What old horror game should new ones emulate?

There are a lot of trends in modern horror games that really irk me. One of them is the reliance on jump scares. These kinds of games are ones that I would call "Youtube fodder," because that kind of crap is what sells these days. Another one that bothers me is the "run and hide" mechanic. It works in some cases, but most horror games these days have that hide and seek feel where you're totally defenseless. And because this mechanic is so overused, it numbs the player to its desired effects. You start to see patterns in games like that, like what areas are safe and which ones aren't.

So that got me thinking. What older horror game can new ones steal from to help improve the genre? For me personally, I want more games to emulate the atmosphere of Silent Hill 3. I know 2 is the most famous one, but to me, SH3 was better in terms of scaring the player. Whereas 2 is still a great game, its atmosphere was more about making the player feel James's sadness. It was more melancholy than scary, despite a few moments here and there that are truly creepy (and I'm not saying that's inherently bad, either). Silent Hill 3 is all about scaring the player by using subtlety, atmosphere, weird events and an ambiguous reality. So much weird crap happens in that game that is left unexplained and it's better for it. I want to see more games use aspects of Silent Hill 3 (dread, relatively no jump scares, weird, small things to make the player's skin crawl).

A good recent game that does this is Cry Of Fear. Even though it's first person, it has a ton of elements of Silent Hill 2 and 3. For instance, the atmosphere is very sad, like in 2, but it's also incredibly, incredibly freaky and disturbing. Instead of using jump scares (save for one incredibly effective BOO moment in the beginning), it lets its environments, enemy design and sound convey this creeping sense of dread that keeps building and building the further into the game you get, which is exactly what Silent Hill 3 had. Something else cool that it features is unlockables like in old survival horror games. There's a bonus, challenging, mini story mode like Born from a Wish or HUNK's mission in RE2, there are loads of unlockable weapons and even costumes for fulfilling certain conditions. So even though it has the first person aspect of newer horror games, everything else about it is firmly rooted in the tradition of games like Silent Hill 3. Best part? It's totally free on Steam.

What old horror game to you wish newer ones would emulate?

@turtlethetaffer: I've thought about this before in the past, and I do have a game I plan on making once I finish my website that is a horror title, so I've given this some thought already. The game I want to emulate the most from the retro era would be the original Haunted House on the old Atari systems. Back in those days the only thing that could sell a game was the gameplay itself, and no title back then had as much atmosphere as Haunted House. Navigating hallways void of any light except the occasional lightning strike, enemies you couldn't see until the last second. Too many games today try to emulate what's popular and lack creativity, for that I'd rather they start emulating movies instead.

Personally, the game I want to make will blend the sci-fi genre with a psychological thriller story, create an environment where the atmosphere is scarier than the enemies you face. I also hope to create a multiplayer horror title that allows some of the real players to be killed in game. Let the atmosphere of the game create the kind of tension where the two players can form an emotional bond, and then break that bond in the most horrific way.

@suicidesn0wman: Those both sound pretty neat. I think it'd be cool to see a game where you work together with other players in a maze and can't fight the monsters but can do things like make barricades and other cooperative tactics to survive and find the way out. It could even be one of those asymmetrical MP games, where one player controls the monster while all the others try to survive.

i always thought Eternal Darkness was really in credible as far as its ability to be creepy and also mess with the player like no other game. i also enjoyed 7th guest at the time but as stated on the earlier thread... that one doesn't hold up well. but i still like it.

@zenbone: I really need to play Eternal Darkness. It's been on my list for a long time.

@turtlethetaffer:

I'd definitely recommend it. Eternal Darkness is a great survival horror game. It's a shame Silicon Knights went defunct though.

@Jag85: That and Killer 7 seem to elude me sadly.

Splatterhouse 3 (Genesis)

I don't know if you would call it horror, it doesn't have any 'hide & seek' elements, it's more of a beat em up game with really disturbing settings.
The game used to disturb me from the level designs, music and enemies in the game. I have went through the gameplay videos of the game & I still find it as disturbing.

I'm aware they made a game out of this franchise on PS3, and sadly it was a big disappointment.

@bravo632: I could have swarn that there was a Splatterhouse game that was made from last-gen.

There was, it came out in 2010 on the PS3 & X360. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splatterhouse_(2010_video_game)

Yes and it was nothing like the previous games... It was terrible.

PS3 gameplay footage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ps5EU8fcvI

SEGA Genesis/MD footage (Splatterhouse 3):

https://youtu.be/EDjZEWrNWHw?t=244

The point I'm trying to make is that it's no where as 'scary'.

Damn and I thought it would be good.

Luigi's mansion is a good start. Clock Tower and Dead Space.