Tag: Game design
Wyrd News
Hunter’s Moon turns English witch-hunting into systemic folk horror
I think folk horror becomes much more interesting when folklore stops being lore and becomes mechanics. So, I’m excited to hear about Hunter’s Moon coming to PS5 which appears to make listening to what a community believes about you part of survival itself. What I find interesting is the suggestion that belief itself might be…
Research Log
The Crossroads Experiment
Through my recent work in supernatural horror game design, it has increasingly become apparent to me that, if translating the supernatural into real, tangible, game experiences is my goal as a game design academic, there is a need to re-immerse myself in the tools, the code, the magical language if you like, of what makes…
Research Log
The Future of Horror Gaming – BAFTSS Horror SIG Panel
This week, I had the honour of chairing a panel discussion for the British Association of Film, Television, and Screen Studies (BAFTSS) Horror Special Interest Group. It was an incredible experience to explore the evolving relationship between horror games and screen media, diving into how aesthetics, narratives, and technology shape interactive fear. I was privileged…
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
Top 5 Horror Game Mechanics Every Designer Should Know
In the world of horror games, mechanics are the building blocks that create tension, fear, and a sense of unease for players. The best horror games, and I’m talking about the likes of classics like Silent Hill or modern masterpieces such as Amnesia: The Dark Descent, the use of various tools that keep players on…