Current Events > How can I not be a pussy when it comes to horror games?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I'm definitely missing out on an entire genre and tons of great games but I just can't take the tension and dread when playing. I legit don't think I've finished a single horror game ever :(

It's an entirely different beast when you're actually playing a game than compared to watching a movie.

Anyone else in the same boat?
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Become an adult
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I tried to play Outlast but I felt like my heart was going to explode every time so I stopped
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I actually really enjoyed Dead Space 1...I have no idea how I made it through the whole game now thinking about it <_<
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I think you would just have to face your fears, but I've never had an issue with this personally.

You become desensitized to it after a while, same with the horror genre of movies. They usually follow similar patterns and can become predictable/not very scary after a while, although some things still usually catch me off-guard. Then it's a good time though. Like you get startled, then you laugh it off.
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im not 13 posted...

I actually really enjoyed Dead Space 1...I have no idea how I made it through the whole game now thinking about it <_<

This is one I specifically remember. My friend had let me borrow back on 360 and I don't even think I was 15 minutes into the game when I read a message on the floor or wall that said "before of vents" so of course I walked next to one and something was moving around inside or jumped out at me. Nope fuck this, hit dashboard and gave it back to him lmao

Ultima Dragon posted...

I think you would just have to face your fears, but I've never had an issue with this personally.

You become desensitized to it after a while, same with the horror genre of movies. They usually follow similar patterns and can become predictable/not very scary after a while, although some things still usually catch me off-guard. Then it's a good time though. Like you get startled, then you laugh it off.

Anything you could recommend that would ease me into it? Preferably on ps4?
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I don't have a stomach for excessive gore. Despite that I love Dead Space 1 & 2. I don't have to watch Issac's deaths. I turn my head. That being said they're the only horror games I've played outside of old stuff like Silent Hill. Which was scary as fuck back then and I was still an adult. Horror games like country music don't appeal to me as a genre but there are some gems in there I do find from time to time thst can get me past the things I don't like about either genre.
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im fine with most of them but if it's a game where you cant find back i just cant do it. i really wanna like Outlast but I cant play it for more than 5 minutes

My problem is that I utterly hate the feeling of being startled. So even when I know exactly when it's coming, the sudden flashes and the blaring noise always gets me.
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I dunno, these have never really phased me. I mean it's not real so. Jump scares get me sometimes but that happen in any game.

But tbh there aren't a whole lot of worthwhile horror games anyway. RE4 and TLoU are the only ones I really liked and neither was a partucularly good representative of the genre. More like survival action with a few creepies tbh.
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Keep playing. You get horror games/movies BECAUSE you want them to scare you. If they completely fail to give you any sense of fear, they haven't done their job and you didn't get your money's worth.

I usually don't mind horror games, but the Outlast games look really demented, so I've been avoiding them.

plus, I'm not really a fan of only being able to run and hide.
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boxington posted...

plus, I'm not really a fan of only being able to run and hide.

I'm not usually either but....what if they made a PROPERLY DONE Jurassic Park VR game?

I don't like most horror movies or games for a number of reasons. Part of it is the gore that's often present. I don't have issues with gore generally perse, as I can watch war movies and see explicit gore without issue; it's really the context of horror that makes it intolerable. Then there's the suspense and jump-scare factor. Once again I don't mind suspense along; I mean, I like noir and suspense stuff; it's to do with scary monsters or something, I guess.

I think the main issue is one of power versus powerlessness, or maybe mundanity versus supernatural. Fighting any old bad guy seems less terrifying than fighting a werewolf or zombie or evil spirit or even an implacable killer who is basically a monster, because the ability to fight back is more obvious and present.

At the same time part of it has to be tonal, because I can much more easily enjoy horror hybrids like Shaun of the Dead or Zombieland. Adding comedy to the mix makes everything more tolerable because my brain is thinking about it differently.

At the same time, it definitely also has to with the imagery and visceral nature of movies and games, as I can read horror without much issue.

I have no great need to get into horror gaming for the most part, though there are a couple of games that I would someday be interested in trying, but I would like to build up a tolerance for movie horror, if only to be able to enjoy the film canon that is horror like The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby. I've seen The Shining before, and it was pretty good, but hard to watch at some points (the scene in the bathroom comes to mind).

Just realize that you can make horror games bend to your will since the player is 99% of the time scripted to beat everyone
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I tend to be able to power through third person horror titles but anything first person is too much for me. I get too immersed in it and am just in my head too much causing myself anxiety.

I have a friend who's exactly the same but what he likes to do if a game is too big/important/enticing to ignore (RE7, Alien: Isolation) is to stream it to me while we voice chat. It really helps him get through it and we both end up having a fun time.
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Spooking posted...

Turn on the lights
Don't use headphones

these
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just die a lot and it loses all effect.
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I can play certain horror games, the ones where you can fight back. but I suck at ones like Outlast, the "run and hide" genre. way too tough on my nerves

Spooking posted...

Turn on the lights
Don't use headphones
Have people in the room with you
Mute the music and turn on Benny Hill music

Fuck all of that. You don't buy a horror movie/game to NOT get scared.

I also don't play horror games.
I think they're a boring shitfest.

How can you be scared of something that's literally on your screen.
Is it gonna come out and bite you?
lol

Maybe start with walking simulators, like Layers of Fear and The Park. They have jumpscares, but you don't have to worry about killing things or running away. Those games are a good place to start, I think. Since to progress, you just move forward.
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You're probably accustomed to immersing yourself in games, and when dealing with horror games you need to learn how and when to "de-immerse" when it gets to be too much.
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Maybe use Zelda: Ocarina of Time as a "baby step" of sorts?

You don't have to enjoy something you don't like. I know that First Person Shooters make me dizzy so I don't play 'em.
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Just do what Yogscast Sips did when he played RE7. Take three hours to not even finish the intro because you have to keep pausing the game to play goofy music to calm down.

But really, if you play a game through, you tend to stop being scared about halfway through. Like the terrible monster that you hid from in terror at the start just begins to be annoying.
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If it helps, I recommend Little Nightmares. It's mostly just eerie, and there's very few jumpscares. It's basically like a horror-lite version of Limbo or Inside. The Last Door is a pretty good series of flash games that are good quality and easy to get into.
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After playing all the way through RE7 in VR, nothing scares me anymore
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@Coffeebeanz posted...

After playing all the way through RE7 in VR, nothing scares me anymore

this sounds fucking terrifying, like can you tell me about it lol. I'm genuinely interested. Were there any parts where you thought you couldn't finish the game?
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SicSlayer posted...

@Coffeebeanz posted...

After playing all the way through RE7 in VR, nothing scares me anymore

this sounds fucking terrifying, like can you tell me about it lol. I'm genuinely interested. Were there any parts where you thought you couldn't finish the game?

There's&#8203; a part where you're in a little girl's room and it's almost pitch black and in VR it's just nightmare fuel
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GunmaN1905 posted...

I also don't play horror games.
I think they're a boring shitfest.

How can you be scared of something that's literally on your screen.
Is it gonna come out and bite you?
lol

Immersion my buddy boy
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GunmaN1905 posted...

I also don't play horror games.
I think they're a boring shitfest.

How can you be scared of something that's literally on your screen.
Is it gonna come out and bite you?
lol

There's always the token "me so tough" asswipe in these topics.
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GunmaN1905 posted...

I also don't play horror games.
I think they're a boring shitfest.

How can you be scared of something that's literally on your screen.
Is it gonna come out and bite you?
lol

Literally the premise of The Ring. You're the outlier for not feeling anything.

Coolppl Owns posted...

I tried to play Outlast but I felt like my heart was going to explode every time so I stopped

The Outlast series in particular goes way too overboard with the whole "shock value" approach. Nothing wrong with being put off by it. Those games try so hard to get an uncomfortable reaction out of you that it just comes across as desperate. "hey gaiz check it out! rape! gratuitous mutilation! satanism! take a gooooooood look at it, spooky rite??"

I fucking hate that kind of horror style
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Pretend you're Steve Irwin out on safari and you're trying to go make friends with all the monsters.

Bonus points if you narrate what you're doing in the voice.

In fact, if there's not already a channel out there that does this, somethin ain't right with this world.
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TropicMoon10 posted...

Coolppl Owns posted...

I tried to play Outlast but I felt like my heart was going to explode every time so I stopped

The Outlast series in particular goes way too overboard with the whole "shock value" approach. Nothing wrong with being put off by it. Those games try so hard to get an uncomfortable reaction out of you that it just comes across as desperate. "hey gaiz check it out! rape! gratuitous mutilation! satanism! take a gooooooood look at it, spooky rite??"

I fucking hate that kind of horror style

that stuff doesnt get to me. but the fact you cant fight back makes it impossible for me

_Schwarzlicht_ posted...

Pretend you're Steve Irwin out on safari and you're trying to go make friends with all the monsters.

Bonus points if you narrate what you're doing in the voice.

In fact, if there's not already a channel out there that does this, somethin ain't right with this world.

What if there's a stingray monster?

_Schwarzlicht_ posted...

Pretend you're Steve Irwin out on safari and you're trying to go make friends with all the monsters.

Bonus points if you narrate what you're doing in the voice.

In fact, if there's not already a channel out there that does this, somethin ain't right with this world.

sometimes CE has good ideas
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AlternativeFAQS posted...

TropicMoon10 posted...

Coolppl Owns posted...

I tried to play Outlast but I felt like my heart was going to explode every time so I stopped

The Outlast series in particular goes way too overboard with the whole "shock value" approach. Nothing wrong with being put off by it. Those games try so hard to get an uncomfortable reaction out of you that it just comes across as desperate. "hey gaiz check it out! rape! gratuitous mutilation! satanism! take a gooooooood look at it, spooky rite??"

I fucking hate that kind of horror style

that stuff doesnt get to me. but the fact you cant fight back makes it impossible for me

Yeah the gameplay isn't particularly good to me. I couldn't finish Outlast, just too much pressure VS being actually able to do something. I loved Amnesia DD though despite how horrifying it was

MrZAP17 posted...

What if there's a stingray monster?

Then we don't play that game @_@
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dave_is_slick posted...

GunmaN1905 posted...

I also don't play horror games.
I think they're a boring shitfest.

How can you be scared of something that's literally on your screen.
Is it gonna come out and bite you?
lol

There's always the token "me so tough" asswipe in these topics.

Rofl, so salty that you have to call me names.
How can you be scared of something that can't possibly hurt you in any way.
If for example a snake or a big spider popped in front of me irl, I'd be scared because it could end badly for me. But horror games or movies? Even that horror stuff in amusement parks? Lol.

Not to mention that 95% of horror themed entertainment these days has shit writing.

Start out with games that aren't very scary like the last of us or Soma and then work your way up to the intense stuff
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Coffeebeanz posted...

SicSlayer posted...

@Coffeebeanz posted...

After playing all the way through RE7 in VR, nothing scares me anymore

this sounds fucking terrifying, like can you tell me about it lol. I'm genuinely interested. Were there any parts where you thought you couldn't finish the game?

There's&#8203; a part where you're in a little girl's room and it's almost pitch black and in VR it's just nightmare fuel

I am so fucking envious. I wanted to play RE7 in VR so bad.
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Coffeebeanz posted...

SicSlayer posted...

@Coffeebeanz posted...

After playing all the way through RE7 in VR, nothing scares me anymore

this sounds fucking terrifying, like can you tell me about it lol. I'm genuinely interested. Were there any parts where you thought you couldn't finish the game?

There's a part where you're in a little girl's room and it's almost pitch black and in VR it's just nightmare fuel

fuck that man haha. I am actually very curious and would love to check it out but I would never make it through or even get to that part to begin with haha.
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