How Do You Play Horror Games?

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

Lights go off, and sound goes up.

Also, I always play horror games at night just so I can get into the mood that the game is taking place in, makes things way more interesting.

Although, when I played Amnesia the lights went right back on after my first encounter with a monster.

 

[Dogstile]

Eh, I just play it whenever. If its at night and my lights off, it'll stay off. If I fancy it in the day, i'll play it in the day. Makes no difference to me, most enemies in horror games are laughable or annoying.

 

[shadyh8er]

I don't play with the lights off because, frankly, I don't need to. If a scare is done properly, it shouldn't need me to do anything in the real world to amplify it. (Regenerator's breathing noises anyone?)

Although there are moments where I will deliberately walk instead of run just to build tension.

 

[Apollo45]

Sound up, lights off, and only after midnight are my rules. I made an exception for Amnesia though, which I tried like that and was only getting through about 20-30 minutes at a time. With that I kept the lights off, but ended up playing during the day so I could have a good relaxing few hours of something else before I actually had to sleep.

I remember finishing Dead Space at 4:30am alone in my dorm room, lights off, sound up, light snow falling outside, at the end of finals week so there were like four other students in the building. It wasn't scary until the very ending, and then I hit my head on the ceiling because I jumped so goddamned high. After that I stopped playing games on my lofted bed.

 

[anthony87]

My playstyle in a horror game is to start shooting/swinging wildly at anything that moves until weapon is broken or all ammo is expended. Usually while saying "fuck fuck fuck fuck " ad infinitum or "shit shit shit shit" ad infinitum.

 

[Wolfram23]

I've played Amnesia 4 times over, each time with only my desk lamp on and sound turned up.

Shit my pants every time.......

However I cannot play Penumbra since that dog scares me too much >.<

I've been stuck on Penumbra for over a month since I couldn't figure out what to do in this one part where the dog's got me cornered in a big room. The narration suggests I pile stuff up on the door, but this supernatural dog just smashed right through it all. Now, of course, I know what to do---but I'm really hesitant to boot the game back up 'cause it is seriously scary. I tried to go back to it recently and was dreading it the whole time, and breathed a sigh of relief when it crashed upon trying to load my save.

So I suppose that'd be praise for Penumbra, yes.

Thats EXACTLY where I'm stuck, it's too damn scary! :*(

If this helps, what you're supposed to do is hop up on a box where the dog can't reach you and take potshots with the hammer. I've yet to try this; it's an extremely nerve-wracking bit.

There's nothing you're "supposed" to do. I just stealth around, grab the item you need, and stealth out as the dog patrols the room a bit. When you leave the room, he'll eventually follow you so you have to be careful, but once you get to the next section that's it. Until the 2 dogs.

You *can* smack the dogs until they fall down, but it's tough. And they will get up after a short time anyway. Later on there is a way to kill the dogs, but it's usually not worth the effort.

OT: Well, when I can I like to play in dim/dark lighting. I use a headset on my PC that totally silences the room, which makes it SUPER creepy when I think maybe I hear something in the room, but there's nothing. It's weird. That said, I don't really get too scared from games anymore. I can get surprised when shit jumps out, and my heart can get pumping, but I tell myself it's just a game and push through.

When I was younger, though... playing RE2 was terrifying to the nth degree. I remember the first crimson head, my cousin and I were playing, holy shit we screamed like little girls and had to turn the game off for a while after that lol.

 

[Thyunda]

Slowly, cautiously, and gently caressing the trigger, while staring carefully into the darkness.

 

[SanguineScale]

Butt naked.

I love horror games. So much. Silent Hill. Eternal Darkness. Amnesia. Penumbra. Yume Nikki, to a certain extent. And then all those Half Life 2 mods.

I have never tried this.


I must.

 

[SnootyEnglishman]

When it comes to horror games Silent Hill 2 is the best example i can put out there. I played it with the lights completely off and while it's pitch black dark outside and the volume turned up to a reasonable length so as not to wake anyone else in the house. To this day hearing tornado sirens leave me with an uneasy feeling.

 

[Neonit]

lights on, good headphones, door locked. i had bad experience with people entering my room when im concentrated

i have no problems with horrors, two exceptions being VtB masquerade. i dunno why but that hotel level makes me a bit nervous (not "OMG IM SO SCARED" but i do feel uneasy.)
second would be thief 3 and the cradle/orphanage/insane asylum combo. (still, im not one to shout)

other than that, no problems at all, and ive played through a lot of games, some of them being marked as "scary"

funny thing, when i do get scared i dont shout or anything, i just move my mouse very fast about an inch up. guess its a "gamer instinct" to aim for the head

 

[PureChaos]

alone in a dark room with the sound up. has made for some fun, scary times

 

[Otaku World Order]

When I play a horror game, I always need to set the right mood. Silent Hill 2 has given me many a sleepless night.
Siren 2 has also been a good source for scares, as well as Condemned, Call of Cthulhu and Haunting Ground. And a few others. Quite a few others actually. I love horror games... Rule of Rose is next on the wishlist.

It took me a while to track down Rule of Rose. Gameplay is kind of meh, but the atmosphere is truly creepy and unsettling.

I have a huge collection of horror games myself and it's always great to get my hands on a game that can still deliver that. I remember vividly my first time playing Clock Tower 3.

Early in the game when I'm exploring a shop, I find a newspaper clipping and a cutscene plays. Then a bloodied child falls down the stairs and a GIANT HULKING FREAK WITH A GIANT F**KING HAMMER APPEARS!

"I KILLED HER!" shouts Giant Hammer Freak.

Shit! Tense music! Freak chasing me looking to bash my head in with a giant f**king hammmer! RunrunrunrunRUN! Exit building! Keep running! Run! Run! Run!

Okay... Music stopped... What do I do now?

*checks FAQ*

Wait... There's something I still need in that shop?

SON OF A-- ...

 

[Freaky Lou]

There's nothing you're "supposed" to do. I just stealth around, grab the item you need, and stealth out as the dog patrols the room a bit. When you leave the room, he'll eventually follow you so you have to be careful, but once you get to the next section that's it. Until the 2 dogs.

You *can* smack the dogs until they fall down, but it's tough. And they will get up after a short time anyway. Later on there is a way to kill the dogs, but it's usually not worth the effort.

Well, that's the first thing I tried, but I waited like 15 minutes and never got an opportunity to exit safely. The dog always stood right in the doorway.

OT: Oh yeah, how we play horror games. I do the completely alone, lights-off, headphones in thing too. If you're going to play a horror game, you want to ripe for the scaring.

 

[Gamerluls]

I rarely really get in the mood for it. I had hoped to pick up Amnesia, but I never got around to actually buying it. Although the Ravenholm level in Half-Life 2 remains vivid in my mind...

I hugely suggest Amnesia. It's a very good game with a good story, and will scare the piss out of you more than once. As for the way I play... Headphones, low light (can't have no light, my eyes don't like it) and close. And a full ashtray because when i play something scary, I smoke. A lot...

 

[Gamerluls]

Butt naked.

I love horror games. So much. Silent Hill. Eternal Darkness. Amnesia. Penumbra. Yume Nikki, to a certain extent. And then all those Half Life 2 mods.

I have never tried this.


I must.

As do I. There may be a method to this madness.

 

[ReinWeisserRitter]

I play all video games the same way. Indeed, I think that would make me more susceptible to whatever the game is attempting; I presumably won't see it coming.

Of course, I'm an incredibly tough sale, and am in fact more likely to make fun of the attempt than anything. But you get the idea.

 

[Trucken]

Usually in a puddle of piss.

Honestly, I don't really play horror games. I'm a bit of a chicken when it comes to that. Heck, I even had problems playing Dead Rising 'cause I thought it was freaky as hell when it became nighttime.