Brilliant (if heavily Lovecraftian ripoff) narrative with decent game systems that hold their own throughout. Like Shattered Memories I feel the insanity system is one of those genius ideas that was never fully realised, having aged a bit badly but nevertheless admirable in concept and novel for the time. Narrative beats have some memorable highs, particularly in how the stories intertwine. Perhaps the biggest highlight to me is how each chapter was essentially its own thing, often introducing new gimmicks (narrative or otherwise) to keep each fresh, yet the repeated locations offered a great insight into how places change over time. Being introduced to Oublie cathedral at the height of Charlemagne's rule, only to return over a thousand years later during WW1 to see it transformed into a makeshift hospital, did a fantastic job of highlighting the passage of time.
Vampire: Bloodlines: Troika's swansong and still one of the best first person role playing games ever made. A mix of juvenile and adult, Bloodlines is tonally absolutely perfectly on point with that old school Vampire pulp; sexed up, leather glad violence. It has some awful stretches of play due to a rushed production, but the mood and atmosphere is so thick you could take a bite. The cast is amazing and memorable, quest arcs are well written, dialogue engaging and performed perfectly, etc. There's legitimately nothing else like it, in the moods and atmosphere and feel it evokes, and I honestly don't think there ever will be.
Resident Evil 4: Still one of the greatest games ever made, holding up far, far better than it has any right to, taking a big steaming shit on a vast majority of other third person action games (especially in the horror genre).
wanderingprostheyltite
Member
Nice post EC, I still need to play Cryostasis, been on my backlog for eons.
What you said about Stalker is one of my favorite horror tropes and one of the hardest to get right for general atmosphere, especially across a whole game: hopelessness. Just an all encompassing sense of dread, and sound design and the ambient tracks are really what helps elevate that in Stalker. That ambient track with the occasional sound of rustling leaves from a breeze, a dog barking in the distance, and a low bass warble seemingly being a part of the environmental emissions works so well at keeping you rooted into that particular feeling.
I think a lot of the RE games do this exceptionally too, just a persistent dirge-like composition, some sound like grinding metal, makes me think of a butcher's shop mixed with the sounds of industry. This one from 5 in particular is fantastic, despite the underwhelming title its attached to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=munGvaFKdd0&index=14&list=PL0DB42B60626735D6
IIRC its from when you first encounter the infected dogs.
What you said about Stalker is one of my favorite horror tropes and one of the hardest to get right for general atmosphere, especially across a whole game: hopelessness. Just an all encompassing sense of dread, and sound design and the ambient tracks are really what helps elevate that in Stalker. That ambient track with the occasional sound of rustling leaves from a breeze, a dog barking in the distance, and a low bass warble seemingly being a part of the environmental emissions works so well at keeping you rooted into that particular feeling.
I think a lot of the RE games do this exceptionally too, just a persistent dirge-like composition, some sound like grinding metal, makes me think of a butcher's shop mixed with the sounds of industry. This one from 5 in particular is fantastic, despite the underwhelming title its attached to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=munGvaFKdd0&index=14&list=PL0DB42B60626735D6
IIRC its from when you first encounter the infected dogs.
anothertech
Member
PT