Survival Horror

[duckfish405]

I consider myself a pretty big fan of the survival horror genre, but I'm not sure that, comparatively speaking, I've played very many.  I have played all of the Silent Hill games (with the exception of Book of Memories), a bit of Resident Evil, Eternal Darkness, and I'm working on Fatal Frame right now, which is proving to be insanely terrifying.

What survival horror games do you guys like?

[~RoadToTrista~]

I think Resident Evil 4 stays pretty true to survival horror, and it's pretty fun, and Silent Hill 3 is fun because you just kinda walk around and pummel disturbingly deformed creatures with a pipe like it's nothing. >.< (pretty sure you played those though)

Have you ever played Slender? I refuse to, as that looks scary as hell.

[duckfish405]

Really?  I found SH3 to be very difficult to play through as a combat-heavy.  I mostly ran away from things until my second playthrough when I unlocked the unlimited SMG, lightsaber, and (my favorite) Sexy Beam.

I refuse to play Slender as well because the Slender Man regularly haunts my nightmares and forces me to turn on far more lights than necessary.  But I did watch my best friend play it, and once the Slender Man inevitably caught up to her, she slapped her laptop shut and threw it.  For as terrifying as it is, it seems to result in hilarity XD

[~RoadToTrista~]

I don't like to run away from things. (which is one reason Slender doesn't mix with me) If there's some creepy ass monster chasing me then I want it dead so I don't have to worry about it anymore. >.< But yes in some of those wide open areas there's too many so you pretty much have to run away unless you have one of the 2nd playthrough weapons or powers.

When you do fight one in like a narrow hallway I just think it's funny because she just goes up to them with a straight face and starts beating them like she's a robot and then she kicks them a few times and moves on. o.O

[duckfish405]

Haha indeed.  Actually, one of the reasons SH3 was rated M is because it's cruel to kick something when it's down.  I mean, personally, I feel pretty justified in kicking the crap out of it after it tried, you know, KILLING me. 

What do you think are the most important aspects or defining features of a survival horror game?

[~RoadToTrista~]

Having some amount of scariness of course, lol. Resident Evil 5? Not scary at all, can't even be considered survival horror. Resident Evil 6? The first half of Leon's campaign hit it pretty well but that's it. In both games the partner kinda ruins it too. (Though the co-op is rly fun) Also one thing about Silent Hill Downpour is that there wasn't enough dark enviroments that make you go "oh shizz." There was usually plenty of daylight, I practically begged through most of the game for a pitch black hallway where the only source of light is my flashlight.

Also I would definitely have rated SH3 as M even if there was no kicking. >.<

[Flan]

I'm waiting for Deadly Premonition/Red Seeds Profile Directors Cut to ship in North America at the end of the month since it was originally 360 only and I own a ps3 (the re-release is ps3 only, original game was on both in Japan).

DP is one of those games you either love for its Twin Peaks ripoff atmosphere or you hate it.

[duckfish405]

I agree, Downpour was very disappointing.  The monsters had no real tie to the protagonist's psyche, which is what we see in the earlier Silent Hill games like 1, 2, and 3.  I think what makes a survival horror game is the tag-team of vulnerability and discomfort.  If you don't feel very vulnerable or uncomfortable, it kind of kills the "survival" portion of the genre.  I think dark hallways, good ambient music, and suspense play a huge part in making people feel that way.

I'm not sure I've heard of Deadly Premonition, Flan.  What's it like/about?

[~RoadToTrista~]

After Silent Hill 4, the games stopped being produced by Team Silent. I guess the new companies are too scared to take it as far.

[Flan]

I'm not sure I've heard of Deadly Premonition, Flan.  What's it like/about?

A combination of investigation (where the player character is an FBI agent on a murder case in a small town) and acid trip would be the best way to describe the game play. The most annoying part is the combat because the player's firearms are about as effective as pea shooters, especially the submachine gun.

[brainiac]

SH2 is my all-time favorite because I am a huge dork.

I am of the opinion that survival-horror games should actually emphasize, you know, survival and horror. The atmosphere is really important for establishing that, and relying only on jump-scares doesn't really measure up. If you get immersed in the environment, it's much more effective at freaking you out. And, I find protagonists who aren't experienced fighters more compelling in this context, since it makes the ordeal they're going through more harrowing. If the character is mowing down hordes of monsters coolly, a) I don't particularly identify with that and b) it takes away from both the survival (you're well-equipped to survive, not struggling) and horror (your character isn't actually afraid so why should you be?) elements.

Don't get me wrong, I like a good shoot-'em-up. But I don't feel like it fits this genre well.

[duckfish405]

...Okay, I'm sufficiently sold on Deadly Premonition!  That looks amazingly compelling and creepy!  Certainly something I'm going to try and pick up as soon as I get the chance!

I couldn't agree with you more, braniac!  Have you ever seen Yahtzee's review of the Silent Hill games?  They're brilliant.  But what you discussed was the very reason I found SH3 to be the most terrifying.  SH2 is my favorite, but nothing makes you feel more vulnerable and powerless than being a 17-year-old girl in a skirt.  That's how they really bollocksed up SH5: Homecoming when they made the protagonist a man with lots and lots of combat training.

[~RoadToTrista~]

And, I find protagonists who aren't experienced fighters more compelling in this context, since it makes the ordeal they're going through more harrowing.

I don't know, I think an experienced and well-equipped fighter faced off against a freaky and strange enemy who just won't die can be just as harrowing and initiate a feeling of helplessness.

While Resident Evil 4 may not be as scary as Silent Hill or Fatal Frame, I think it's great and definitely fits the genre enough for someone who's never played survival horror before and wants to start.

[brainiac]

Yahtzee is hilarious.

I don't know, I think an experienced and well-equipped fighter faced off against a freaky and strange enemy who just won't die can be just as harrowing and initiate a feeling of helplessness.

While Resident Evil 4 may not be as scary as Silent Hill or Fatal Frame, I think it's great and definitely fits the genre enough for someone who's never played survival horror before and wants to start.

I think I tend to find that situation more frustrating than making me feel helpless, but I totally get why it would work for other people! And you're right--I wouldn't argue that RE4 isn't a survival-horror game. Maybe it doesn't epitomize the genre for me, but it's an excellent introduction. It's also an awesome game that I somehow have not gotten around to playing yet (I've watched people playing a bunch of times).

[~RoadToTrista~]

One thing about Resident Evil 4 is that it produced the one monster that I'm scared of most out of all video game horror monsters besides Slender Man. Regenerators >.<'