Oh, so many moments, it's hard to list them all.
- Return to the Cathedral, Thief: The Dark Project- I stood outside that door for fifteen minutes, listening to the howling undead within, working up the nerve to go inside. Even now I absolutely hate going through that level.
- Robbing the Cradle, Thief: Deadly Shadows- Two words. The Door. I was down those stairs six at a time, in the nearest shadow in five seconds and had a broadhead nocked and ready to fly. Five minutes I spent waiting for whatever unholy horror was coming down those stairs at me.
Also, inching my way through the White Hall, I came ever so close to walking into one of the "puppets". I hastily threw myself against the wall near a corner, hoping it wouldn't notice me. The thing literally stopped right in front of me, shaking and "clicking" crazily, so close that I could see the rumples in its "outfit". When it finally walked away from me ten seconds later, I realized I'd been holding my breath.
- Alternate schoolhouse, Silent Hill 1- Wandering through the abandoned school, finally climbing up to that room with all the insane scribbles and symbols, and then making my way back down... into a pitch-black, chain-link nightmare. It all seems old-hat by now, but back then, that was some serious mind-twisting.
- Recreation deck, System Shock 2- The moment that stands out for me here was when I finally unlocked the pool door and went into the locker. Up until then nothing had really frightened me- sure, the Grunts were disturbing and the Midwives outright creepy- but when I heard that deep bellowing roar and saw this PILLAR OF MUSCLE rushing towards me like the wrath of an angry god, both my shotgun and my bowels were emptied in a fit of terror. Ever since then I've had an aversion to facing Rumblers in anything resembling a fair fight.
- Armacham Headquarters, FEAR- I never liked Alma, but there were two points where she really unnerved me. One, the part where you're watching a security monitor and her head just rises up into the view, which cuts off just as you see her face. Two, where you're travelling through some air ducts and she does that spider-crawling thing right at your ankles. Even when I see it coming, I still jump and shoot wildly at her.
- The Flood, Halo 1- Seriously, as many flaws as the game had, the way they introduced the Flood was excellent. Strange noises just behind locked doors, alien blood smeared in impossible places, and a dead Marine leaning against a door just to fall out on you when you open it... and then the video playback.
- Delta Labs 1, Doom 3- If more of the game had been like this, I probably would've liked it a lot better. There was almost a palpable tension as you wondered what was hiding in the darkness, only the occasional growl or chitter hinting that you weren't alone. Some other sequences also went the psychological route- the "they took my baby" sequence, and the glowing eyes near the elevator in (I think) Alpha Labs 3- but this one delved far more into it.
- Return to the Cathedral, Thief: The Dark Project- I stood outside that door for fifteen minutes, listening to the howling undead within, working up the nerve to go inside. Even now I absolutely hate going through that level.
- Robbing the Cradle, Thief: Deadly Shadows- Two words. The Door. I was down those stairs six at a time, in the nearest shadow in five seconds and had a broadhead nocked and ready to fly. Five minutes I spent waiting for whatever unholy horror was coming down those stairs at me.
Also, inching my way through the White Hall, I came ever so close to walking into one of the "puppets". I hastily threw myself against the wall near a corner, hoping it wouldn't notice me. The thing literally stopped right in front of me, shaking and "clicking" crazily, so close that I could see the rumples in its "outfit". When it finally walked away from me ten seconds later, I realized I'd been holding my breath.
- Alternate schoolhouse, Silent Hill 1- Wandering through the abandoned school, finally climbing up to that room with all the insane scribbles and symbols, and then making my way back down... into a pitch-black, chain-link nightmare. It all seems old-hat by now, but back then, that was some serious mind-twisting.
- Recreation deck, System Shock 2- The moment that stands out for me here was when I finally unlocked the pool door and went into the locker. Up until then nothing had really frightened me- sure, the Grunts were disturbing and the Midwives outright creepy- but when I heard that deep bellowing roar and saw this PILLAR OF MUSCLE rushing towards me like the wrath of an angry god, both my shotgun and my bowels were emptied in a fit of terror. Ever since then I've had an aversion to facing Rumblers in anything resembling a fair fight.
- Armacham Headquarters, FEAR- I never liked Alma, but there were two points where she really unnerved me. One, the part where you're watching a security monitor and her head just rises up into the view, which cuts off just as you see her face. Two, where you're travelling through some air ducts and she does that spider-crawling thing right at your ankles. Even when I see it coming, I still jump and shoot wildly at her.
- The Flood, Halo 1- Seriously, as many flaws as the game had, the way they introduced the Flood was excellent. Strange noises just behind locked doors, alien blood smeared in impossible places, and a dead Marine leaning against a door just to fall out on you when you open it... and then the video playback.
- Delta Labs 1, Doom 3- If more of the game had been like this, I probably would've liked it a lot better. There was almost a palpable tension as you wondered what was hiding in the darkness, only the occasional growl or chitter hinting that you weren't alone. Some other sequences also went the psychological route- the "they took my baby" sequence, and the glowing eyes near the elevator in (I think) Alpha Labs 3- but this one delved far more into it.
carina of time-The entire Forest temple, That place was disturbing the second you entered and everyone has to admit the first time one of the big hands grabbed you you aboout P'd yourself((or you acutally did)
