Letting children die horribly seems to be the new 'hook'. (Now includes video, due to popular demand

[Kopikatsu]

This video is HILARIOUS when you over dub it with the Zombies on Your Lawn song. That said, trailer looks interesting, dunno if it's a hook, but it was a good trailer.

I prefer the Mad World Gears of War trailer though.

What? You mean like this? http://www.tubedubber.com/#R-xPIp1O828:982dFZJSnWw:0:100:0:0:true

Sadly, I am unable to watch it myself (For quality control) because my computer is being very...bad. But hey. Madworld and Gears of War.

 

[ANImaniac89]

I always found it somewhat unrealistic that in Zombie movies/comics/games there usually a lack of infected children.
I mean I alway explained it in my mind that children would be too small to defend themselves and would be completely eaten with nothing left to become reanimated.

Having said that I do know why zombie entertainment tends to avoid infected children. Because its truly disturbing and many artist don't want to cross that line.

I remember one scene that almost turned me off a comic series because of this. The series was Blackgas by Warren Ellis and the scene was I think an inter cover depicting a group of zombies eating newborns in a hospital maternity ward. Seeing this seen almost made me stop reading the series because of how uncomfortable it made me. So I do understand why writers/artist/game designers avoid this aspect of the zombie Apocalypse.

Also having played Dead Space 2 and having seen the Zombie baby-things I can say that it didn't disturb me to the same point as Blackgas's image did. But I do have to agree with Yahtzee about the uses of Children/school settings in it as an easy and somewhat shameless method of building horror.

Having said that Dead Island looks like it might be really good and I can't wait to see more.

 

[Kopikatsu]

I always found it somewhat unrealistic that in Zombie movies/comics/games there usually a lack of infected children.
I mean I alway explained it in my mind that children would be too small to defend themselves and would be completely eaten with nothing left to become reanimated.

Having said that I do know why zombie entertainment tends to avoid infected children. Because its truly disturbing and many artist don't want to cross that line.

I remember one scene that almost turned me off a comic series because of this. The series was Blackgas by Warren Ellis and the scene was I think an inter cover depicting a group of zombies eating newborns in a hospital maternity ward. Seeing this seen almost made me stop reading the series because of how uncomfortable it made me. So I do understand why writers/artist/game designers avoid this aspect of the zombie Apocalypse.

Also having played Dead Space 2 and having seen the Zombie baby-things I can say that it didn't disturb me to the same point as Blackgas's image did. But I do have to agree with Yahtzee about the uses of Children/school settings in it as an easy and somewhat shameless method of building horror.

Having said that Dead Island looks like it might be really good and I can't wait to see more.

You probably wouldn't like the manga Hellsing. One of the panels in volume...4? depicted a ZOMBIE VAMPIRE NAZI WEREWOLF (Dead serious. Well, not about the werewolf thing, even though the Nazis DID have Werewolf soliders in Hellsing) biting a baby in half. Yeaaaaah.

Edit: Hey, I found a picture! It was the only picture of it I could find, so...if you have an issue with seizures, DO NOT CLICK THIS LINK. Seriously. I only glanced at it, and I think it burned holes in my retinas.

http://images.encyclopediadramatica.com/images/thumb/3/38/Nazivampire.gif/120px-Nazivampire.gif

 

[Dimensional Vortex]

Its not a hook; its the reality.

As much as society tries to make children out to be little angels that can do no wrong, in reality many adults see them for what they really are; incompetent, annoying parasites that serve little purpose other than to absorb the resources, time and patience of the adults around them. and have near-perfect immunity from any sort of backlash.

We want to see them die, or at the very least, go away.

So you basically assume all kids are bad and a waste of resources and think it would be good to make them die on a large television screen with outstanding graphics so you really can hear the kids cry and beg for their parents before they die? I play games to have fun I don't enjoy torturing kids like that, if you do than I feel sorry for you, you can make a fun and thought provoking game without including children getting their chests ripped open. If you are into that kid of sick depraved crap then go and find a torture video instead of wanting games to involve that stuff.

Also I'm hearing the excuse "But it happens in real life." Well video games aren't realistic, they're not even close so really there is no necessity for child torture and murder in games. You can have children die in games, thats fine, but having a main focus of your game on pain and death of children is just asinine.

 

[AgDr_ODST]

Honestly, seeing kids in a zombie game -- or similar -- is fine by me. The complete lack of them has always struck me as odd. Dead Rising 2 did a great job of having zombies of all manner of ethnicity, body type, and gender, but it still didn't have kids. Something has to cross the line eventually, so why not now?

Besides, who didn't want to shoot a few of the obnoxious brats in Fallout 3?

*Raises Hand* I really wanted to murder half the population of Little Lamplight and that little brat in Rivet City with the ***** for a mom

 

[ANImaniac89]

Reposted below with quote

 

[sixtysix]

am i the only one that thinks that the whole trailer is very "uncanny valley-ey"

 

[ANImaniac89]

I always found it somewhat unrealistic that in Zombie movies/comics/games there usually a lack of infected children.
I mean I alway explained it in my mind that children would be too small to defend themselves and would be completely eaten with nothing left to become reanimated.

Having said that I do know why zombie entertainment tends to avoid infected children. Because its truly disturbing and many artist don't want to cross that line.

I remember one scene that almost turned me off a comic series because of this. The series was Blackgas by Warren Ellis and the scene was I think an inter cover depicting a group of zombies eating newborns in a hospital maternity ward. Seeing this seen almost made me stop reading the series because of how uncomfortable it made me. So I do understand why writers/artist/game designers avoid this aspect of the zombie Apocalypse.

Also having played Dead Space 2 and having seen the Zombie baby-things I can say that it didn't disturb me to the same point as Blackgas's image did. But I do have to agree with Yahtzee about the uses of Children/school settings in it as an easy and somewhat shameless method of building horror.

Having said that Dead Island looks like it might be really good and I can't wait to see more.

You probably wouldn't like the manga Hellsing. One of the panels in volume...4? depicted a ZOMBIE VAMPIRE NAZI WEREWOLF (Dead serious. Well, not about the werewolf thing, even though the Nazis DID have Werewolf soliders in Hellsing) biting a baby in half. Yeaaaaah.

Edit: Hey, I found a picture! It was the only picture of it I could find, so...if you have an issue with seizures, DO NOT CLICK THIS LINK. Seriously. I only glanced at it, and I think it burned holes in my retinas.

http://images.encyclopediadramatica.com/images/thumb/3/38/Nazivampire.gif/120px-Nazivampire.gif

Yeah the Hellsing baby thing didn't bother me. I am kind of disconnected from Manga horror because of the heavily stylized artwork (it just doesn't seem human to me). On the other hand the image in Blackgas was drawn in a more realism-based style and with horrifying detail (seeing flesh rib as zombie have a tug-o-war with the now eviscerated infant) and had much more of an impact on me.

 

[Candidus]

Snip

Seriously? I'm surprised that people are surprised, shocked or otherwise impressed upon by the ability to inflict death on textured polygonal models with smaller dimensions than the ones we're used to.

The rumoured "line" may have been drawn there once, but I can't work out why. The young aren't any more or less valuable than anybody else. Any game which includes a populated area and is interested in immersion is going to include the young. When they are included, there's no reason that they ought to be invulnerable.

Personally, I'm relieved that we've finally dropped a pointless and sometimes irritating taboo that has never been rationalised to my satisfaction. It's about time, isn't it.

 

[alandavidson]

I don't really care about the stance of kids in games, that was the most interesting and unique trailer I have seen in a very long time.

 

[WitherVoice]

Also I'm hearing the excuse "But it happens in real life." Well video games aren't realistic, they're not even close so really there is no necessity for child torture and murder in games. You can have children die in games, thats fine, but having a main focus of your game on pain and death of children is just asinine.

I'm fine with your statements for the most part; the whole "children being horrid parasites" thing is... well. Meh. They're productive humans in potentia, and you can't really blame them for not being born fully formed and finished, can you?

But you are especially right in that having the main focus of a game be the pain and death of children would be completely asinine. More importantly, though, it wouldn't be any FUN. It wouldn't SELL. It would fail in its mission as a game, which is to entertain. As such, it's hardly worth being concerned about, I feel. The cost of publishing things on the internet is low enough that people can push into the world all manner of crap, which isn't read. Games takes time and effort, and know-how, to create. I don't think a lot of "painful child murdering" games will be produced.

 

[Nexus4]

That is hands down one of the best trailers I have ever seen, just because of how sad it is even though we know nothing about the characters.

 

[Nautical Honors Society]

Children makes everything creepier. Why do you think so many horror based things have those creepy children chorus' singing lullabies?

Also, that was a really well done trailer.

 

[ANImaniac89]

Someone needs to re-cut the Dead Island trailer with better music.

 

[Trolldor]

Snip

Seriously? I'm surprised that people are surprised, shocked or otherwise impressed upon by the ability to inflict death on textured polygonal models with smaller dimensions than the ones we're used to.

The rumoured "line" may have been drawn there once, but I can't work out why. The young aren't any more or less valuable than anybody else. Any game which includes a populated area and is interested in immersion is going to include the young. When they are included, there's no reason that they ought to be invulnerable.

Personally, I'm relieved that we've finally dropped a pointless and sometimes irritating taboo that has never been rationalised to my satisfaction. It's about time, isn't it.

It's not supposed to be 'rational', it's supposed to be emotional. You're getting emotional even now.
Rationally, there is no reason to introduce children. Rationally, there's no reason our enemies should be adults, human, organic, animate.
Imagine if all games were just shooting galleries, or shooting ranges. Maybe replace the guns with a softball.

Secondly, Invincible children is, usually, a requirement of censorship boards.

 

[Nexus4]

Snip

Seriously? I'm surprised that people are surprised, shocked or otherwise impressed upon by the ability to inflict death on textured polygonal models with smaller dimensions than the ones we're used to.

The rumoured "line" may have been drawn there once, but I can't work out why. The young aren't any more or less valuable than anybody else. Any game which includes a populated area and is interested in immersion is going to include the young. When they are included, there's no reason that they ought to be invulnerable.

Personally, I'm relieved that we've finally dropped a pointless and sometimes irritating taboo that has never been rationalised to my satisfaction. It's about time, isn't it.

More what it represents than what it literally is. Would it be wrong to be shocked, scared, or saddened by a book because it is just lines on a page? Or disturbed by a film because it is just actors pretending with makeup and costumes? I agree with you in that I am relieved that the taboo is being dropped, it allows for much more effective story-telling.

 

[Kopikatsu]

Children makes everything creepier. Why do you think so many horror based things have those creepy children chorus' singing lullabies?

Also, that was a really well done trailer.

Actually, it's probably because lullabies are pretty damn creepy on their own. Especially 'game songs'. Listen to the lyrics of Ring Around the Rosie again. Yeah, that's about the Black Plague.

Edit: Ding! Idea!

 

[HentMas]

Honestly, seeing kids in a zombie game -- or similar -- is fine by me. The complete lack of them has always struck me as odd. Dead Rising 2 did a great job of having zombies of all manner of ethnicity, body type, and gender, but it still didn't have kids. Something has to cross the line eventually, so why not now?

Besides, who didn't want to shoot a few of the obnoxious brats in Fallout 3?

EVERY SINGLE TIME I GOT IN TO THAT LITTLE LAMP LIGHT THING i just had to SHOOT a SHOTGUN in the face of the "PRINCESS"

I HATED HER WITH ALL MY MIGHT

UGHH

 

[Nautical Honors Society]

Children makes everything creepier. Why do you think so many horror based things have those creepy children chorus' singing lullabies?

Also, that was a really well done trailer.

Actually, it's probably because lullabies are pretty damn creepy on their own. Especially 'game songs'. Listen to the lyrics of Ring Around the Rosie again. Yeah, that's about the Black Plague.

Edit: Ding! Idea!

Yea I know, but it's just the way those creepy kids sing em!