Category: Horror Game Analysis
Research Log
The Architecture of Fear: Why Certain Spaces Feel Wrong
Introduction The unsettling nature of certain architectural space, and architecture of fear if you like, is an interesting topic and has, for a long time, been a point of discussion in fields such as psychology, phenomenology, and horror studies. Some environments evoke a primal fear that seems disconnected from any immediate threat. Architectural spaces have…
Research Log
Dynamic Weather: Amplifying Atmosphere in Horror Games
Dynamic weather systems have revolutionized the interactive world of video games. Weather is bigger than us, it has no sympathy for or fear of us and regardless of how powerful we become as a species, weather still has the power to crush us like ants! This makes the inclusion of weather systems in horror games…
Research Log
Transforming Everyday Objects into Horror
In horror game design, the familiar can become the unexpected, as everyday when items are subtly twisted or used out of context to provoke unease. This unsettling effect is grounded, again, in the psychological concept of the uncanny, where the familiar become hauntingly strange (Virno & Ricciardi, 2005; Freud, 1919). By altering an object’s placement,…
Research Log
Beneath the surface: Thinking about crafting suspense in horror games
Watching horror movies or playing horror games makes it easy to forget that horror is one of the most intricate genres. Crafting suspense in horror game design relies on a multitude of subtle, atmosphere-driven techniques to captivate and terrify audiences. Unlike more overtly action-based horror, environmental horror leverages setting and sensory cues to evoke fear…
Research Log
Common Horror Game Mistakes: What to Avoid When Starting Out
Although our discussions in this blog have focused mainly on theory, creating a great horror game is more than that, it’s an art form that requires careful balance between atmosphere, game mechanics, and creative narrative. For game designers, there are many potential traps that can undermine a game’s potential to be truly terrifying. There are…