Lonely Videogame Worlds

[turbolegs]

I think the original Tomb Raider would benefit immensely from having no combat whatsoever, but Resident Evil without zombies? I think the later games got too action heavy and ruined the atmosphere but I still think the original is a fairly lonely experience.

[Gamerforlife]

I think the original Tomb Raider would benefit immensely from having no combat whatsoever

Nah, that would be terrible. You would have lost the classic T-Rex moment. Plus, all the creatures you face remind you that you are far away from any kind of civilization

Plus, the adrenaline dodge in Tomb Raider Anniversary was awesome

[brunoafh]

The King's Field games on PS1 & PS2 definitely fit the bill.

Big +1 on this, also the Shadow Tower and Souls games. Even Eternal Ring and the Evergrace games. If you like somber worlds you're sure to very much enjoy all of From Software's RPGs.

[Menegrothx]

I think the original Tomb Raider would benefit immensely from having no combat whatsoever, but Resident Evil without zombies? I think the later games got too action heavy and ruined the atmosphere but I still think the original is a fairly lonely experience.

You meet other team members several times throughout the game. Atleast in Silent Hill 2 all the other human characters were really cryptic and insane. It wasn't like you met other people and said "shit there are monsters here, we should get the hell out of here!" and they would reply "that's an excellent idea, let's go", the encounters didn't really comfort the player in a way an encounter with another survivor in a situation like that usually does.
I do agree with you though (both on Tomb Raider and RE). I guess there are two kinds of isolation; a truly empty world where you dont meet any wildlife, enemies or other human beings and you just wander around by yourself (Myst-type of adventure/point and click games) and the survival horror type of isolation.

[turbolegs]

I think the original Tomb Raider would benefit immensely from having no combat whatsoever

Nah, that would be terrible. You would have lost the classic T-Rex moment. Plus, all the creatures you face remind you that you are far away from any kind of civilization

Plus, the adrenaline dodge in Tomb Raider Anniversary was awesome

I think you're right to certain extent, but having replayed it recently, I clocked up over 25 kills on Palace Midas and it just felt like a massacre. The T-Rex moment in Lost Valley is still incredible though.

I thought anniversary effectively ruined all the atmosphere that existed in TR1. The music was over the top and seemingly started up every 5 seconds. I also felt like the levels were condensed and didn't have the same sense of space, which is something I felt added to the originals sense of isolation.

[turbolegs]

I think the original Tomb Raider would benefit immensely from having no combat whatsoever, but Resident Evil without zombies? I think the later games got too action heavy and ruined the atmosphere but I still think the original is a fairly lonely experience.

You meet other team members several times throughout the game. Atleast in Silent Hill 2 all the other human characters were really cryptic and insane. It wasn't like you met other people and said "shit there are monsters here, we should get the hell out of here!" and they would reply "that's an excellent idea, let's go", the encounters didn't really comfort the player in a way an encounter with another survivor in a situation like that usually does.
I do agree with you though (both on Tomb Raider and RE). I guess there are two kinds of isolation; a truly empty world where you dont meet any wildlife, enemies or other human beings and you just wander around by yourself (Myst-type of adventure/point and click games) and the survival horror type of isolation.

Definitely, Myst provides a very different sense of isolation to something like Resident Evil. I think aesthetic factors play a huge part here rather than story based elements, e.g characters. The audio and restrictive camera angles of RE really created a sad and lonely environment, despite Barry and Rebeccas interruptions.

[Menegrothx]

Leveling in an empty area/dead server in a MMORPG can feel quite isolated when you know that the world is supposed to be full of players, so it seems like the life would've been sucked out the game world, while you dont feel that way when playing an offline single player RPG game. Like when you've used to seeing the world full of players, suddenly the NPCs become a part of the landscape to you.
I have fond memories of leveling alone in Warhammer Online. I only saw a couple of players during my journeys and even in the main city I only saw like 3 players that were all AFK. It felt eerie and kinda sad in a way

[turbolegs]

Leveling in an empty area/dead server in a MMORPG can feel quite isolated when you know that the world is supposed to be full of players, so it seems like the life would've been sucked out the game world, while you dont feel that way when playing an offline single player RPG game. Like when you've used to seeing the world full of players, suddenly the NPCs become a part of the landscape to you.
I have fond memories of leveling alone in Warhammer Online. I only saw a couple of players during my journeys and even in the main city I only saw like 3 players that were all AFK. It felt eerie and kinda sad in a way

Having only played PSO offline, I completely agree

[Nemoide]

I remember the original Unreal having a very lonely feel, although I suspect the game itself hasn't aged very well.

[J T]

Try out The Void on PC. It's all about being alone in a strange limbo world where you are seeking to find color.