What is horror? This is a question that has been the subject of voluminous tomes and endless documentaries and editorials. Horror is the psychological terror of Stephen King and the gruesome carnage of Clive Barker. Horror is the loneliness of Frankenstein's monster and the sadism of Freddy Krueger. Horror is a prison system that allows murderers to go free and imprisons marijuana smokers. For the purposes of the subject of this article, let's keep it simple--horror it that which scares you.
Unfortunately, even the best of computer games have been unable to evoke this seemingly simple emotional response on a sustained basis. Too many games go for the cheap, quick approach (i.e., the dogs bursting through the window in Resident Evil) rather than attempting to sustain and build upon a feeling of dread. Interactive adventure games are extremely immersive and time-consuming. An average of 30 to 50 hours may be consumed playing one game, as compared to an average movie length of two hours and an average of 8 to 10 hours to read a book. Computer horror also suffers in that the bond with that game is broken and must be reestablished every time that game is restarted. A good horror film is the equivalent of a two-hour roller coaster ride; a good horror game must whisper for your return to the monitor, regardless of the time of day. Yet the gaming medium has failed, with few exceptions, to elicit a strong emotional response. Once the industry begins to mature and realize that a great script should come before graphics and bloodshed, then, and only then, will computer games attain the level of respect that movies and books have obtained.
As is stands now, it is rare for a "game" to reach that level of emotional involvement.
The following five games all have something in common. Be it an underlying Lovecraftian theme, computer technology gone mad, a plot driven by psychological horror or a story penned by a well-known horror author and translated to computer imagery. They have all transcended the limitations of the genre and are most assuredly games you should not play with the lights out.
5. Bad Day on the Midway
Developer: Inscape
Release Date: 1995
This is not so much a horror game as it is a bizarre, surrealistic fantasy world populated by characters who would do David Lynch proud. Lottie the Human Log, Dagmar the Dog Woman, the IRS Man and Oscar the Racing Rat are but a few of the warped personalities dwelling about the Midway.
Bad Day on the Midway focuses on character development and the life stories of these misbegotten creatures. We can choose who we wish to inhabit as we meet with other characters and examine the various midway exhibits. You can play as the same character for the entire game or "jump" into another character's body and experience the world from a different point of view. Each character has a specific role to play toward solving a twisted mystery of murder and intrigue, but the outcome of the story is flexible and varies as you discover new storylines and subplots. This game gets under your skin and causes major discomfort.
Inscape described Midway as an anti-game in that it focused on the darkness of its characters in order to exploit the negative or darker sides of their personalities. Survival is the only obvious goal of this game, and the reward for surviving is the ability to leave this doomed whirlpool of pain and depravity. Inscape's creative process was, and still is years later, light years ahead of what the computer field is ready to accept.
4. Sanitarium
Developer: DreamForge
Release Date: 1998
Part allegory, part symbolism, Sanitarium is one of those games that, like the movie The Sixth Sense, you cannot say too much about for fear of revealing the plot twists. A story that begins as a B-movie clich�--Who am I? How did I get here?--slowly evolves into a horrifying story of self-discovery. You will embark on a surreal journey through grotesque yet strangely familiar environments populated by freakish denizens. The strange becomes familiar and the familiar strange as you slowly reconstruct your past.
Sanitarium is a story that propels you forward to piece together the unsettling answer to who you are and how you came to be an occupant of the sanitarium. A nice, tidy finish removes some of the game's edge, but overall Sanitarium is a well-constructed game that entices you to empathize with its main character.
3. System Shock 2
Developer: Looking Glass
Release Date: 1999
The genres collide! Adventure meets action; RPG meets first-person shooter... and the world still spins on its axis. System Shock 2 is the only game in this revered group to successfully combine not only all of the genres but also to utilize 3D sound and music to create the total horror experience.
In the original System Shock, we battled SHODAN--a computer with a God complex--and as with any sequel worth its salt, SHODAN is back--and of course this time she is stronger, smarter, and has brought along some help. The first System Shock is widely considered to be a minor classic that was limited by the technology of the time. Well, technology has finally caught up, and System Shock 2 exploits it to the fullest. 3D sound swells from the appropriate speakers, be it during combat or as you pass a whining piece of machinery that emanates only from the left speaker and is hauntingly sparse when traveling down the deserted ship corridors. Your efforts to hack a door lock will quicken as you hear footsteps shuffling from behind. The plot is basic sci-fi/horror. After attempting to contact an unknown planet, your space ship is attacked. When you awaken amid the ship's ruins, the entire crew seems to be dead or missing. You must now explore the deserted hull for clues. Sometimes simple is best.
Bodies swaying from nooses, a strange noise above that you cannot identify, ghostly apparitions reconstructing their death throes--these and much, much more contribute to your plight. Trapped on a spaceship billions of miles from earth with a mass murderer on the loose. Not to be played in the dark.
2. Amber Journeys Beyond
Developed by: Hue Forest
Release Date: 1996
Amber is without a doubt the least-played but most widely known horror game ever released. Created by a husband-and-wife team, Frank and Susan Wimmer, Amber is one game that should be experienced by all true fans of the horror/adventure genre.
Your friend Roxy has been conducting paranormal tracking experiments and has contacted you for help. Upon finding her unconscious, you explore the old Victorian house she has been monitoring and discover a headpiece that allows you to experience in-depth encounters with the supernatural. You will take an unprecedented journey into the world beyond as you unlock the mysteries of the past and discover the secrets of life after death by possessing the spirits of dead souls still not at peace with their situation.
If the thought of inhabiting the spirit of a dead child searching for his beloved teddy bear gives you a chill, then this is the game for you. Play Amber with the lights out, and snatches of the game will haunt your memory for months.
1. The Dark Eye
Developer: Inscape
Release Date: 1995
Inspired by the works of Edgar Allen Poe, The Dark Eye is a descent into the madness and mayhem of one man's twisted world. More of an experience than a game as you explore the minds of murderers, madmen and their terrified victims as almost every animate and inanimate object you touch draws you deeper into new levels of intrigue and horror. And what is it precisely that instigates this journey? A sniff of paint thinner.
The incredible 3D animated stop-motion characters that populate the multiple story paths are so lifelike and quirky that you can easily imagine them having a separate life outside of this game. Four separate stories cross paths numerous times and are eventually resolved in one satisfying, yet troubling, conclusion. The Dark Eye features the voice of legendary author William S. Burroughs and features memorable characters developed by animator Doug Beswick, who also worked on The Addams Family and Aliens movies.
How scary is The Dark Eye? (Major spoiler ahead!) It has the power to so involve that you forget you are playing a game. One of the multiple story lines concerns a woman who has a sleeping sickness and, mistakenly diagnosed as dead, is buried alive. As you are occupying the character's body, you are not aware of your desperate situation. All we as the player see is a pitch-black monitor screen, and all we as the player hear is our fingernails scratching the inside of the coffin. It was right at this point of realizing that I was buried alive that my son entered the dark computer room and, since I was wearing headphones, tapped me on the shoulder. There is still to this day an indentation in the ceiling from my head.
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