Tag: Environmental storytelling
Research Log
The Power of Absence: What an Empty Room Teaches Us About Environmental Storytelling
This week I am thinking about Environmental storytelling in game design and I’m going to start with a seemingly silly question, can a room still feel occupied even when no one is in it? It is, I think, quite normal for game designers to fall into the trap of obsessing over character arcs and scripted…
Research Log
Drawn Into Dread: Technical Drawing Techniques That Sharpen Horror Game Level Design
Monsters are great right. I mean, I love a good monster as much as the next guy but even the most terrifying monster can’t match the subtle dread of a hallway drawn slightly too long, or a room that feels just *off*. Over and over again in this blog, I come back to the question,…
Research Log
When Buildings Dream: Environmental Storytelling in Horror Game Design
Environmental storytelling in horror game design is vital! I say it over and over in this blog, but even the most unsettling monster pales in comparison to the dread of entering a room that somehow already knows you’re there. An empty room is a truly unsettling thing… particularly a large room, and especially one you’ve…
Research Log
Horror Game Design Through Silence and Emptiness: When the Walls Do Nothing
Have you ever experienced a hallway that seems to stretch for too long, a silence that seems to last for one second more than it should? the magically haunting thing about these moments in Horror Game Design is that they don’t scream… they wait. And in the waiting, something inside us begins to unravel, it…
Research Log
Why the Scariest Moments in Horror Games Are the Ones You Don’t See
The Terrifying Power of Implied Horror A creaking floorboard or a mysteriously flickering light, these moments, where nothing is seen but something, not quite right, is felt, have the power to unnerve players more than the most bloodthirsty monster encounter. So, why does absence of horror sometimes feel more terrifying than its presence? What is…
Research Log
The World as the True Antagonist: Conceptualizing Hostile Environments in Horror Game Design
Introduction Horror games traditionally frame their antagonists as tangible threats, monsters, murderers, or supernatural entities. However, some games subvert this paradigm by making the environment itself the primary source of terror. In such cases, the setting is no longer a passive backdrop but an active agent of dread, fundamentally shaping the player’s experience. This post…