BA7 | Concept and Pre-Production #09

Horror in 3D Environments

As you know, my project is focussed around building a 3D environment for a hypothetical horror fiction game. As I have been focussing on my research report studies I haven’t posted much about the post production work associated with the creation of said environment (although all the research I have been doing is beneficial because my projects are so closely aligned). 

Following on from my Outlast environment study that I completed recently, I asked myself, “what do I want my horror environment to look like?” The idea of the project is to look at how the genre of horror is injected and captured in 3D environments so I really need to begin to narrow down on an area of horror that I want to focus on in order to produce my research document that acts as the basis for my pre production work towards BA8 where I will actually build the environment. 

The Many Faces of Horror Fiction in Games

To kick off this fresh batch of research I need to take a step back from my Outlast environment study and prose the question “what type of horror environment do I want to create?”. To do this I need to study the different varieties of horror genres found in video games and also dive into what makes a horror game. Answering these will mean I can have a grounded concept for the beginning of my environment design. 

Common Horror Game Environments

First things first, I figured that I should probably look into the common environments that horror games use (all genres of horror included) as I’m not sure where my environment will actually be. I found this video which takes a slightly comical look at 10 commonly used horror game environments.

Top 10 Scariest Video Game Environments by ‘dogcyn’

I found this video to be a good starting point. It covers horror games as an overall genre and depicts specific locations that are commonly used in a wired variety of horror games ranging from action horror to survival horror. I though this would be a good place to start gathering my research and pushing my design forwards in terms of pre-production.  I watched the video and took notes containing my own thoughts on the environments being discussed as well as noting down any key phrases used that I could quote in terms of reference material for my research report. 

 "Top 10 Scariest Video Game Environments" by "dogcyn"
VIDEO SOURCE

#10: Libraries

• The furniture within a library can often be scary because the shelves in libraries are high, they limit visibility and can hide monsters or other nastiest from the player.
• Libraries are known for being quiet, any noise made in a dark empty library is going to give anyone goosebumps and cause for suspition and nerves.
• The layouts of library interiors is often tight and densely compact areas with filing cabinets, desks and books. 

A good example of a horror game that uses a library to create an environment of horror is Capcom's Resident Evil 1 whereby the player is led down to an underground library as part of the game progression. You can see that a mixture of fixed camera angles, tight corners and severely limited visibility makes this environment super creepy and almost threatening to the player which causes fear.
 

 Example of a library environment in horror game Resident Evil 1 (skip to 1:42 for library)
VIDEO SOURCE

#9: Schools

• By theory of juxtaposition, schools should be a place of learning and progression, not hindrance and pain. Most schools in horror games display a compete array of juxtaposed visuals to confuse the player and spark fear and confusion in them. Schools should be bright and colourful to stimulate learning, however, when a school is covered in blood and is broken, it communicates a completely different message to the audience.
• Many people have fears of children, it’s why a lot of horror films and games use young children to provoke fear related emotion into the audience. Schools are obviously associated with children which may cause the player to feel uncomfortable.
• Schools are supposed to be lively and full of people, most schools in horror games are empty and desolate, abandoned with no one to comfort the player.
• Schools also contain other creepy areas within them such as locker rooms.

Konami’s Silent Hill 1 shows a good example of how a school can be used as an environment for a horror game.

 Example of a school environment in horror game Silent Hill 1
VIDEO SOURCE

#8: Space Stations

• Remote.
• Empty.
• Abandoned.
• Miles away from the comforts of “earth”.
• Could contain environments such as 9 & 10 in various forms.
• Space stations are interesting to create horror environments for because you can literally do anything inside them, they can contain sub environments that promote fear in alternate ways.
• They have the element of surprise on the player constantly due to the removal of environment association between the player and the game…no ones been on a space station unless they are an astronaut…so how do we know what to expect? 

A good example of a space station used in a horror game is EA’s Dead Space franchise and most specifically, Dead Space 2. I am showing this clip because it relates to the “you can design what you want” theory, and in this example you can see a nursery environment has been included on the space station. 

 

 Example of a space station environment in horror game Dead Space 2
VIDEO SOURCE

#7: Abandoned Areas

• Completely and utterly 100% alone…or are you ;)
• “Being alone in circumstances involving horror is a major benefit to scaring your crowd…”

Most horror games have environments which seem abandoned at one point or another because forcing the player to feel alone and helpless is a major feature in provoking fears and emotions such as depression and terror. One of the games which uses an abandoned area really well is upcoming psychological horror game Asylum whereby the game takes place in a seemingly abandoned asylum.

 Exaple of an abandoned area used in upcoming horror game Asylum
VIDEO SOURCE 

#6: Vents

• Extremely claustrophobic.
• Limited visibility.
• Dark.
• Awkward movement.
• Lack of equipment, safety or places to hide.
• The player feels trapped.

Vents are used in FEAR 2 whereby the player can only move forwards and backwards when traversing through. They are dark and every creepy often directing the player to specific points of view, like when the player see’s the figure walk past the window after the vent. This is because that’s all the player really see’s as they crawl through, their line of sight is focussed on that area.

 Example of vents used in horror game FEAR 2
VIDEO SOURCE  

#5: Hospitals

• A hospital is associated with people getting better and recovering, being helped by professionals and feeling safe. Hospitals in horror games communicate the polar opposite of these themes.
• Hospitals are supposed to be clean and safe but often horror games manipulate this fact with blood stains, grotty textures and dirt to create fear.

One of the best examples  of a hospital environment in a horror game is found, once again, in Silent Hill. Silent Hill is notorious for its super creepy and tense environments and this is no different when it comes to exploring the hospital found in the game. 

Example of a hospital environment in horror game Silent Hill 3
VIDEO SOURCE 

 

#4: Hallucinogenic Environments

• •This is more the way the environment can become effected by mechanics in the game.
• Often causes severe obscurities with dire player related consequences (lack of control, limited vision, distortion etc).
• Makes the environment confuse the player.

A really good example of this can be found in Dead Space 3 where the two main characters, Isaac and Carver, experience hallucinations the further into their space mission they go. It is supposed to represent how mentally unstable they are becoming as “the marker” takes a hold of them.

 Example of hallucinogenic gaemplay in horror game Dead Space 3
VIDEO SOURCE 

#3: Elevators

• Player feels trapped.
• You don’t know where you are going, the elevator could take you anywhere.
• Gives the game the elements of surprise.
•  Claustrophobic small space, threat of being ambushed or attacked inside leave little safe options to the player.

A good example of how an elevator ride can go wrong in a horror game can be seen in Dead Space 1 when the player controls avatar Isaac into an elevator only to have the doors forced open by a terrifying and screaming necromorph. The elevator leaves the player no escape which is terrifying. 

Example of how elevators can be horrific environments in horror games
VIDEO SOURCE 

#2: Darkness

• Severely limited visibility, if any at all.
• Fear of the unknown and what you cants see.
• General phobias of the dark.
• Lack of control over surroundings.
• Reduces senses. 

Most horror games that are scary will be set in dark places or have environments of severe dark. A very popular horror game named Slender the Arrival knows that the player will feel scared in the dark and does a fantastic job of using darkness to provoke emotions of fear. Especially in the wooded environments of the game.

 Example of how darkness is used in horror game Slender the Arrival
VIDEO SOURCE 

#1: Bathrooms

• This relates back to the mirror mechanic that I discussed previously in my last blog post, how apprehensive audiences have become towards bathrooms, they automatically feel nervous which has become a fantastic trope for horror fiction.
• Bathrooms are meant to be relaxing…they clearly aren't in horror games.  
• They are also supposed to be clean and sanitary, but most of the time they are built to look the polar opposite with dirty floors and walls, broken mirrors, blood stains, grime and other dirty juxtapositions.

 

One example of a bathroom environment being used in horror games can be found in Silent Hill 3. 

Example of an horrific bathroom environment in Silent Hill 3
VIDEO SOURCE