Survival-Horror

Themes and Gameplay

The Survival Horror game genre is in many ways defined not by its mechanics, but rather by its emphasis on overarching thematics and tones. Several key elements of traditional Survival Horror games set them distinctly apart from games of other genres. Importantly, a central aspect in Survival Horror is the helplessness and vulnerability of the main character. By emphasizing the weakness of the character and the contrasting power of the enemy, the genre forces the player to adopt a more prey-like attitude than in most mainstream games. Through the character, horror elements are targeted at the player to cause effects similar to those in horror film: suspense, stress, and vulnerability, among others. [1]

The gameplay in Survival Horror focuses on survival of the character and the overcoming of adverse situations in which the odds are stacked against the player. There are typically limitations on the character such as speed, strength, inventory capacity, and methods of defense. Due to these limitations, the player must often rely on evasion tactics and hiding to avoid death, because enemies tend to be too powerful and/or numerous for the player to confront them. Traditional Survival Horror games usually take place in a hostile and disturbing world in which the character is isolated from any allies; thus, the games tend to be single-player. In-game strategy often revolves around puzzle solving and item collection to continue through levels, while storylines often manifest themselves retroactively in the form of diary entries, audio recordings, etc. that the player pieces together throughout the game.

Foundations in Other Media

The Survival Horror gaming genre draws storyline themes directly from traditional horror fiction. Many of these video games are inspired by the works of American author H.P. Lovecraft, whose stories eventually defined the literary genre. Lovecraft's affinity for investigative stories and "journeys into the depths" can be clearly seen in the subsequent game genre. Similarly themed horror fiction works by author Edogawa Rampo emphasized the Japanese style of horror and also inspired later games. Western horror fiction most often relies on action and gory horror, while the Japanese tradition prefers to emphasize more to psychological horror, but both themes are present in modern-day Survival Horror games.

Horror film has equally important conventions that have transitioned to horror games. Most importantly, key elements of cinematics such as lighting, sound and camera are as characteristic of Survival Horror games as they are in horror film. Lighting in-game tends to be gloomy and dark, while the environments are typically claustrophobic and suffocating. Restricted or awkwardly incomplete camera angles also are common within the game and cutscenes. Sound, either in the form of background music, on-screen or off-screen sound, often builds suspense and provides warning cues to the player. All of these cinematic themes are designed to build suspense and maximize the possibility that enemies can lurk nearby, further highlighting the themes of vulnerability and horror.

History

1980s: Foundational Years

Perhaps the first Survival Horror video game was the 1982 game Haunted House, released for the Atari 2600, which incorporated many traditionally accepted elements of the genre like puzzle-solving and evasion. Throughout the 80s, a series of games was released that fell under the banner of Survival Horror. However, the genre 'Survival Horror' was not defined until the 90s, so all of these games were included in the genre retroactively. At the time, they were likely considered to be Action games, of which Survival Horror came to be a sub-genre. Notable examples from this decade include the Monster Bash arcade game, Castlevania (1986), War of the Dead (1987), and Splatterhouse (1988).

Considered by many to be the first true Survival Horror game, Sweet Home was released in 1989 for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). The game embraced the majority of the themes that pervaded subsequent Survival Horror games, most notably vulnerability, limited inventory, overpowered enemies, and pieced-together, retroactive storyline. Importantly, Sweet Home directly inspired the later game Resident Evil.

1990s: The Golden Age of Survival Horror

The early 1990s saw a continued release of many games that would today be considered traditional Survival Horror games. Alone in the Dark (1992), Doctor Hauzer (1994), and the Clock Tower series (first installment released in 1995), among others, further propagated Survival Horror themes while increasing the genre's popularity.

The release of Resident Evil (1996) by Capcom marked the beginning of the "Golden Age" of Survival Horror. The huge success of the game, both critically and commercially, ensured its ascent as a definitive game that first truly "Survival Horror" game. It served as a formula for many subsequent games, and its definition of the genre drew many previous games into the genre retroactively. Resident Evil was directly inspired by Sweet Home, as the game began as a remake of the older game.

The continued release of horror games for the rest of the 90s was spurred by the huge success of Resident Evil, and most of these games mimicked the classic hit as much as possible. Examples include Overblood (1996), The Note (1997), Hellnight (1998), and Resident Evil 2, which was also highly critically acclaimed. In many scholars' opinions, it was not until the release of Konami's Silent Hill (1999) that the Golden Age of Survival Horror reached its climax. The game is considered by many to be the scariest game of all time; it draws heavily from aspects of Japanese psychological horror, while maintaining many traditionally Western elements of horror.

2000s-Present: Departure from the Traditional Genre

Following the huge success of Survival Horror in the 1990s

Early 2000s saw transition to Western action, visceral horror (The Thing 2002, Doom 3 2004, incorporate horror elements into shooters)

Resident Evil 4 (2005) marked departure from Japanese style and started Western shooter theme more prominently

Spinoff Genres

"Action horror" (Resident Evil 4, 2005)

Zombie Shooter

Departure from helplessness to militance

Science-fiction survival horror (Dead Space 2008)

Multiplayer co-op survival horror (Left 4 Dead 2008)

Indie Horror games (Penumbra series, Amnesia: The Dark Descent, Slender: The Eight Pages) emphasize horrific setting rather than action or violence, genre continues to grow here

Horror comedy and open-world nonlinear model (Deadly Premonition)

References

1. Fear 101: A Beginner's Guide to Survival Horror. IGN.com.