Horror Genre Video Games
Horror genre video games are video games that incorporate in them horror-based atmosphere having gameplay features that puts an imperative on the gamer to remain alert and aware of their surroundings (Game Studies, 2017; Sage, 2018; Denson & Jahn-Sudmann, 2014; Cox, et al., 2018). In this type of games, the player remains less powerful compared to the typical action games due to limited health, ammunition, speed and other limitations. There are two types of horror genre games; survival horror and action horror. One example of a survival horror is the Amnesia and action horror is Resident Evil 4.
Amnesia - Independent Survival Horror
Amnesia is an independent survival horror game whose genre develops by presenting an atmosphere where there is no overuse of gore or violence (Walker, 2010). The genre describes discovery, immersion and the thought of living through a nightmare. There is a chilling experience as the player stumbles through narrow corridors. The player is thrown into a dangerous world where danger lurks, where the only way to survive is to hide, run or use wits (Habel & Kooyman, 2014).
Resident Evil - Violence and Action
On the other hand, Resident Evil genre develops through the use of a lot of gore and violence (William, 2015). The protagonist is constantly attacked by human monsters and other creatures, where he has to actively defend themselves. The genre presented here entails the use of action, heightening tension, when the player is out of ammunition, he has to run for safety. Sexy women often pop up and enliven action in the game (Therrien, 2009).
Evolution of Horror Genre Games
Several years after their release, both Amnesia and Resident Evil remain tantalizing horror movies where they capture the dreaded sense of hopelessness in an attempt to find a way out of the presenting thrills in the game. However, most recent release of newer versions of these games come with additional characters, scenes, and more action. Such cultural developments intrigues questions in the mind of many as to whether the games are still horror genre games.
References
Cox, A. M., Donovan, E., Feng, M. & Nunes, F., 2018. Assembled 2018. Journal of Virtual Worlds Research, 11(1).
Denson, S. & Jahn-Sudmann, A., 2014. Special Issue: Digital Seriality. Journal for Computer Game Culture, 8(1).
Game Studies, 2017. The Game Studies. The International Journal of Computer Research, 17(2), pp. 1604-7982.
Habel, C. and Kooyman, B., 2014. Agency mechanics: gameplay design in survival horror video games. Digital Creativity, 25(1), pp.1-14.
Sage, 2018. Games and Culture. Sage Journals.
Therrien, C., 2009. Games of fear: a multi-faceted historical account of the horror genre in video games. Horror video games: Essays on the fusion of fear and play, pp.26-45.
Walker, J., 2010. Wot I Think: Amnesia – The Dark Descent, s.l.: Rock, Paper, Shotgun.
William, T., 2015. Resident Evil Review, s.l.: Empire.
