Scare me

[2fish]

I don?t tend to get scared by games/movies/books/ect but I want a good horror/thriller. I have yet to get into amnesia even though I own it. I have tried but we have yet to click. So onto the horrors I liked to give you a basis to work from.

Books:
The Hollower, It had a nice feeling of the other, nice levels of tension and I enjoyed the psychological aspect of the book. Gotta love a monster that knows your biggest fear and can change how you perceive the world.

Movies:
The Thing (John Carpenter 1982) Again the feeling of the other/unknown, good tension not knowing who to trust, psychological breakdown of the crew was nice.
Black Swan this was mostly enjoying the breakdown of the character and the tension brought on by the mother being over protective.

Games:
Mostly levels such as the ocean motel level in Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines. The inability to fight the monster is a big part. You have to run if you want to live, with creepy little things to play with your mind. I suppose it is also because you are a badass vampire for a few levels then bam your power means nothing fool, run or die.

Anime:
Another was similar to The Thing for me, the not knowing who to trust and the breakdown of the characters as the show went on. It felt a little off with the pacing and did not scare me, but came close to the goal and it defiantly kept me engaged.

Honorable mention to Splice but it was not scary more messed up.

So as you can see this is a short list and I do want to expand upon it. I am looking for something that can hit several of my main points.

-Fear of the other/unknown

-Lack of trust in the group

-More psychological than jump scare, I like my horror to mess with me. Make me question what my/characters senses are telling me.

-I don?t have to touch you to hurt you is always good.

-Breakdowns within the cast of character that feels real as overacting/plot convenient stupidity can kill a horror for me.

Thank you for your help.

 

[sextus the crazy]

Movies:
The Thing (John Carpenter 1982) Again the feeling of the other/unknown, good tension not knowing who to trust, psychological breakdown of the crew was nice.

Hell fucking yeah. I love John Carpenter's the thing. It's got some of my favorite practical effects I've seen.

Anime:
Another was similar to The Thing for me, the not knowing who to trust and the breakdown of the characters as the show went on. It felt a little off with the pacing and did not scare me, but came close to the goal and it defiantly kept me engaged.

I'd recommend Higurashi no naku koro ni (When the Cicadas Cry, or just when they cry). While not scary in a startling kind of way, It's very creepy and has an interesting premise. Not to mention, it has my favorite "from a different character's perspective" arc.

EDIT: If you want fear of the unknown, H.P. Lovecraft practically invented the modern horror genre give his works a try (there are numerous collections of his short stories and they're very good).

 

[shrekfan246]

Spoiler

John had always known that he was going to die this way, alone in a dark, cold tunnel. He didn't fear his end - He had already survived the worst. All that was left for him was to be met by the soft, warm embrace of death.

It all began two months earlier. John was called out on an expedition to the Arctic along with four other archaeologists. He didn't know why, when pressed the informant gave no answers. He was suspicious, but knew he needed the work and so complied anyway. And so, after two months for preparation, he was packed into a tiny plane with five people had never met before in his life. It all seemed to surreal, so sudden. Who calls up a no-name archaeologist to go out to the Arctic? Why did he feel the need to accept the proposal, as if it were his calling? He felt pushed, as if he had no other choice. This was what he needed to do.

The flight was arduous. Long and boring, stressful being cramped in with these strangers. Ben, Tom, Julia, and George. Those were their names. Julia was the only friendly one in the entire bunch. The other three were grouchy and sullen, and the pilot was no better. John guessed it was to be expected; How else would one react to a flight to the North Pole? So he chatted with Julia. She was only twenty, still working on her Bachelor's Degree. Such a fresh face, and on such a strange dig already. She was from the same town as John, too. He had never met her before. It felt strange hearing her talk about landmarks he remembered from his youth, but he remained quiet while she happily babbled on and on, because it was better than the torturous silence he was enduring from the other residents of this tiny aircraft.

A campsite had already been set up for them, and the pilot landed not far from it. His only words before ushering them out into the bleak, windy cold was that he would be back in six months to pick them up at the end of their expedition. The small group huddled out for warmth and the plane took off again without a second's notice, leaving them with no option other than to trek their way over to the site.

It was a modest site, designed to shelter the inhabitants from the blistering cold. There were four major structures: The main hut, which housed the beds, food, and simple amenities; The generator shed, which powered the entire site; The equipment shed; And a fourth building that had a locked door which seemed unable to be opened. John discovered that the main hut did its job of keeping out the cold remarkably well, though it took him far longer to find the light than he would later admit. It was dim, and cast many an odd shadow throughout the cluttered building. Shrugging off the sense of unease, John decided it would be best to push away the thoughts and stresses of the flight by turning in early and getting his start with an early morning. He was the first of the group to find a cot and slip off in to his simple dreamland.

In the deep of the night, a loud rapping sound woke John up. As he started, he looked at his surroundings while his eyes adjusted to the extreme darkness. Outside, he could hear the wind tearing at the side of the hut. It was violent, unceasing, and John felt almost as if it were trying to reach inside and snatch him right away from the warmth of his cot. Again the rapping sounded throughout the building. Carefully, John pushed himself out of his cot and stood. The darkness of the hut was complete, even the windows cast no light. He felt around until his hands touched wood. The desk. A flashlight was on the desk somewhere, if he could only find it. Fumbling with the shapes and objects, his hands clasped around the small cylinder after a few moments, and he flicked it on. The rapping sound again, louder this time. Attempting to determine where it was coming from, John began slowly walking toward the center of the hut.

He gave a passing glance into one of the other rooms that had been set up as makeshift bedrooms. Initially not registering what he saw, he stopped walking and shone the flashlight into the room. The cot was empty. Odd that at this late hour someone would still be out of bed, John thought. Pushing the thought to the back of his mind, he continued his way back into the largest room of the hut. The rapping was loudest here, and sounded like it was coming from directly overhead. John turned the flashlight upward and studied the ceiling, but could see nothing out of the ordinary. As he turned his gaze ground-ward once more, he practically leapt out of his skin when he saw Julia standing in front of him.

He asked what she was doing. It was late, and they had a long day ahead of them starting in the morning.

She replied that she was doing the same thing he was. She had heard a strange noise, and wanted to investigate. John noted that she had no light with her, but kept his mouth shut. She might just have better vision at night than he did. She was much younger, after all.

John offered to escort Julia back to her room, an offer she graciously accepted before wishing him goodnight.

As morning rolled around, John shuffled out of the room he had taken and in to the main room of the hut, hoping there would be something he could have for a light breakfast before beginning the day. The smallest, token amount of light peered through the windows, necessitating the use of the dim light bulb to navigate the perilously crowded hut. As he sat at the table and watched the rest of his companions begin filing out of their own rooms, John noticed that someone was missing. Tom hadn't joined them yet. Curious, John stated that he was going to go see if Tom was awake. But as he pushed open the only closed door, John noticed that the cot within the room had not been used the previous night. Even more curious, he checked the other rooms, but found them all to be empty.

He went back out to the main room and asked if anybody knew where Tom was; He received unenthusiastic replies. Evidently, nobody had seen Tom since midnight, when the light was turned off and Ben went to sleep. John resigned himself to not worry about it any longer. Tom seemed like a capable man, from his outward appearance at the very least. Perhaps he simply woke up before anybody else, and decided to get started on their work as soon as possible. John bundled himself up in preparation to go outside. The wind wasn't quite so harsh as it had been upon their arrival, but the temperature was still low enough to give the man frostbite if he wasn't careful.

He was the first outside. Remembering the rapping on the roof that he had heard through the night, John took a few steps away from the hut and tried to get a good look at it. He wasn't prepared for what he saw.

Tom was latched to a pole on the roof. Hung upside down, wearing nothing but his pants, his eyes frozen open in terror, his skin stained red and blue after having apparently been bled dry and left out to freeze. Puncture wounds littered about his body, his visage ghastly and depressing. Who, or what, could have done this to him?

John raced back into the hut to inform the others of what had happened. Ben and George hurried outside to see for themselves, though as John sunk himself down into a chair, Julia came over to him and attempted to console him. Worry in her eyes, she asked if that had been what made the noises the previous night. John supposed that it might be possible, but was too shocked to say any more.

You know, that's getting a lot longer than I expected it to, and it's quarter-to-2 in the morning. I could probably continue tomorrow, but I think I'm going to have to stop at this point.

 

[2fish]

Spoiler

John had always known that he was going to die this way, alone in a dark, cold tunnel. He didn't fear his end - He had already survived the worst. All that was left for him was to be met by the soft, warm embrace of death.

It all began two months earlier. John was called out on an expedition to the Arctic along with four other archaeologists. He didn't know why, when pressed the informant gave no answers. He was suspicious, but knew he needed the work and so complied anyway. And so, after two months for preparation, he was packed into a tiny plane with five people had never met before in his life. It all seemed to surreal, so sudden. Who calls up a no-name archaeologist to go out to the Arctic? Why did he feel the need to accept the proposal, as if it were his calling? He felt pushed, as if he had no other choice. This was what he needed to do.

The flight was arduous. Long and boring, stressful being cramped in with these strangers. Ben, Tom, Julia, and George. Those were their names. Julia was the only friendly one in the entire bunch. The other three were grouchy and sullen, and the pilot was no better. John guessed it was to be expected; How else would one react to a flight to the North Pole? So he chatted with Julia. She was only twenty, still working on her Bachelor's Degree. Such a fresh face, and on such a strange dig already. She was from the same town as John, too. He had never met her before. It felt strange hearing her talk about landmarks he remembered from his youth, but he remained quiet while she happily babbled on and on, because it was better than the torturous silence he was enduring from the other residents of this tiny aircraft.

A campsite had already been set up for them, and the pilot landed not far from it. His only words before ushering them out into the bleak, windy cold was that he would be back in six months to pick them up at the end of their expedition. The small group huddled out for warmth and the plane took off again without a second's notice, leaving them with no option other than to trek their way over to the site.

It was a modest site, designed to shelter the inhabitants from the blistering cold. There were four major structures: The main hut, which housed the beds, food, and simple amenities; The generator shed, which powered the entire site; The equipment shed; And a fourth building that had a locked door which seemed unable to be opened. John discovered that the main hut did its job of keeping out the cold remarkably well, though it took him far longer to find the light than he would later admit. It was dim, and cast many an odd shadow throughout the cluttered building. Shrugging off the sense of unease, John decided it would be best to push away the thoughts and stresses of the flight by turning in early and getting his start with an early morning. He was the first of the group to find a cot and slip off in to his simple dreamland.

In the deep of the night, a loud rapping sound woke John up. As he started, he looked at his surroundings while his eyes adjusted to the extreme darkness. Outside, he could hear the wind tearing at the side of the hut. It was violent, unceasing, and John felt almost as if it were trying to reach inside and snatch him right away from the warmth of his cot. Again the rapping sounded throughout the building. Carefully, John pushed himself out of his cot and stood. The darkness of the hut was complete, even the windows cast no light. He felt around until his hands touched wood. The desk. A flashlight was on the desk somewhere, if he could only find it. Fumbling with the shapes and objects, his hands clasped around the small cylinder after a few moments, and he flicked it on. The rapping sound again, louder this time. Attempting to determine where it was coming from, John began slowly walking toward the center of the hut.

He gave a passing glance into one of the other rooms that had been set up as makeshift bedrooms. Initially not registering what he saw, he stopped walking and shone the flashlight into the room. The cot was empty. Odd that at this late hour someone would still be out of bed, John thought. Pushing the thought to the back of his mind, he continued his way back into the largest room of the hut. The rapping was loudest here, and sounded like it was coming from directly overhead. John turned the flashlight upward and studied the ceiling, but could see nothing out of the ordinary. As he turned his gaze ground-ward once more, he practically leapt out of his skin when he saw Julia standing in front of him.

He asked what she was doing. It was late, and they had a long day ahead of them starting in the morning.

She replied that she was doing the same thing he was. She had heard a strange noise, and wanted to investigate. John noted that she had no light with her, but kept his mouth shut. She might just have better vision at night than he did. She was much younger, after all.

John offered to escort Julia back to her room, an offer she graciously accepted before wishing him goodnight.

As morning rolled around, John shuffled out of the room he had taken and in to the main room of the hut, hoping there would be something he could have for a light breakfast before beginning the day. The smallest, token amount of light peered through the windows, necessitating the use of the dim light bulb to navigate the perilously crowded hut. As he sat at the table and watched the rest of his companions begin filing out of their own rooms, John noticed that someone was missing. Tom hadn't joined them yet. Curious, John stated that he was going to go see if Tom was awake. But as he pushed open the only closed door, John noticed that the cot within the room had not been used the previous night. Even more curious, he checked the other rooms, but found them all to be empty.

He went back out to the main room and asked if anybody knew where Tom was; He received unenthusiastic replies. Evidently, nobody had seen Tom since midnight, when the light was turned off and Ben went to sleep. John resigned himself to not worry about it any longer. Tom seemed like a capable man, from his outward appearance at the very least. Perhaps he simply woke up before anybody else, and decided to get started on their work as soon as possible. John bundled himself up in preparation to go outside. The wind wasn't quite so harsh as it had been upon their arrival, but the temperature was still low enough to give the man frostbite if he wasn't careful.

He was the first outside. Remembering the rapping on the roof that he had heard through the night, John took a few steps away from the hut and tried to get a good look at it. He wasn't prepared for what he saw.

Tom was latched to a pole on the roof. Hung upside down, wearing nothing but his pants, his eyes frozen open in terror, his skin stained red and blue after having apparently been bled dry and left out to freeze. Puncture wounds littered about his body, his visage ghastly and depressing. Who, or what, could have done this to him?

John raced back into the hut to inform the others of what had happened. Ben and George hurried outside to see for themselves, though as John sunk himself down into a chair, Julia came over to him and attempted to console him. Worry in her eyes, she asked if that had been what made the noises the previous night. John supposed that it might be possible, but was too shocked to say any more.

You know, that's getting a lot longer than I expected it to, and it's quarter-to-2 in the morning. I could probably continue tomorrow, but I think I'm going to have to stop at this point.

That was a fun read. Thanks for putting all that effort into a story just for me. Now that you left it open I have but one line to add. ICE SHARK John screamed.Darn Scalzi and his Redshirts book. He puts things in my head and they never go away.

 

[Pink Gregory]

You're doing yourself a disservice by setting yourself up to be scared; but then again how does one go into horror/suspense with any other mindset? It's a tricky one.

 

[2fish]

You're doing yourself a disservice by setting yourself up to be scared; but then again how does one go into horror/suspense with any other mindset? It's a tricky one.

That is where the confusion, lack of trust, and the unknown work their magic. You know this is ?scary? but if it can pull you in then that doesn?t matter as you focus on the things you don?t know rather than the horror label on the story.


You do raise a good point of it makes it harder for horror to work as you are prepared for it, thus why I skip over jump scares and gore scares. I am ready for it, but I may not be ready for the twists in a psychological thriller/horror. My main character has a history with mental illness can I trust what she sees or is none of it real? That self-doubt can work wonders.

 

[Pink Gregory]

You're doing yourself a disservice by setting yourself up to be scared; but then again how does one go into horror/suspense with any other mindset? It's a tricky one.

People that like horror usually -want- to be scared.

OT: Play Amnesia. Dark room, headphones, late at night. You will not be disappointed. I know I wasn't.

Ooh, and if you're into reading, try some H.P. Lovecraft. Great, great stories. My personal favorite. If you've never read any of his stories, start with Dagon.

The Whisperer in Darkness or The Colour Out of Space, I would further recommend.

 

[Gatx]

Anime:
Another was similar to The Thing for me, the not knowing who to trust and the breakdown of the characters as the show went on. It felt a little off with the pacing and did not scare me, but came close to the goal and it defiantly kept me engaged.

There is no way that anime can every be scary without also trying to gross. It doesn't help that most anime nowadays just HAVE to have a marketable cute girl as it's mascot. Anyway I'd recommend Tasogare Otome x Amnesia. It's more of a romcom with a supernatural premise but does have a couple short moments of genuine creepiness (at least if you watch late at night in a dark room by yourself) if you get into it enough. Plus it's just a good show.

Also this (if you haven't seen it before at at least):