Let’s cut to the chase:
-Got the okay from Valaris
-A fuck ton of horror games are hitting in 2015 that let’s be honest would probably be skimmed if at all in the VGG thread
-We already have 3 individual horror game threads (Alien: Isolation, Routine, and The Evil Within)
-We always come back to talking about it like Final Fa…you know what forget that
I’m very curious what games do you guys find scary? It seems everyone is quick to point out what games aren’t scary, but examples of the opposite are hard to find which serves as proof of horror games being more subjective and difficult to make than almost any other kind. What we find scary, why we find certain games scary and others laughable, where we draw the line between “true survival horror” and action/horror and even moving the genre forward, are all really interesting things to talk about so I thought we could have some good discussion here. I fucking love horror games which is ironic because I strongly dislike horror films, with a movie your watching fake things happening to fake people so it’s hard to scare me, and while the same is true of games, at least games can have a sense of immersion so it’s much easier for a game to scare me because it’s more personalized.
Also as much as I hate list threads, I think all of us should list our favorite horror games so we have a basic sense of each other’s tastes and can see what we all look for from a horror game.
Anyways so for those of you who don’t browse neogaf I found a thread there which compiled the 2015 horror games and while I was aware of some, it’s really staggering how hard the genre is making a comeback, seriously it’s hard to imagine any horror fan not looking forward to at least a few of these this year and keep in mind the word horror is being used liberally, as not all horror games are survival horror:
Link coutesay of GF http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=146415185
[spoiler=]
Alone in the Dark: Illumination
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-6BVnUGbuU
Composed of different classes (Hunter, Witch, Technician, Priest), and a co-op focus, it combines elements of Resident Evil and Alan Wake, where you must reveal enemies in light to dispatch them and get through a variety of stages to beat Lovecraftian forces.
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Asylum
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNRiVoGQ820
From the creators of the fantastic Scratches: Director’s Cut & Serena comes a new point’n’click horror game that follows a man investigating an asylum, promising a mature storyline and a chilling journey as you go through floors of the Hanwell Mental Institute. Scratches is regarded as a top-tier horror point’n’click, which makes Asylum extremely promising.
Bloodborne
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtdwWiTl76s
Successor to Dark Souls, starring a Victorian-era style dealing more with the bloody forces that go bump in the night, you must hunt and eradicate them.
Caffeine
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zglgQ_bkg9E
A indie psychological horror game with a future where caffeine is synthetically made and relied on, and you awaken in one such place it is made.
Call of Cthulhu (2015)
Trailer (kinda): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZiLF_NAfuU
Not much is known at the time, but supposed to come out this year, be a new Call of Cthulhu Lovecraft-based horror game, for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Corpse Party: Blood Drive
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XecJOW2IcQ
Coming this year to English-speaking countries by XSeed, the conclusion to the Heavenly Host Elementary School saga of the Corpse Party series, featuring a new 3D graphics style, releasing later this year on Vita.
Corpse Party PC
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPHhqgLYlFc
The original indie version of Corpse Party is coming to Steam! Different from the PSP version somewhat in graphics and different voice actors, but featuring some content that is different and changed from the PSP version, it should be a nice entry point into the series for those who haven’t played Corpse Party before to get them into the series and hopefully opens the gate for more Corpse Party to Steam.
Dead Island 2
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sUv-bBrb6Y
A more comedic approach to the franchise after the second game, focused on zombie-slaying fun and over-the-top open-world gameplay.
Dementium 1 & 2 3DS Remake
Trailer: None
Announced to be coming out late this year, Renegade Kids are remaking Dementium 1 & 2 for 3DS
Draugen
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_z-KQl6WOs
Based off of Scandinavian literature, an indie horror game where in a small remote fishing village, everyone has gone mysterious missing. Pulls a lot from folklore and legend.
DreadOut: Act 2
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWQAHcwcCE8
An Indonesian horror game inspired by the Fatal Frame series, the first Act came out last year and presented a surprisingly atmospheric low-quality horror game, the second part of the game (which goes to the conclusion) comes out early this year, free for all people who have purchased DreadOut.
Dying Light
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1YSxalaoSU
Spiritual Successor to Dead Island from the original creators featuring parkouring, a number of other new systems, and supposedly a bigger focus on narrative.
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The Evil Within: The Assignment & The Consequence
Trailer: http://instagram.com/p/weBfuoPeFQ/
Two-Part campaign DLC for The Evil Within coming out this year, the first part, The Assignment, supposed to be coming early 2015. Feature side-character from the main game, Juli Kidman, from her perspective and her exploits and adventure during the course of the game. Also later this year, will release a DLC feature The Keeper, aka Boxman.
Fatal Frame V: The Black Haired Shrine Maiden
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YZiZdya9eo
We can dream… The Fatal Frame Hollywood movie is supposed to be coming out late this year though, our biggest hope of word of this coming English-speaking side.
Five Night at Freddy’s 3
Third entry in the Five Night At Freddy’s series, not much information known for now but might be safe to assume it’ll feature deranged animatronics with strategy-horror gameplay. Not confirmed to be coming out in 2015, but who is anyone kidding, if anything it’ll be out early 2015 at the rate these have been announced and released.
The Flock
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZM9XdKjLzc
A unique multiplayer game. To quote the game’s description, “Starting as a Flock in a dark and desolate world, you need to find the coveted Light Artifact. The player who grabs it first, transforms into the Carrier, a fragile, slower and more humanoid creature. The goal of the game is to hold onto the artifact for as long as possible while the other players – who are Flock – hunt you down. There’s only one thing that can stop them. The Flock can’t move while being in the light emitted from the artifact. They have to stand still or they will die in an instant.”
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The Forest
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9mr4k9X6c8
Already available for Steam Early Access (recently added multiplayer), coming out late this year with its full release and now also scheduled to release on PS4. Join a man who’s landed on a deep forest near a coast after an airplane accident deal with cannibals, build, and survive.
Forgotten Memories: Alternate Realities
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6ZWUXemee4
Coming to PC, WiiU, & iOS, a classical-styled survival-horror game featuring a surreal house being haunted by some sort of Wendigo-like creature. Episodic and supposedly coming this year.
http://images.pad4fun.com/2013/08/s_9e987145cd6642188cf8a8714c965fba.png
Fran Brow
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDDI7J_J9L8
A point’n’click horror game where you play as a little girl with a troubled mind and a story to tell. Her parents are brutally murdered, and she’s taken to a clinic for the insane. Her only friend is a cat, and she soon gets an opportunity to venture out and investigate the murder of her parents.
Grave
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gzH8guPpZQ
A PC, Xbox One, & PS4 first-person surreal open-world survival game where you must prepare during the day and survive during the night from treacherous foes.
H1Z1
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE--rFTBLzU
A free zombie survival game inspired by the likes of DayZ and such, coming to PC and PS4.
The Hum
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPc2joyCTUs
PC, PS4, & Xbox One horror game where aliens are invading the world, you must avoid abduction and escape!
Human Element
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MT1CTV3mGnU
Zombie game for PC, PS4, and Xbox One about the fearsomeness and tenderness of humans when pushed into a survival, kill or be killed scenario.
Kholat
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTfwU9bNOuM
Game inspired by the Dyatlov Pass incident, where 9 Russian Hikers went mysteriously missing. Explore and survive the Ural Mountains, and whatever may lie within them…
Killing Floor 2
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6C2czPIV3A
Coming to PC and PS4, the sequel to the hit Zed-killing wave-based game, Killing Floor, with a number of improvements, additions, and continued fantastic dev and community relationship.
Kodoku
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7E2TSAgHSI
Stylistic and surreal horror game about body horror for the PS4 and Vita, about Japanese legends and a man caught up in them.
Leathe
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEM7LuqCOyg
An episodic indie horror game with physics-based gameplay, following a journalist who gets buried underground on an island with many legends.
http://www.games969.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/let-it-die-screenshot_2.jpg
Let It Die
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjJFiWKjpis
New Suda51 game, death plays a big part, when you die you’re dead avatar sinks through to other players games, and there’s a type of Reaper character, also confirmed to take place in a giant sprawling tower-like city.
Lucius II
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vakdHbaObo
Sequel to The Omen: The Game, a surprisingly non-apologetic murder simulator where you play as the anti-christ. Had some flaws, but was enjoyable, a sequel could make the concept stellar.
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Monstrum
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4BRy1JJ9A8
A indie horror game on a labyrinth-like randomized ship where you must hide and evade a strange glowing monster as you collect items, open locked areas, and make for your escape ship.
Narcosis
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cc9mSVSIiJA
An oculus-based undersea horror game where you’re in a submarine with limited fuel and supplies, navigating the ocean from some deep dark terror.
NightCry
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdrdMAGVAMY
Spiritual-Successor to the Clock Tower series, being directed by the creator of the original Clock Tower game, art being handled by Masahiro Ito, the creature designer of Silent Hill 2, and aid from Takashi Shimizu, the director of the Ju-On series, it takes place on a Cruise Ship, features point’n’click gameplay, and survival from twisted being with giant scissors. Currently only slated for Vita and iOS, but they’re looking into other platforms.
Paranormal: The Town
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEhpe0pZ4Ew
Basically Paranormal Activity: The Game, strange things are happening, and you’re recording them. This is the sequel to The Activity, taking place in a large, explorable town. Has multiple endings and things you can do to change your path through.
Quadrant
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXw11SJskoI
In 1979, you infiltrate into a classified NASA research center to steal research to expose the truth of experimentation in the facility. Things go terribly, terribly wrong. Go deeper into the facility, collect evidence, and escape.
Resident Evil HD Remaster
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5kVLfWV__s
The REmaster of the REmake, coming to English countries and next-gen platforms in just a few weeks after this topic is made, the sublime Resident Evil REmake becomes available for more than just Nintendo platforms and can be experienced by the new and old. Any year where you can say the year is starting off with Resident Evil REmake coming to Steam is already a good year for horror.
Resident Evil Revelations 2
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEVQuSsGILA
Starring Claire Refield, she awakens in a desolate prison on an island, where twisted experiments are going down. She now has to escape with the daughter of Barry Burton, and find out what’s going on. Featuring a episodic release, coming to everything but Nintendo consoles between February & March, released in four episodes (and two bonus episodes). Also includes Raid Mode, which is great.
http://thealternativeagenda.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/roam.jpeg
Roam
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SONjOfuGIe0
A zombie-survival top-down game where you build, kill, survive, run, from zombies.
Routine
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAcAd1fUiy8
First-person horror game set on a moon base where you must investigate the strange disappearance of everyone at the Lunar Research Station.
http://media.officialplaystationmagazine.co.uk/files/2014/03/Soma.jpg
SOMA
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jo3Rjq2e5w
The new game by the creators of the Penumbra series and Amnesia: The Dark Descent, taking place deep under water, with some mysterious horror… First game they’ve made since Amnesia.
State of Decay: Year One Survival Edition
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ota3z24yo0Q
Definitive version of State of Decay coming to Xbox One. Was one of the most praised zombie games of the last few years, adds new content.
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Summer Camp
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4DxXI6cZp0
Aiming for 2015, a slasher-based horror game where you play as teens who must escape and survive a terrible slasher at a lake summer camp. Coming for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Until Dawn
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKAVPofzu2g
PS4-exclusive choice horror game stylized like a teen slasher where you must help aid characters to survive a twisted killer in the snowy mountains, but is that all that’s really going on?[/spoiler]
From that list these are what I’m excited to see more of:
Bloodbourne…yeah it’s really tempting me to buy a PS4, but I’ll have to miss out on it this year =/
Caffeine really sticks out to me as I love the sci fi/horror combo it goes so perfectly together like peanut butter and nutella sandwhiches, but the concept of a society addicted to caffeine is really interesting, I love the visuals, and the one guy who’s making it said it’s inspired by F.E.A.R., Condemned, and Doom 3 which all are great horror games to me so he’s got a good idea let’s hope he doesn’t fuck it up and the demo is available but it’s a really old proof of concept not indicative of what the game will actually play like:
Draugen isn’t a game where there’s much info to go on besides it’s atmopshere, but having played an excellent Swedish horror game called Year Walk I see a lot of potential for horror with their folklore so to see anoter game based on that cultural mythos is exciting, although I have no idea if it will be any good or not, but it at least caught my eye
Fatal Frame 5…Looks great…please come to U.S.!
The Forest looks really unique, in that it really puts an emphasis on the survival aspect of survival horror I’d buy it in a heartbeat although I refuseto give a dollar to any early access game so I’ll have to wait but man it looks like it’s off to a great start
The Hum is really a game that you think would have come out a long time ago, I mean we’ve had billions of games where aliens invade Earth but how many of them focus on how terrifying it would be to be overwhelmed by an advanced alien society? Most alien invasion games focus on empowering the player and treating the aliens as cannon fodder, but this game seems to want to depict how it might actually be realistically so there’s definite potential for real horror there.
Monstrum looks like Amnesia on a ship…I’m on board with that although I know a lot of you hate the Amnesia style despite it being true survival horror
NightCry is the spiritual successor to Clock Tower made by the creator…nuff said insta buy
Quadrant looks creepy has the “what happened here” vibe I dig it and sci fi/horror so I’ll give it a shot obviously
REmake looks really good wow, finally an HD remaster I can support
Soma…Amnesia developers making a sci fi game I love it even though some of you will avoid it like the plague lol
