Dead Space 1 just not scary?
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The problem is that Dead Space tries to sell itself as a horror game when it's more of a space-themed third-person-shooter action title with horror elements.
If they simply acknowledged that the game wanted to be action more than horror, I think it would have been more positively received. As it stands, they kept selling it on the "horror" aspect which, in this case boils more down to "the enemies look pretty gross."
The pacing of the game just doesn't fit horror and -again, because it is an action game- if they took too long building up atmosphere and suspense, their target action-based audience would be disappointed.
If they simply acknowledged that the game wanted to be action more than horror, I think it would have been more positively received. As it stands, they kept selling it on the "horror" aspect which, in this case boils more down to "the enemies look pretty gross."
The pacing of the game just doesn't fit horror and -again, because it is an action game- if they took too long building up atmosphere and suspense, their target action-based audience would be disappointed.
Dead Space is not scary. It's gory, bloody and meaty with a lot of dismemberment and disemboweling. And that's where it shines. If you want something scary, try something else. Siren series or Amnesia maybe.
I think the real problem here are the expectations placed upon the game by the gamers. People see Dead Space labeled as Survival Horror, and they think 'oh I'm supposed to be scared.' That's not really what the full definition of 'Horror' is, tho: Horror is "an overwhelming and painful feeling caused by something frightfully shocking, terrifying, or revolting" Can fear play a role? Sure- hence 'terrifying', but to me, Horror is more about being disturbed, unsettled, and even revolted. Sure, you can get startled by the 'Jack-in-the-Box' scares, but the atmosphere is what sold me on the game. They put an insane level of detail into it, but most people don't pay any attention, sadly. Seriously: the audio is freaking amazing (particularly the vacuum scenes). Yes they could've had more moments like when the doctor slit her own throat (which actually made me yell "JESUS FUCK!" the first time I saw that), or the guy was bashing his own head in, but I think they maybe didn't want to overdo that.
Plus to give you an idea of the immense amount of detail they went into that probably few people noticed:
...and if you stop to think about it, the story, while not original, is very well-told. Now, with all the mythology (books, graphic novels, animated movie, other games) they've put out surrounding the Dead Space universe, it's even better...
And in Dead Space 2? It's like the team listened to exactly what most people complained about with the first one: Issac Clarke is no longer a mute protagonist. The 'Jack-In-The-Box' scares are fewer and much further between, the atmosphere is ratcheted up another few notches, and it totally hangs together. I've already played it through twice, and I'm going to go for Hardcore Mode once I can put together about 10 hours and make a serious run at it.
Plus to give you an idea of the immense amount of detail they went into that probably few people noticed:
you can actually decode all the glyphs on the wall if you want to; and bonus-tip: if you save one game from each chapter and list them sequentially, the first letters of the chapter names spell out N-I-C-O-L-E I-S D-E-A-D
...and if you stop to think about it, the story, while not original, is very well-told. Now, with all the mythology (books, graphic novels, animated movie, other games) they've put out surrounding the Dead Space universe, it's even better...
And in Dead Space 2? It's like the team listened to exactly what most people complained about with the first one: Issac Clarke is no longer a mute protagonist. The 'Jack-In-The-Box' scares are fewer and much further between, the atmosphere is ratcheted up another few notches, and it totally hangs together. I've already played it through twice, and I'm going to go for Hardcore Mode once I can put together about 10 hours and make a serious run at it.
On the same exact boat. Never had the fear in me simply because i always had the means to dispatch my enemies (how can i be fearful if i never once felt helpless?). Supposed that the higher difficulty gave you less ammo overall which mean surviving actually becomes more tense and "scary" but i didn't get that on the default normal difficulty. So the game just felt like an action adventure game with a creepy setting. Not to mention i never had the sense i was completely alone when i knew there were at least 2 other survivors from my ship for the vast majority of the game.
Kudos on the games interface tho. Most immersive game i've played in a long while.
Kudos on the games interface tho. Most immersive game i've played in a long while.
I played it at night, with headphones on, and the lights off....
and was only "scared" once because the wall exploded as I was walking past. I was only scared because it was quiet then made a very loud sound. Pretty cheap scare.
The atmosphere was kind of creepy, but after awhile it was like,"Okay there is a vent here I bet a necro- yeah there it is."
and was only "scared" once because the wall exploded as I was walking past. I was only scared because it was quiet then made a very loud sound. Pretty cheap scare.
The atmosphere was kind of creepy, but after awhile it was like,"Okay there is a vent here I bet a necro- yeah there it is."
Dead Space was more of an action game to me than a horror. It had some good jump out moments but it's more shock/surprise than scary. There was one part though that had me panic and that was
Also am I the only person who did not find any of the F.E.A.R games to be scary at all?
With the regenerator necromorph (Hunter I think it was called) and you had to escape from it using your kinisis to open and close doors. If you don't close the door fast enough BLARRG! If the door doesn't open quick enough BLARRG! Oh God! dead end BLARRG!
Dead Space as a series I've never found scary. I still love the series though, there's something about it I find very entertaining, mainly the combat. I can overlook the cliches and the messy storyline.
I played about an hour of it, and I was scared, But that was mainly because the controls sucked. I hate console controls. Plus I'm scared of the dark.
There was seriously no damn pacing at all though. Monster. Boom,Boom. Monster. Boom,Boom. Monster. Boom,Boom.
There was seriously no damn pacing at all though. Monster. Boom,Boom. Monster. Boom,Boom. Monster. Boom,Boom.
That's how I feel about it as well.Lord_Gremlin said:
I wasn't expecting no Silent Hill nor Amnesia in this game because, from what I've seen before playing, it seemed much more action-oriented. No problem there, I was entertained playing it.
But some people seemed to be confusing "scared" with "being startled". Dead Space relies quite a lot on the second. Again, there's nothing inheretly wrong with that, it was their design choice and it didn't detract from the core experience.
Interestingly, Dead Space and Amnesia seem to be on opposite sides of spectrum as far as self-defense ability goes. Even on hard difficulty, Dead Space's protagonist is more than equipped to defend himself. But the Amnesia's one... poor guy.
Scared the crap out of me......
I am finding the second one less scary but that could just be me getting used to it.
It's still a bblast to play though, so I say: "Yay" as to wether you should buy it.
I am finding the second one less scary but that could just be me getting used to it.
It's still a bblast to play though, so I say: "Yay" as to wether you should buy it.
Like many have said already, the predictability of the horror is what killed it for me. I almost felt a burgeoning sense of clairvoyance while playing DS. Walk down hallway, vent will shake, music will freak out, but nothing will be there. Turn the corner, OH SHIT THERE WAS SOMETHING THERE AND- now it's dead...
Another thing that was probably supposed to be more meaningful but took a turn towards comedy was the whole Nicole thing.
There are two massive points I give in favor of DS though. The first being the aforementioned Regenerator (I'm also a huge fan of the Nemesis concept from RE). The second, which hasn't been touched on much, is the death sequences. Seriously, I felt some of those, and Issac's muffled grunts and screams from behind his mask help make them all the more visceral to watch. Coming from someone completely desensitized to gore, it's impressive if a game can make me sit back and say "damn..." like that.
Other than that, it's a pretty game with good atmosphere that overstays its welcome and becomes far too routine. There's a reason I renamed the file "REPAIRMAN: Chronicles of the Bullshit Space Station" on my computer.
Another thing that was probably supposed to be more meaningful but took a turn towards comedy was the whole Nicole thing.
Maybe I've played through too many survival horror games, but did anyone else just take for granted that she was already dead? I literally played the game start to finish without once realizing she was supposedly alive. Granted, the game doesn't give you much detail on her survival other than a brief blip from one of your pilots before you land on the station. This made that whole scene where she comes back and you have to protect her more funny than hectic. To me, it was like, "*****, you're just a hallucination. Why should I care if you get eaten?"
There are two massive points I give in favor of DS though. The first being the aforementioned Regenerator (I'm also a huge fan of the Nemesis concept from RE). The second, which hasn't been touched on much, is the death sequences. Seriously, I felt some of those, and Issac's muffled grunts and screams from behind his mask help make them all the more visceral to watch. Coming from someone completely desensitized to gore, it's impressive if a game can make me sit back and say "damn..." like that.
Other than that, it's a pretty game with good atmosphere that overstays its welcome and becomes far too routine. There's a reason I renamed the file "REPAIRMAN: Chronicles of the Bullshit Space Station" on my computer.
The scares become predictable really which killed the horror for me.
Scare 1; A presumably dead nerco lying there ill just walk by and boom it jumps up and back attacks.
Solution; Blow any "dead" necro I saw apart.
Scare 2; You walk by some dead bodies of people and think damn somebody wasted these guys and leave the area, later on you walk through the area again and they have become black necros who are fast as hell and take much more damage with little stingray buddies.
Solution; Just amend the first solution to include the dismemebring of all human bodies apart with my friend Mr. size 20 boots.
Scare 3; You are walking through a corridor and you see and big hole in the wall and wonder what could have done that and you see more than one of these but you pass them without incident, until a gaint tenticle shosts out of one and you have a small amount of time to shoot you way free.
Overall this scare kinda worked except for the fact that its scripted and that kinda destroys the scare factor a little.
Scare 4; you pick up any key item and suddenly a wave of enemies attack from a previously cleared room.
As a Doom vet this technique is overdone as hell and doesnt scare me at all.
Scare 5; you see/hear something in the vent in front of you and got to investigate the vent where the noise occured only to have the vent behind you explode and a screaming necro flailing/charging you from behind.
Solution; Just always expect back attacks from these guys as well as pincer attacks and you will be fine.
Scare 6; You are in the vacuum and the only thing you can hear is your own breathing and suddly a necro grabs/attacks you from behind.
This was the only really good scare in the game because the vacuum cut out one of the main design flaws of the Necros and thats the fact that they are waaaayyyy to noisy, to point where they are annoying not scary.
Scare 1; A presumably dead nerco lying there ill just walk by and boom it jumps up and back attacks.
Solution; Blow any "dead" necro I saw apart.
Scare 2; You walk by some dead bodies of people and think damn somebody wasted these guys and leave the area, later on you walk through the area again and they have become black necros who are fast as hell and take much more damage with little stingray buddies.
Solution; Just amend the first solution to include the dismemebring of all human bodies apart with my friend Mr. size 20 boots.
Scare 3; You are walking through a corridor and you see and big hole in the wall and wonder what could have done that and you see more than one of these but you pass them without incident, until a gaint tenticle shosts out of one and you have a small amount of time to shoot you way free.
Overall this scare kinda worked except for the fact that its scripted and that kinda destroys the scare factor a little.
Scare 4; you pick up any key item and suddenly a wave of enemies attack from a previously cleared room.
As a Doom vet this technique is overdone as hell and doesnt scare me at all.
Scare 5; you see/hear something in the vent in front of you and got to investigate the vent where the noise occured only to have the vent behind you explode and a screaming necro flailing/charging you from behind.
Solution; Just always expect back attacks from these guys as well as pincer attacks and you will be fine.
Scare 6; You are in the vacuum and the only thing you can hear is your own breathing and suddly a necro grabs/attacks you from behind.
This was the only really good scare in the game because the vacuum cut out one of the main design flaws of the Necros and thats the fact that they are waaaayyyy to noisy, to point where they are annoying not scary.
I would say my biggest horror turn off, which was a key flaw in Dead Space, was knowing when something was going to attack you and then how easy it was to dispatch an enemy. Resident Evil Zombies are cheap one shot one kill enemies which slowly shamble towards you which works because there are hundreds of them in any given battle and you have to work to clear them out before they swarm you. In Dead Space the most enemies you ever encounter at once is about four- and they're usually all lined up in a row anyway, thereby allowing you to hold down the trigger button until they're all a pile of severed limbs.
The scariest films/games for me are those which have proper atmosphere. The kind of games where you can walk around for the first 20 minutes weaponless either with things being creepy but safe or with demonic horrors attacking you and your only choice is to run for the hills. That is a good opening.
The biggest example of this is the difference between the openings of the US made Resident Evil film and the UK produced 28 Days Later (I know they're not games but just hear me out).
In 28 Days Later they have a 3 minute intro in a secret lab showing monkeys being experimented on and tortured. The creatures are then released and infect one of the people who then starts murdering her friends. It fades out to a guy waking up in an abandoned London who then walks around for 10 minutes before finally encountering a zombie and understandably legging it. The guy is then only saved when some survivors arrive and blow up a Petrol Station with Molotov's! That's what made it good- pacing and making the enemies seem properly dangerous and give the player/protagonist a reason to fear them.
In Resident Evil by comparison we have a 5 minute intro in the secret underground base in which the AI kills everyone which doesn't make sense since surely if it's a lab designed specifically to house dangerous biological agents they would have a better containment strategy than gassing everyone and leaving the doors wide open! Milla Jovovich then wakes up naked in a shower, throws on a mini-skirt and 2 minutes later a Special Forces team break through the windows and open the door to a secret underground base she shouldn't even know existed due to her plot convenient amnesia! She then spends the rest of the film being escorted around by people with Semi-automatic weapons and despite her apparent unwillingness to do anything but stand around and remember plot points about 10 minutes after they would have been useful the first time she finally picks up a gun she drops half a dozen mutant dogs with one shot each to the centre of the head and kick drops the last one with a Karate move which I'm pretty sure defies several laws of physics and proper fighting form.
We can scare ourselves far better than anyone else can. If you want to make true horror games don't fill it with blood and chainsaws and demonic horrors. All you need to do is simply put the player in a dark room with some messed up scenery and let their warped, child like imaginations misinterpret the mailman delivering this morning's post as a serial killer peering through their mailbox!
The scariest films/games for me are those which have proper atmosphere. The kind of games where you can walk around for the first 20 minutes weaponless either with things being creepy but safe or with demonic horrors attacking you and your only choice is to run for the hills. That is a good opening.
The biggest example of this is the difference between the openings of the US made Resident Evil film and the UK produced 28 Days Later (I know they're not games but just hear me out).
In 28 Days Later they have a 3 minute intro in a secret lab showing monkeys being experimented on and tortured. The creatures are then released and infect one of the people who then starts murdering her friends. It fades out to a guy waking up in an abandoned London who then walks around for 10 minutes before finally encountering a zombie and understandably legging it. The guy is then only saved when some survivors arrive and blow up a Petrol Station with Molotov's! That's what made it good- pacing and making the enemies seem properly dangerous and give the player/protagonist a reason to fear them.
In Resident Evil by comparison we have a 5 minute intro in the secret underground base in which the AI kills everyone which doesn't make sense since surely if it's a lab designed specifically to house dangerous biological agents they would have a better containment strategy than gassing everyone and leaving the doors wide open! Milla Jovovich then wakes up naked in a shower, throws on a mini-skirt and 2 minutes later a Special Forces team break through the windows and open the door to a secret underground base she shouldn't even know existed due to her plot convenient amnesia! She then spends the rest of the film being escorted around by people with Semi-automatic weapons and despite her apparent unwillingness to do anything but stand around and remember plot points about 10 minutes after they would have been useful the first time she finally picks up a gun she drops half a dozen mutant dogs with one shot each to the centre of the head and kick drops the last one with a Karate move which I'm pretty sure defies several laws of physics and proper fighting form.
We can scare ourselves far better than anyone else can. If you want to make true horror games don't fill it with blood and chainsaws and demonic horrors. All you need to do is simply put the player in a dark room with some messed up scenery and let their warped, child like imaginations misinterpret the mailman delivering this morning's post as a serial killer peering through their mailbox!
So you're used to horror games, so therefore it wasn't scary?Darks63 said:
I mean, jeez people, it was meant to be startling. All you horror veterans saying it wasn't scary don't realise that it /wasn't designed for you/. Doesn't the fact that the game made you feel like you had to constantly check each corpse and make sure everything was stamped on kinda hint that it might have made you slightly more worried than you remember?
I did not think it was that scary, it was just a bit creepy. I hope that Dead Space 2 is more scary. Will someone tell me if it is?
I agree to an extent. There were plenty of "SPOOKED YA!" moments, but ultimately I never felt genuinely afraid while playing it. There was plenty of tension, just not fear. Oh also FEAR 2 was a pretty shitty game.