The general Survival Horror discussion thread.

[Ack]

Ok fellows, I said I wasn't going to do too much this year for Halloween, but having been playing and thinking about survival horror titles for the last week or so, I figure we ought to spend a little time talking about them. So let's talk.

First, what survival horror games have you played or beaten? Which titles scared you the most? What made them so effective? What have you found generally works in the genre for you and what doesn't? Are there any titles you've wondered about or want to hear other board members thoughts on? What makes a quality survival horror game? Come on folks, inquiring minds want to hear you speak up on this genre so incredibly feared by the average gamer.

[Gamerforlife]

I'm a fan of the genre, but very much a casual fan. No where even remotely as hardcore a fan as you are Ack

Resident Evil 2: Dual Shock edition was my first I think. I had played the original RE when it came out, but it was a short rental and I didn't get very far. However, my gaming instincts told me this was the beginning of something big. I got the same feeling when I was reading about Grand Theft Auto III years later and even moreso when I first played it.

I actually had a strategy guide for RE 2, which made this new gaming experience easier for me to break into. I ended up playing through it many times unlocking just about everything. It's still a favorite of mine and I still love Leon and Ada to this day, which played a part in me loving Resident Evil 4

After that I would go on to play Dino Crisis, which I LOVED(those T-Rex encounters were awesome). Then Dino Crisis 2, Eternal Darkness, Fear Effect(does that count?), a Silent Hill demo, Resident Evil 4, Dead Rising(rescued all survivors), Resident Evil 5, Dead Space and I think that's about it. It's a genre I admire but haven't played many of its games oddly enough. I've also heard people describe Peter Jackson's King Kong as half survival horror so I'll mention that too

RE 2 captured the look and feel of a horror movie well and the graphics blew me away at the time. However, I loved the speed of the dinosaurs in Dino Crisis. Made the game more intense. I'm also a fan of T-Rex encounters in games. They are always so awesome like the first time you encounter one in Tomb Raider

I think key elements in survival horror games that truly want to scare the hell out of you are atmosphere, solitude, sound, darkness, limited controls(that's right I said it), and especially psychology(twisted enemy designs, disturbing sights, notes or books with disturbing story elements, seeing or hearing others dying, finding corpses killed in disturbing fashion, barely audible whispers)

Psychology is key as people will always come up with things far scarier in their own mind than anything you can show them

[Opa Opa]

Silent Hill 2 scared me the most. Not jump-scares or anything like that but the aftereffect of playing the game. When you sit back and analyze the characters and their actions/reactions to certain things it can be kind of shocking. For me, at least.

[noiseredux]

the cut-scene is the first RE where Jill first sees a zombie eating a body in the hallway beyond the dining room still scares the hell out of me.

[Gamerforlife]

the cut-scene is the first RE where Jill first sees a zombie eating a body in the hallway beyond the dining room still scares the hell out of me.

the bathtub scene in Eternal Darkness, I always bring that up. Scared the shit out of me the first time. I was playing the game alone in the middle of the night at the time

[joehero]

Fatal Frame scares the crap out of me. I not far into it, probably for that reason. Also Eternal Darkness.

[jfe2]

I've been playing through Dead Space: Extraction this week, and although it isn't survival horror, it has definitely made me want to play the original Dead Space game. The setting and story are creepy in the same way that the original Alien was. The monsters in the game also remind of me The Thing, which is one of my favorite horror films.

Believe it or not, Dead Space will most likely be my first serious foray into the world of survival horror.

[Jerkface Killah]

I'm huge survival horror nut. Resident Evil:Directors Cut was one of my first ps1 games. I was 10 when I got it in '97. I thought it was amazing. I wasnt allowed to play it when my younger brother was around because the zombies scared him. I tried to tell him that the zombie at the beginning with blood on his face was a clown, and that it was red paint.

I loved RE so much that I pre-ordered RE2 and bought it day 1. But my dad thought It was too violent and made me return it. My mom then secretly re-bought it for me for Christmas, then RE3 for the next Christmas.

I still love survival horror games but im not into the more action-y ones like RE5. I really want to play Deep Fear on the Saturn one day. But I don't want to shell out the money to play it in English; apparently it's very rare outside of japan.

Well there is some history for you all.

[Joeyg329]

I am a huge fan of survival horror games.My first was the original RE, before i even had a ps1 i heard my friends in 5th grade talk about it all the time. They made it sound so awesome, and i had never played a "horror" game before. Finally got a ps1 and rented the game, loved it, the scariest part being i couldnt afford a memory card yet so i was really on edge with trying to survive haha. I ended up getting the game and a memory card shortly after. I played that game to the death, it wasnt terribly scary but it creeped me out (the music in the basement kitchen!).

RE2 was fantastic, great pace, not quite as unforgiving as RE1 , personally i think its one of the most balanced survival horror experiences to this day. Man X scared the shit outta me.

My favorite game came next, Silent Hill. That was the first really scary game experience for me, i loved RE series but they were no where near as scary as SH. The helplessness of having mostly melee weapons, the flashlight, the atmosphere, the monsters, man it was great. I also liked the jump scares, RE was predictable with"black lines" but SH just let it happen. Controls were a little rough, but it was worth it.

RE3 was a nice step forward for the series, i liked code veronica, but to me the series began to go a little too hollywood for me. I enjoyed the gameplay, but i really groaned at the action sequences and the plots. I know the acting has always been lousy, but the first too games were a little more grounded. RE4 was an incredible game, but lacked the charm of what i considered a survival horror game, it was more of a great action game for me. RE5 was good but very distant from the series.

Silent hill 2 was excellent, the story twist and being a next gen system made it really stand out. Silent hill 3 was another good one. Now im sure most will disagree, but i loved Silent hill 4 more than 2 and 3. The different kind of story, the apartment aspect,the ghosts creeped me out, it was a great departure from the series norm. The only part i didnt like was the protection aspect latter, plus the reuse of prior levels, but i still enjoyed it.

Deep fear for saturn was a very obscure title, i had a friend who imported it years ago, i would love to experience it again. Very interesting title.

The first Dino Crisis was great, the change of pace with the dinos was refreshing and scary. Plus i loved jurassic park so i had a soft spot for it. The full 3d aspect was cool too.
I second Gamerforlife's love of T-rex encounters as well haha, this games t rex and the tomb raider t rex were some of my favorite game moments.

Eternal Darkness, the 2nd cube game i got. The fear "effects" this game had were a big departure from the normal survival horror fare. The story was engrossing as well. Made me jump a few times.

Dead space is probably the scariest survival horror game ive played yet, my god that game made me jump so many times i had a hard time playing it.

Its a shame, most of the survival horror games in the PS1/Saturn era are great, but unless you played them in their day they are tough to stomach the graphics. The RE series is very movie like, where SH and eternal darkness just plain get in your head. I have also beaten all these games, survival horror games are a genre i never put down without beating them.
I am still in the midst of beating SH Homecoming and SH shattered memories, but to be honest im not that into them.
Sorry for the long winded post btw

[Ack]

Sorry for the long winded post btw

Not at all, that was exactly the kind of post I was hoping to see. Your experiences actually sound pretty similar to mine, though I'm slightly older. Resident Evil came out when I was in 7th grade, and a good friend of mine raved and ranted about how awesome it was along with Final Fantasy Tactics every day for a couple of months. But since I lacked access to a PlayStation, I didn't get a chance to play it for a few more years.

Around the time my parents got divorced, and my dad remarried a short time later. He hooked up with this rich woman from Boston who had a mansion in Maine, so we went up there to visit. This woman had a cousin or nephew who was older and had bought a PlayStation and several games, including Resident Evil 2. I had no idea games could be like that, and I spent the entire trip up there freaking out over zombies in the woods.

My next excursion was Silent Hill, though I only managed to make it to the piano puzzle. I spent years trying to figure that puzzle out, eventually giving up and trading the game to a friend. Then I borrowed a messed up copy from a friend and managed to figure out that puzzle in about ten minutes. To this day I don't know why I thought it was so difficult. Anyway, that copy was practically unplayable a short way after that (seriously, the disc looked like a dog had chewed on it, so I've still not ever finished the first Silent Hill).

But that sparked my interest in the genre. Over the next few years I would get my hands on Dino Crisis, Parasite Eve, Resident Evil 3, and then upgrade to the PS2. Once there, Silent Hill 2 became a must own, and I continued collecting the series from there. I also started noticing other horror titles, like Fatal Frame, and happily sought these games out.

So now I have a solid survival horror collection, and I'm continually finding new games or playing through old ones I haven't gotten around to yet.