Survival horror games are fast becoming a staple in every game collection. From the old classics such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill to new classics such as Forbidden Siren the genre is becoming more and more popular.
However, it seems men and women have a difference of opinion on which games are the best.
This blog shows my opinion on the classic games of the genre and compares it to the comparison of the male fans.
Alan Wake is well and truly out of his coma now. Last Friday, Remedy Games unveiled some new videos featuring gameplay of the fourth coming XBox 360 Horror, Alan Wake, which is rumored to have a May '10 release.
There are five videos in total. All show Alan Wake in Gameplay with a few cutscenes thrown in for good measure. We know two of the characters already, Alan of course and his manager, Barry. A new character named Rusty is also introduced to us in the later three videos.
What else do these video's tell us about what to expect? Let's have a look at each one shall we?
Opening Gameplay
Part One
This video has been called Opening Gameplay but it seems like loads has happened before this scene. Are we being thrown right into action? It seems that we're introduced to the situation through recap-like cut scenes.
What it tells us:
Story:
Alice, Alan's wife, has been kidnapped and it seems her kidnappers want the pages to Alan's newest book. Unfortunately, Alan doesn't remember writing it.
Alan has arranged a meeting with a guy named Rusty.
Alan leaves Barry, his agent, behind but seems to fire a flare gun attracting police to his whereabouts. Why is this?
Gameplay:
Characters nearby to Alan seem to respond to his actions. E.g Barry's reaction to Alan turning off the light.
Alan narrates letting the player know his thoughts about certain situations.
Alan comes across manuscript papers which seem to predict what is about to happen. In this case, it explains part of the next video.
Part Two
This video is a continuation of the Opening Gameplay Mission. Alan comes across Rusty but he's in trouble.
What it tells us:
Story:
Rusty seems to be the Sheriff
When you see Rusty he's been viciously attacked as if by an animal. They turn out to be more human-like
Rusty has some manuscript pages
Gameplay:
The colour changes when you're in danger
Nearby characters give hints. E.g. Rusty mentions they are afraid of light, just in case you didn't notice.
Enemies are almost like poltergeists, throwing things at Alan
Part Three
The first part of this video is the same that was shown at this years E3 convention. Rusty has been taken away and Alan needs to find him in order to get the manuscript pages he has.
What it tells us:
Gameplay:
You can evade attacks by dodging and it looks a lot more smoother than the dodging in Silent Hill: Homecoming
We've already seen the Pistol but the Flare Gun and Shotgun are other weapons Alan can use
The Flare Gun can kill groups of enemies and will keep them away from you
Escape Police Gameplay
Part One
This is a whole new mission where Alan has been asked to meet with Alice's kidnapper.
What it tells us:
Story:
The police are after Alan for some reason
At one point, a flare gun is shot in the distance. Who did it?
Alan seems to have help here. When the police are near to finding him, something happens
Gameplay:
Alan can look behind whilst moving at the same time
Part Two
A continuation of the last video, Alan is still running from the police.
What it tells us:
Story:
It's confirmed that Rusty isn't a sheriff. The Sheriff is a female and seems to be on Alan's side
A man named Agent Nightingale seems to be the head of the police hunt in this scene. He doesn't seem to be a friend.
What seem to be police are climbing up the cliff. Are these the newly killed officers that were originally chasing him maybe?
Gameplay:
The game runs on a checkpoint system rather than save points a la Silent Hill
The game looks well and truly amazing to say the least. The story is intriguing and the controls and motions seem really smooth. There seems to be a lot of spoiler material in these videos which is weird considering how quiet Remedy has been about it. Any other videos that are released before the game is should be viewed with caution if we don't want the whole plot given away.
What do you think of Alan Wake? Will he be worth the wait and what's more, will you be buying it?
How is the next generation of Consoles effecting the Survival Horror Genre?
If only one console is credited for the rise of Survival Horror it is surely the Playstation. Resident Evil and Silent Hill both started off on the PS One, as well as games such as Clock Tower, Alone in the Dark and Parasite Eve. When the Playstation 2 came out in 1999 these classic game series were brought to the newer console as well as new horror classics such as Project Zero and Siren. Obscure, Haunting Ground, Manhunt and The Suffering were also released for the console.
Nowadays however, Sony has more competition for it's games with the likes of the Xbox 360 and especially the Nintendo Wii now on the market. How exactly is the Survival Horror Genre changing with additions of these new consoles.
Increase in action orientated Horror Offenders: Dead Space, F.E.A.R, Condemned, Resident Evil 4 & 5 Horror games are starting to get too action orientated these days with the male market in mind. The arrivals of the Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3 mean that game developers are focusing more on the graphics rather than the plots and story lines E.g. Resistance, Kill Zone, Halo (Feel free to backlash).
Survival Horrors are following suit. If we look at the last couple of games that were released in this genre we'll find that weapons and combat have a huge part to play. Dead Space (left), F.E.A.R, and even Horror Classics such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill are following suit with action orientated additions such as RE 4 & 5 and SH:Homecoming. Luckily, even though it's agreeably much harder than it's predecessors, Silent Hill: Homecoming didn't stray away from the good story lines the series is known for. It did however include more combat than the previous games and health items were very hard to come by making the game more focused on the combat aspect of Survival.
Condemned was the Xbox 360's first attempt at Survival Horror and like Silent Hill Homecoming, had a lot of combat involved but it actually had plenty of scary moments that sent shivers down your spine. Later, Condemned 2 was released for the 360 and the Playstation 3 whose version received better reviews.[2] Unfortunately games like Dead Space and F.E.A.R think Horror is about making you jump and Resident Evil has jumped on this band wagon. Horror fans and even fans of the game don't like to call Resident Evil a Survival Horror any more.
When was the last time a game freaked you out because the environment put you on edge or because you were scared out of your mind that you had nothing to defeat monsters with? When was the last time you had to put a game away because it was affecting you so much? It seems those days have gone...
Console Wars Offenders: Alan Wake, Project Zero IV. OK, so the Wii is the market leader but that doesn't mean you will sell more games on that console than on any other.
Tecmo made this mistake lately with Project Zero IV: The Mask of the Lunar Eclipse. Leaving their Sony fan base behind, they sold the games rights to Nintendo who sold the game in the Japanese region. For reasons unexplained, Nintendo US and Nintendo Europe didn't feel it necessary to release the game in their regions. The most likely reason is that the game isn't suited to their target market - family and children. Why Tecmo did this I will never know because the US and the UK (without the rest of Europe) have the two largest gaming markets in the world[3] (In fact, in the UK the Gaming Industry is outselling the music industry).[4]
Alan Wake is another Horror game that isn't to grace the Playstation 3. When it was first announced (I can't remember when because that was ages ago now) the game was to be on the 360 and the Playstation 3 but Microsoft managed to gain the rights to the game. This isn't much a loss on the West's part because the US and Europe are going to be able to play it - It's just a shame that Sony have missed out on what looks like an impressive game.
The Nintendo Wii Offenders: The Grudge, Cursed Mountain, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
I don't have the strongest opinion of the Wii. Even though it's the main reason why the UK is the 2nd largest games market in the world, to me it defines everything that is wrong in the gaming industry. We're living in the digital age but the graphics in the games that Nintendo bring out are going backwards and the imagination put into them are terrible. With games like the Imagine Series (Vet, Fashion Designer,Teacher), Dogz, Catz and Wii-Sports, the Wii is a novelty console at best.
Why developers are making Horror games for this console when they could be making them for the Xbox or the Playstation 3 confuses me. Sure, the games are cheaper and quicker to develop and I'm aware that Developers have a hard time developing games for the Sony console but surely they aren't going to sell very well. There is currently one Survival Horror game for the Wii and two on the way...These are Cursed Mountain, The Grudge and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.
Recently, it was announced that the Japanese film Ju-On (or The Grudge as it's known here) is to be made into a game. The decision to release this on the Wii is because of the Wii-mote's ability to measure hand movement. The more you're made jump and the more you shake determines your score at the end of the game. The game is to be sold in the US and UK but will it sell if the Wii's market is little children? Look at the front cover (left) and tell me what you think?
Another unfortunate point is that the best Survival Horror games are produced in Japan where the Nintendo Wii isn't necessarily aimed at the family/tween market.
Cursed Mountain is another Survival Horror game that is exclusive for the Wii and again, the Wii-mote is the attraction here. I don't know much about the game but the graphics, even though quite good for the Wii, are still leave something to be desired. (See Screenshot, Right).
The Silent Hill series has even joined the club releasing a game for the Wii. Konami however, unlike Tecmo, have stayed faithful to it's fan base of ten years, releasing the game on the PS2 and the PSP. Good news, but it's the Wii that has the better version again because of it's Wii-mote. In Shattered Memories, you can use your Wii-mote as a Phone (you'll come across numbers to dial and the voice will emit from the speaker in the Wii-mote), Radio (again, the static will come out of the speaker), Pen (You can write notes on your map) and Torch (you can move the Wii-mote like a torch). Shattered Memories may be more focused on the Wii, but at least it's stopping itself from being action orientated. There's no combat at all and it's going to make you think - that picture in the screenshot (left) remind you of anyone?
Summary. A good Survival Horror game should have a plot which can get you thinking about how best to proceed. Give the player a bucket load of weapons and ammo then people are just going to blast their way through and hope for the best. Forbidden Siren made you think of a strategy to complete a mission without being spotted - you didn't get a lot of ammo in this game and most weapons you had to kill a Shibito for anyway.
Silent Hill made you think more on the storyline rather than combat. Most monsters could be out run in this game so combat wasn't always necessary but the game is still fun to play. The atmosphere in these games were the main reason why Silent Hill is scary - the thought of people watching you (Think of when Heather receives the letters from a Hospital Patient you never see yourself or when James is mentioned by name on a note put as graffiti on a wall).
Project Zero is yet another game that didn't focus on combat an those games were so scary that you had to pause the game to relax yourself a little (I know I did anyway).
Unfortunately, all these games are not as popular nowadays. Forbidden Siren has always been underrated, Nintendo decided that Project Zero IV should be kept away from us and Silent Hill is getting trampled on by those who would rather have Resident Evil because of it's "good combat an brilliant graphics". People are even complaining that Shattered Memories isn't going to have any combat. I think it's a good thing that they're trying to put the Horror back into Survival Horror.
If games like Dead Space and F.E.A.R continue being more popular than the classics and if Resident Evil doesn't return to it's old ways, then I fear for this genre - I really do.
Finally, what a lot of people have been waiting for and hoping to see at this years E3 convention in LA.
Writer Sam Lake and game Producer Jay Ranki gave a demonstration during the Microsoft Press Conference yesterday. They start off with a short trailer which is narrated by the games protagonist explaining the disappearance of his wife, Alice. A guy named Rusty is introduced and the following demonstration shows Alan chasing after him in a dark forest.
One thing that I wanted to know about this game was what kind of creatures we would be defeating and now we know, kind of. We're not told exactly what they are but they look like ordinary, regular people though we can't see them properly due the darkness. They do however seem to be vulnerable to Alan's Flashlight and the light given off by Flares. At one point during game play the words "Use the light" show up on the wall. Bats also make appearance attacking a chair lift that Alan ends up riding down but whether they show up again remains to be seen.
After the whole demo is completed a woman's voice, likely to be Alice asking Alan to "Wake Up" leading us to believe that what we played was a dream.
The video (gametrailer.com) can be seen below:
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To top it all off it is confirmed that Alan Wake will be released in Spring 2010. Still a long way to go but what's one year when you've been waiting four?
Remedy Entertainment have been very secretive about this game and have hardly released anything about it. Alan Wake was even announced before the PS3 and Xbox 360 came out but it's only now that eager fans are getting what they want. Alan Wake was to be released on both consoles until Microsoft bought the rights for it, therefore making it a PC and Xbox game only. Screenshots were released in 2006 when the game was first announced but two years have passed so the game probably looks much different now.
The game is based around Alan Wake, a famous mystery writer. Suffering from a major case of writers block, his wife has brought him to Bright Falls to help him get his creative flow back. Things go wrong when his wife disappears and the events of his last book, which he doesn't remember writing, start to occur to make things worse.
What we know:
- The storyline is all we know really. Remedy doesn't like to give things away it seems.
- The trailer shows a guy in a red coat, a Jon Lovitz type, who Alan calls Harry. We don't know why he's there and who he is but I'm sure I heard somewhere that he said he was Alan's manager, I could be wrong.
- In the trailer Harry mentions a Dr Hartman. "Dr Hartman was right. You are crazy". This leads you to believe that he must be a shrink.
Unfortunately, we don't yet know anything about the game play. Will there be monsters like in Silent Hill? What kind of weapons will there be? The video section of the website shows a further two videos are going to be revealed - hopefully these will be game play videos, let's hope.
Remedy are saying that a release date won't be given until the game is finished so we don't have one yet. It seems they don't want to make the same mistake as other developers who give a release date before knowing when the game will be completed.
This game has already been released in The USA and Japan but the UK has to wait until February '09 to get this game. Konami never gave us an official reason but it could be a matter of reasons.
1) Censorship - Germany in particular have expressed concern over the violence contained in the game. News of the German release delay came out before the news that the UK would also have to wait...Are the whole of Europe having to wait until Germany are satisfied? Will we have to make do with the censored version as well? News of the German delay can be found on this LINK
2) Translation - Europe speaks a lot of languages, that's a given so the game has to be translated to over 20 different languages. It seems the UK, who speaks English and in fact came up with the language have to wait with the rest of them. Sure, we could import since the PS3 and XBOX 360 are region free, but why should we have to pay for the delivery charges?
3) Sods Law - We had to wait for Origins and now we have to wait longer for Homecoming. Maybe Konami just doesn't think much into pleasing it's European Market. It's not all bad I suppose. The game has been banned entirely from Australia apparently due to a specific scene within the game.
Homecoming is going to be the fifth instalment of the game (Origins not counting as it's a prequel). It's based around Alex Shepherd who has gone back home, after leaving the Army, to Shepherds Glen after news came about of his younger brothers disappearance. When he returns home he finds the whole town in a mess and his Mother in a catatonic state. She went crazy after Joshua, her younger son's disappearance so Alex goes about finding him. His investigation around Shepherds Glen leads him to a nearby town called Silent Hill where he intends to find out what has been happening.
Konami were quite generous in the information they gave out regarding this game. Trailers and screenshots were released, giving us a chance to look what the game is going to look like.
What we know:
- We know that the cast of Monsters includes new as well as old - Siam (Right) is one of the most impressive, and the monster that got my attention. The Nurses return (it wouldn't be Silent Hill without them would it?) and they've been busy advertising the game, modelling on the popular Play Magazine front cover.
- Pyramid Head is going to be in this game. He was spotted walking around the town in one of the trailers released but how does he fit into this game when he was a manifestation of James Sunderland’s character in Silent Hill 2?
- We know that a female character is in the game, Elle, an old friend of Alex's who can be found on the official website. The official trailer (below) shows a truck driver, Travis Grady from Origins and screenshots so some kind of police officer, who remains nameless to us lot that haven't played it.
- The games has also taken on the appearance of the movie. In the previous games, we never actually saw the real world turn into the nightmare world but in this game, we will. The two realms will merge in real time, wall paper melting off of the walls and such.
Since this game has been released in the US, we know that the game has proven successful with Silent Hill fans but the critic’s reviews have been mixed. Metacritic gives the scores received from various magazines and websites, then giving a critics average. The worst score given was 60% from GamePro and the most promising score was 90% from the Official Playstation Magazine (US). The average however was 7.2/10, the sites users giving it 8.1/10 proving the game has been quite well received generally.
Fatal Frame IV was announced, to the UK at least, earlier this year (2008). The game has been developed by Japanese developer, Grasshopper Manufacture. The news was both good and bad for fans because even though a new game is coming, it's coming on the Nintendo Wii. Previous games have been released on the Xbox and the Playstation 2, PS2 being the only console to have all of the first three games. The game was released earlier in July over in Japan but for a while there was no news on a release over in the west. However, news came out earlier in December of a European release due early 2009. America is still to find out whether they will get the game or not.
Ten years ago, five young girls were kidnapped and held hostage in a mysterious mansion in Japan. They were all saved by a detective on the hunt for the criminal who had taken them. Several years later, two of the girls died under mysterious circumstances but the remaining three, now 17 years old have returned in order to find out more about what happened all those years ago.
What we know:
- There are four main characters in this game: Ruka Minazuki(F), Misaki Asō(F), Madoka Tsukimori(F) and Chōshiro Kirishima(M).
- The Wii remote and nunchuck will be used to aim the Camera Obscura and the torch that the character holds. How the camera will work however, remains to be seen.
- Ghosts include what looks like a female nurse and little boy, who is especially creepy - reminds me of the boy in the film, The Grudge.
We know nothing else regarding this game but news on game play and characters should be released soon if a European release is going to be the rumoured February '09. The official website and the official trailer are in Japanese but they shed some light into what the game will look like. The game actually looks really good for the Wii and the ghost especially look really realistic, even more so than the ones in The Tormented. Hopefully an English version of the website will be released real soon.
The official website, in Japanese, can be found HERE.
Trailer (Subtitled)
I'm really looking forward to all of these games. Silent Hill and Fatal Frame are two of my favourite Survival Horror games and both look like a good edition to each series. Alan Wake is the one I'm looking forward to the most. However, it's a new addition to the genre and could be a huge sucess based on how it looks. People are getting restless waiting for it but good things come to those who wait. I'm a geek, and I know this Why? I bought my Wii and Xbox 360 especially for Fatal Frame IV and Alan Wake so they better be really, really good.
Alan Wake is well and truly out of his coma now.
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