Horror In Non-Horror Games

mansoor1980

Member


rugrats had horror elements?
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The madness forest in Elden Ring deserves a mention too. Although I was a bit disappointed in what the boss turned out to be, the overall feel and atmosphere for that section is top notch.
 
Tomb Raider I (1996) for sure

It starts off as an adventure, but turns into a constant feeling of isolation in a hostile environment where everything and everyone seems intent on causing harm, with no glimmer of hope. The game really wore me down.
 
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We get this thread every Halloween. Havent watched the video but at the top of my head, Thief games, Max Payne 1/2, VTM Bloodlines, Cyberpunk 2077, etc.
 
Tomb Raider I for sure

It starts off as an adventure, but turns into a constant feeling of isolation in a hostile environment where everything and everyone seems intent on causing harm, with no glimmer of hope. The game really wore me down.
Don't get me started on those jumping Atlanteans mf#$%*!!
 
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The sewer section from Aliens Colonial Marines. For about 25 minutes the game was actually really good and scary. It's like they let someone else handle the directing duties for that segment of the game. Someone who actually knew what they were doing.

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Not horror per se, but the level in Hitman Contracts with the Meat King.

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One of the gloomiest missions in the franchise.
Is Contracts the game with the Dutch nazi biker gang as well?
It really was a gritty game with a dark atmosphere, I liked it a lot.
 
Is Contracts the game with the Dutch nazi biker gang as well?
It really was a gritty game with a dark atmosphere, I liked it a lot.
Yep.

And the Manor level. One of the best levels IMHO. Contracts had the best atmosphere hands down. Great OST as well (Jesper Kyd!)
 
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Devil May Cry was going to be Resident Evil 4, and it shows. Its eerie atmosphere is the best in the series. I wish their next game went in that direction.

The first Metroid (NES) had some dark parts too.
 
The Butcher from Diablo 1 almost makes me poop my pants.

The well in OOT also was kinda scary, with all the blood, torture devices and shit.
 
Timesplitters Future Perfect had a haunted house level.
Not really scary, but it reasonably fits into the theme of the thread.
 
This level in Sly Cooper 2 gave me anxiety. It came from nowhere.

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RDR2 had amazing injections of horror. As the game felt so realistic the creepy elements were extra scary. Like the mission where you wandered around in the swamp at night or this morbid scene:

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In CoD Black Ops Cold War, there's a mission where your memories are fractured and you are being marinated to find out what happened.
If you keep disobeying the directions, you'll discover what if scenarios and have to do it again to get to the truth.
Eventually you find this weird hatch and it starts 'scenario 17', and then...
 
Half Life games are horror games, IMO.

Certainly starting with 2. The gradual headcrab zombie horror bit is a major undercurrent in both 2 and Alyx... I'd say it's absolutely central to their genre.

Even HL1...the eerie music, second level when you are roaming through the offices in the dark with zombified scientists. As you said, HL is a horror fps in a sense.
 
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What started off as a space opera story with guerilla tactics turning into galactic body-horror was not on my bingo card the first time I played halo ce
 
The level that introduced the flood in Halo CE always stood out for me. Really creepy atmosphere mixing sci-fi and horror.
 
Those damn faces in Mario Bros 2 and the sun that chased you in 3 always creeped me out as a kid. Or the indoor sections of Jurassic Park, sure it's really dated now but at the time it was pretty atmospheric.
 
I actually consider Bloodborne a straight up horror game, but there are those who consider it more of an action RPG, so in that scenario I'd say Bloodborne is the gold standard example of this.
 
ravenholme level in half life 2
The asylum level in thief 3
Ocean House hotel in vampire: bloodlines

If you've played them, you know what I mean.
 
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Nier Replicant/Gestult Manor, which was huge call back to old RE game complete with fix camera.
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Hotel Basement TLOU. Currently replaying TLOU remastered, and the sound atmosphere with my steelseries headphone is nuts. Can't wait to replay it on TLOU part 1 soon
 
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