Alright, so. I find the stereotypical “Light is safe, darkness is dangerous” a little bit overused. So I’m very, very averse to using that for a horror game. I’m most likely going to reverse that concept around in mine. Instead of ‘sanity’ being lost in the dark, ‘hope’ is gained in the light, which will eventually lead to your death.
I digress. I’m mostly here because I’m a little indecisive on a few mechanics I might add. Here are a few things I’m considering.
Randomization: I imagine it would be really creepy if you did a horror game multiple times, and minor but noticeable details in the map start to change. Adding to unpredictability. The drawback would be that it might be difficult to script.
Contradiction: I know I’m already reversing the ‘Light is safe’ concept, but I’m also thinking of making the horror game literally in a setting that would be beautiful and normally considered ‘safe’. Con: Might be difficult to create such an atmosphere.
Build-up: I really want a tense atmosphere, so I’m also considering having a horrifying “I’m less safe than I was” event for the player, and disabling the monster for a few minutes to build tension. Then ramp up the monster activity quite a bit.
Non-lethal: Dying in horror games eventually just make me frustrated, I might literally just make it impossible to die in the game, or just make it extremely hard to die, even intentionally.
Any thoughts and feedback? I might not read some of them right away but I’ll get to them.
A Good Horror Game Idea would be where the Player has a backstory and they had soo many issues and tramua and major depression the Player couldnt handle it then snapoed from the past tense trauma or issues that was big or serious of what turned them into a Killer, so basically they couldnt stop it or it was unstable, so then they somehow get knocked out or get in a coma where they get stuck inside a lucid dream getting haunted by monsters or ghost spirits from the people the Player killed.
I’m really not good with Horror Game Ideas this was my Best Try, so if it was Terrible.
If you are making a horror game, to create such an adverse atmosphere I would recommend including small, maybe subtle things, which are disturbing or strange to give the player that uncomfortable feeling many horror movies/books/games have. That way you can spark uncertainty in your players before having jump scares or whatever else was planned for the game. For example in the cartoon Coraline, on the other side of the wall all the character’s eyes are buttons. The relationship Coraline has with this other family is bright and exciting but it is a small detail like that which leaves the viewers spooked or unsure about the way they feel towards these new figures. Just an idea
This sounds like music to my ears. I really like the ideas you have so far and I totally agree. The tension is just gone after you died, which is a waste of more opportunity. Good luck! Looking foreward to seeing the final product or development updates
That is definitely a great idea. I have something to add, since your game is basically the opposite of all horror games. What if the monster was like a small creature? Or if it could change it’s size
Anyway, good luck!
Hmm, I might make it a small creature. One of the issues I encountered doing that is that sometimes the player skips over the monster, which may make tension a little confusing.
Thanks for giving me an example to refer to, I’m working on sci-fi setting on a planet with beautiful scenery. I’m adding high and low-pitched sounds in those scenic moments to give the player a ‘something is wrong’ thing. I’m also going to subtly add peripheral movement to increase the unease of being in those areas.
