What Scares You? [Questions Inside]

[WindexGlow]

I am making a mod for Penumbra Overture (Penumbra is a horror game, the scariest game I've played in that genre, you can find more information on frictionalgames.com). It was made by an indie group, because of that the modding community isn't very large.

But I am attempting to create a mod for the game. Since it is a horror game, I need opinions on what scares you.
The follow text is from a post I made on their forums recently, so some of the code might not work, and it was directed towards people who played the tech demo/official game. Please answer the questions that you can.



Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout? Small, crowded places? Large, long hallways? Cluttered/crowded rooms (such as broken furniture that litter the room, ect)? Doors that are locked (In my mod, there will be at least 1 or more times where a monster flys out behind a locked door after passing through it)

Question 2: What scares you in monsters? Such as how they look? How fast they are? How alert they are? How they make themselves present (such as suddenly jumping out of a ceiling vent) The sound they make? The sound they make when they kill you (I don’t know about you, but the wolf eating you alive in Overture demo scared the hell out of me whenever I saw a wolf in the official game, I just hated that sound)

Question 3: What scares you in lighting? Are you more scared looking in a slightly lit room, or a pitch black room with just your flashlight?

Question 4: How should your flashlight work? Should your flashlight a wider beam, but less lighting power ? Or should it have a more focused, but brighter beam? Or should there be 2 flashlights? One being a wider effect (less power) and a more direct beam?

Question 5: How often should you meet monster? Should it be like the Tech Demo, very rare, or should it be like overture E1, where seeing a monster isn’t too rare of a deal?

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play (You are told where to go, and there is only one way to get there, making you go through almost all the rooms in the game)? Or do you like non-lintier game play (Where you are told where to go, but there’s multiple ways to get there, and you might not go into all the rooms in the game)?

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker? Such as a hellish thing started deeper inside the place you’re in, and it’s only recently getting to the top levels of the place? (Where you start in the tech demo)

Question 8: Should there be any corpses? It would be a scare to have the player see something covered in the corner of an empty room. The player goes over to uncover it, when he has it uncovered halfway, the game plays a sudden shriek or scream (not from the corpse) or the door suddenly slams shut.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point? Such as whenever The Roach reaches Point A, it has a 50% chance to head to either Point B, or Point C. And it has that chance whenever The Roach reaches Point A.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there? Such as there’s a 10% chance for a wolf to be in the map, other whys it wouldn’t be there at all? (Would make it fun to see a wolf at a hallway you thought was safe)

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline (such as E1) or should it be more like the Tech demo, which would be a lot easier for me. Or should it be a mix?


Copy/paste the follow code, and answer the questions in the space between each question.

[b]Question 1:  What scares you in geometry, such as map layout? [/b] 
[b]

Question 2:  What scares you in monsters?[/b]  
[b]

Question 3:  What scares you in lighting?  [/b]

[b]Question 4: How should your flashlight work?[/b] 

[b]Question 5:  How often should you meet monster?  [/b]

[b]Question 6:  Do you enjoy linear game play[/b] 

[b]Question 7:  As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?[/b]

[b]Question 8:  Should there be any corpses?[/b]  

[b]Question 9:  Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point? [/b]

[b]Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there? [/b]
[b]
Question 11:  Should this mod be centered on a storyline [/b]

I need user feedback heavily.
The Roach = http://frictionalgames.com/penumbramedia/# (The picture you need is the flying bat thing)
The picture of it is pretty bad, but it works.
You do not use guns in penumbra, instead you use the environment or sneak past the monsters. The Roach is the only monsterish looking creature in the game.

 

[GST_Nemisis]

1. cliffs leading to darkenss.
2. ghosts scare the shit out of me.
3. red light can be used to symbolise evil and i think works well in films, unsure how well in a map tho.
4. heres an intresting idea, how about a wind up flashlight that can run out of power depending on if you have it bright/wide/narrow/dim.
5. i dont know about this one sorry. but in films i know it is good to give a sense of the monster before you show it.
6. i like a mix of both, for example linear missions which are easy to do but a non linear game overall.
7. i like eye of the storm scenerios, where it gets deeper and darker until a point of clear when it all seems good, only for it to reach a horrific climax. i think farcry did something like this.
8. corpses, no doubt.
9. non linear enemies can be good and bad because they can provide a different experience for everyone but it reduces the ability to develop sotrylines, this is especially true when main enemies or bosses are non linear. again a mix of the two is best.
10. yes, variation in this way is good, but the bosses should always be there and always be in the same place, as well as any story developing enemies.
11. a mix, there should be a storyline to make it less pointless but it doesnt need to be the most detailed one in the world.

 

[Deathell]

1. Dark caves
2. Ghosts
3. Pitch darkness
4. Smaller beam
5. I think meeting a monster more rare is scarier, but don't make it too often
6. Mix of both
7. Yes
8. YES. That's how Doom 3 was, and that game scared the shit out of me
9. Sure, why not?
10. Definatly
11. Storylines make all games better

Mine and GST's answers are very similar, lol

P.S. Make a/some scenes like this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=7VGl-jZ4zj0
It will make the mod MUCH better

 

[WindexGlow]

Thanks for the answers so far. Please who reply (maturely) get +rep.

And keep in mind Penumbra was made by a team of 4 people, so there aren't too many models. There is also no level editor, instead you must use a modeling program (maya, 3dmax, ect) in order to create the game levels.

And doom3, it wasn't too scary. It's almost a tea party compared to penumbra (That might be stretching it alittle, but penumbra is defently more scary, most of the people who have played penumbra basically agree with that fact)

All replies are taken seriously and will greatly improve my mod's horror and fun.

 

[Mechanical Man]

One of the most important fear factors are sounds. If you ever played Nosferatu:Wrath of Malachi, its graphics was not top, but the sounds and short music samples created awesome scary atmosphere. (If you like scary games, you should give a try )

Similar thing with Alien vs Predator as for futuristic theme.

Anyway, more the camera is zoomed in, the best will be the effect. So, if possible, is good idea to make it third person view, moving with arrow keys.

 

[The_wand_mirror]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
I always prefferd the rotten and dead left ghost towns like lone farms standing somewhere in a farmland and after that entering a thick forest or something.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
You must have the feeling that the monster is ten times stronger as you, crawling up against the walls and jumping around like an ape or just with zombies rly slow but with immense hitpoints.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Weak lit rooms, here and there some bones.. some water and broken things.
Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
You should have a flashlight that can be attached to your gun or head.. but mostly i like would like the big dimmed light.
Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Zombies must come in hordes, then silence and then suddenly just a huge abominable creature in the corner .. With those zombie crowds i ment that the player has the feeling to be constantly hunted by a crowd of living corpses and than to make it different just mix some rare monsters.
Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Freedom in a horror survival games seems more scarier to me since you can make more mistakes by locking yourself up into places and be overrun by zombies or something..
Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Depends on the story?
Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Doh..
Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
Well .. no ..
Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Yes

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
With mods mostly only gameplay counts i think, make up a little story and lets get creepy

 

[Teh_Ephy]

1. Make everything as unorthodox as possible. Fear of the dark is mostly fear of the unknown, if everything is seven steps backwards from the way you'd expect it, that would at least keep a player's attention. Maybe take something completely normal and make it completely abnormal by taking away one thing. Definitely make sure there aren't many more than 3 NPCs, and severely limit contact with them.

2. Make it something that can mess with the players without the players being easily able to mess back. IE: make it profanely fast, so when it comes you have a really hard problem shooting it. It's not that you can't physically injure it by shooting it, but you can't keep up with it to shoot it. Or whatever else you would do to it, since there aren't guns.

3. Have the lighting change a lot. About what GST said, make it very subtle. So it has players on edge without them knowing what it is that's doing so.

4. I think wide/weak and narrow/strong are good ideas, but make it so you can only have one at a time. There need to be large differences between the two. Make sure players are never aware of the battery charge in them.

5. You should meet occasional monsters that are a challenge to be rid of, and certainly pests, perhaps a large group of easily dispatched monsters. Then there should be very rare large monsters that are likely to end your game then and there (not really, but make them seem that hard).

6. I prefer nonlinear gameplay. It definitely boosts replayability. Each separate path should have some sort of significant thing to it that makes it worth doing. There should be at the minimum perceived consequences for choosing any path over any other, actual consequences are even better. For example: Do choice A) and achieve X and Y, or do choice B), achieve X and Z, where both Y and Z are raised to importance in the players' minds.

7. The farther in you get, the weirder it should be. Boost the scary by like 1~2 and the weird by like 5 every level/stage/chapter/whatever. It will definitely have players not concentrating on the scary, which makes the scary better anyways.

8. There should be corpses, but they should be placed in significant areas. For example, like in 10 make it so that if the monster has spawned, then there will be an extra corpse somewhere (maybe where there are already corpses). Corpses should always indicate that something is about to go wrong. Once players have (sub)consciously identified corpses as markers for something about to go wrong, place corpses in areas that would cause panic (IE: have a corpse lying around out in the middle of nowhere, some random open area like a courtyard. Make it hard to tell what it is until you're up close.)

9. Yes. It would definitely boost replayability. You expect it to go one way, and then it doesn't and you totally die because of it.

10. Yes, but make it lower than 10%, make it a pest in later levels (but not the level it's in) if you don't kill it/whatever in the level it spawns, make it require tenacity to kill/whatever. Let there be lots of incentive for killing/whatevering it early other than "it's going to be a pest later on". Something like "if it dies (or whatever), then Event A happens almost completely differently", or "if it dies (or whatever, not available if it doesn't spawn), then the creature guarding Door B will be eating its corpse, and you can get to the goodies behind Door B (make sure story happens behind these Door Bs, as well as tangible in-game goodies)".

11. Storyline. Definitely storyline. Everything I've suggested falls to pieces without a good one.

 

[Gausslander]

Blood

Veins are possibly the scariest ass thing in the world. Jesus christ they make me want to look away, I can see a guy get chopped in half by a clown's teeth but so help me god I cannot bear to watch anybody or anything for that matter slit their wrists.

 

[MySpaceBarBroke]

1. Big. A room where anything can pop out of anywhere at any time. A suppose hallways with like, windows and closets lining alongside them might be good.
2. They don't move much when they don't notice you. When they do, they charge. Real fast. I like em small, expendable, and masses of them, but I also would like them to have high damage.
3. Just a flashlight... have them walk straight into a trap. Of course it could also be very dark sometimes, with the occasional lightning to light up the room and sometimes reveal what you didn't really want to see.
4. Gun. Definitely.
5. Make it irregular. The one thing you don't want is predictability in a horror game.
6. Nonlinear. Totally. The greatest thing you could ever do is have players walk into the trap by their own mistake.
7. It should be consistent. The brightness and darkness of a flashlight doesn't change much, except for annoyance. Have the flashlight just completely go out sometimes.
8. This really depends on the settings. In a forest, cover it up like there's no tomorrow. In a mansion, just a few. In a dungeon, make plenty, and in the most grotesque deaths you can think of.
9. Have some move in a variety of ways. Patrolling could be cool.
10. Yeah. The occasional bastard that intrudes on your resting time.
11. I've seen horror games with barely any plot at all. I was bored to tears. I expected so much from doom 3, and was disappointed =(.

 

[The_wand_mirror]

Acctualy being feared in a videogame means something more like 'Pleased' for me..

 

[WindexGlow]

Thanks for the replies so far.
I give +rep for answering those 11 questions maturely.

 

[Deathell]

Veins are possibly the scariest ass thing in the world. Jesus christ they make me want to look away, I can see a guy get chopped in half by a clown's teeth but so help me god I cannot bear to watch anybody or anything for that matter slit their wrists.

EXACTLY how I am, lol.

 

[JarrardKO]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
I often find myself uncomfortable with large dark rooms. Such rooms that are broad and full of nothing but black foginess.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Definately the sound. The breathing, footsteps, growling etc. can really build tension in horror games.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Pure darkness. Where there is nothing. It just puts a tight grasp on my heart and has me frantically searching for a light.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
I don't really prefer either of the two types of torch beams but I like it when Game developers give you a faulty torch in the really dark areas.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Dunno, but if you manage to get your player to get scared by your game, then I suggest a moderate amount.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Yeah I don't mind it. But I do like to have a sense of freedom in games.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Yes.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Yeah, sure. But don't go too crazy with the amount.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
Yes.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
No. I very much dislike the idea of using your 'luck' to advance furthur into the story. Stick to balanced and fair gameplay.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
Yes, I advise a new storyline. But don't make it TOO crazy.

 

[Katu]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Large areas with large things around. For example a cupola with 300m diameter.
For example this.
Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Hmmm.. a rotting zombie with worms coming ot of his eye, mouth, ear etc...
Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Too much light and too much dark.
Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Jut to answer this question, I don't know.
Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Not very often. I think rushing the player with monsters makes he/she feel less frightened. Scare him/her with the landscape too!
Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Yes, if the other elements are well-developed. Like in Diablo2: that is totally linear... but extremely great.
Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Not sure. Perhaps spending some time in a not-frightening place makey me feel mor frightened when something scares me.
Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Yes of course, loads of them! With bees and worms aruond them.
Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
Hm... if they are living, yes, But if they are undead.. you should decide if they have "intelligence" or not.
Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Does not matter.
Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
No, I think it should be centered on "artistic fear". But of course a storyline is needed.

 

[Kwaliti]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Dark, foggy places, with humms.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Ads on T-Shirts, brrrrr.....

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Nothing, really
Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Battery like (easy = big battery, normal = normal battery, hard = expendable, VERY SHORT USE battery)
Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Oh, very often behind the corners
Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
You mean senseless killing? Yeah!
Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
YEAH!
Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
YEAH! A million!
Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
YEAH!
Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
YEAH!

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
No, thanks

 

[MapperForLife]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Nothing Really.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Why be scared of monsters they are awesome.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Sun in my eyes it gets me annoyed because i always end up my vision seeing loads of dots.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Motion Sensors

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Every Dark cornor, Every Evil spooky creepy blood fest place.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
As long as there is alot of blood.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Yes i think your farsight should start to get smaller.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Yes Loads.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No Monsters should go on a random killing spree's

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Yes.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
No. No Storyline = Massive Mayhem. Which i like.

 

[MySpaceBarBroke]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Nothing Really.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Why be scared of monsters they are awesome.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Sun in my eyes it gets me annoyed because i always end up my vision seeing loads of dots.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Motion Sensors

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Every Dark cornor, Every Evil spooky creepy blood fest place.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
As long as there is alot of blood.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Yes i think your farsight should start to get smaller.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Yes Loads.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No Monsters should go on a random killing spree's

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Yes.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
No. No Storyline = Massive Mayhem. Which i like.

...ew

 

[GST_Nemisis]

what else scares me is a techno remix of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "O' Fortuna" there is one...and its weird!!!! i dont understand why someone would remix something like this...but it happened. add that to your game an i may run away in fear.

 

[panther-anthro]

This scares me.

 

[frankie11]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout? I think cluttered rooms with monsters popping out from behing certai objects is scary


Question 2: What scares you in monsters? Scary monsters to me are things that make extraordinary sounds like wretches in gears of war or things that are fast and strong and require reflexes like the berserker in gears of war.


Question 3: What scares you in lighting? I think flickering lights that have random intervals (i.e. sometimes it's pitch black but sometimes there's the little dim light flickering).

Question 4: How should your flashlight work? I think the flashlight should work wide but not powerful and in certain leves it should be cut off.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster? Meeting a monster should all depend on the circumstances: lighting, room space, flashlight. I can't say for sure how often but I think it's scarie when monsters pop out off a well hidden area and are ready to rip you apart.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play Yes linear gameplay is better for me because you will indefinitely encounter all scary monsters and scenarios.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker? I think it should go into a hellish place,yes. For example in Silent Hill (the movie) that is scary as heck! Those people wandering around in dim lit rooms with creaking everywhere and the occasional encounter with that Guy that has the huge sword.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses? Yes many corpses yet, not skeletons- mutated rotting bodies that have body pars cut off and maybe even some that if you get close, they come to life.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point? Yes especially if it's an important quest monster.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there? Yes, depending on what the monster is. (i.e.- rare spawns)

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline I think there should be a mix of personal interest and ultimate goal. For example to save your child you must defeat the "End Boss" or to keep from dying yoursel you must defeat the "End Boss" in "X" number of days.

Hope that helped! ~frankie11

 

[d_man3981]

Question 1: No where to run and being cornered. Also Open up spaces and not knowing where the sound is comming from.
Question 2: Zombies or big characters. But sometimes its the small ones that get u. Not any zombies but real scary looking ones not like the default zombie on WC3.
Question 3: Flickering lights
Question 4: Switcheable flashlights all in 1.
Question 5: Often in certain areas like battling. Then stick some extra 1s in random places where you wouldnt expect them.
Question 6: Mostly linear and if you do the other 1 m,ake it so it doesent matter what path you take you wont miss anything.
Question 7: Not creepier or darker its unlreasticed unless its going into a depp cave then it can slowly get deeper and darker. But random floors that are dark is better.
Question 8: O ya. Also like put a corpse in a closet and when you open it it falls out or make it so it moves slightly when you discover it.
Question 9: ya
Question 10: No.
Question 11: Storyline major yes. Thats one of the main reasons people play horror games beside being scared. Its the thrill of uncovering more of the story as you advance. Big plot turns are good. The only reeason why i played Resident evil 4 was because its awesome storyline. And also the aiming and action parts are kool.
My own question: What system is this game?
O hey another topic where l0w_kwalti is an insane phcyo what a surprise.
Question 6 again: Actally whats also is kool is big free raom areas. Like a mansion where you can go anywhere. But if you do have to take a oath thats lead in one direction to a far place then linears i better. I dont like the fact of going on a website and seeing that i missed a very important item.

 

[NearbyHermit]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
By my opinion im scared of monotomy.I mean just walking forever in a room or on a river cripples me.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?[/b]
The thing that makes me shiver is the monster himself.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting? [/b]
Pitch-Darkness is an element that makes me thing of all bad deeds in my life.
Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Well my flashlight should never stop lighting,cause that would lead me to the Pitch-Darkness feeling.
Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
I pray i will never meet a monster.That i just finish without scary encounters.
Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Yes i quite enjoy it , only when its not with monsters and other things like blood,humans being slaughtered.I hate that monsters beat us even in the virtual world.
Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Yes cause if there no light it will become more dark.Who knows what might be lurking there?
Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
To optimize a bit and give a touch of sadism.Yes i say corpses
Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No cause that would make the game even more harder
Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
If you're brave,I say yes,but if you're frigthened i sudgest leaving it to defalut.
Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
Yes it might be quite a story.

 

[CrazyChao]

I have an answer for all of these.
Question One: In a big forest with trees scaled up to about 10, I get scared when theres the looping sound of footsteps and you can't hear where they are coming from or who... or what... is making them.
Question Two: If the monster is on Fire, then I'll be REALLY scared.
Question Three: Well... BOTH scare me, but in different ways. Dimly lit rooms scare me because you can see everything that's happened... Pitch-Black rooms scare me because there's probably something lurking there...
Question Four: I want my flashlight to work perfectly.
Question Five: This is a tough one, it depends on the storyline. A good storyline would have you meet him at the beginning. Later on, you almost defeat him, but not quite. At the end, he is gone forever.
Question Six: Yes, I love linear play. However, I hate it when a scary image flashes across the screen.
Question Seven: By nature, it should. In my opinion, I'd rather it get LIGHTER.
Question Eight: Yes, of course.
Question Nine: Yes, it's scarier that way.
Question Ten: Yes.
Question Eleven: It would be a very good storyline.

 

[brad.dude03]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout? Small, crowded places? Large, long hallways? Cluttered/crowded rooms (such as broken furniture that litter the room, ect)? Doors that are locked (In my mod, there will be at least 1 or more times where a monster flys out behind a locked door after passing through it)


Answer: Small narrow hallways, with lots of corners and curves and such, nothing long or large open spaces, just very condensed.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters? Such as how they look? How fast they are? How alert they are? How they make themselves present (such as suddenly jumping out of a ceiling vent) The sound they make? The sound they make when they kill you (I don’t know about you, but the wolf eating you alive in Overture demo scared the hell out of me whenever I saw a wolf in the official game, I just hated that sound)


How they look? Take Alma from FEAR or the girl from the Ring. Anything that looks as though it would be a minor threat to you (such as an old lady) and actually turns out to be a nightmare from hell, is scary as shit. Any random appearance is freaky, and certain signs (flickering lights, whatever) that are present each time befor the monster appears to forewarn you (if you notice) just add to the freakiness, because then you know that it's coming, but you don't know when.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting? Are you more scared looking in a slightly lit room, or a pitch black room with just your flashlight?

Dimly lit hallways are so much creepier then pitch darkness. That way you can use shadows and such to hide enemies, but still have a realistic setting for your character to be moving through. It's creepy stuff those dimly lit hallways.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work? Should your flashlight a wider beam, but less lighting power ? Or should it have a more focused, but brighter beam? Or should there be 2 flashlights? One being a wider effect (less power) and a more direct beam?

Either or really... doesn't matter to me.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster? Should it be like the Tech Demo, very rare, or should it be like overture E1, where seeing a monster isn’t too rare of a deal?

It should be rare enough. You don't want to have enough monsters that the player gets used to their presence, but just enough to keep them pissing themselves all the time. FEAR is another great example, as you encounter Alma every now and then randomly, but not all the time.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play (You are told where to go, and there is only one way to get there, making you go through almost all the rooms in the game)? Or do you like non-lintier game play (Where you are told where to go, but there’s multiple ways to get there, and you might not go into all the rooms in the game)?

Non-linear definetly. You have to find a way to navigate through the hellhole yourself, meaning you can't just run screaming through the level like a little pansy.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker? Such as a hellish thing started deeper inside the place you’re in, and it’s only recently getting to the top levels of the place? (Where you start in the tech demo)

Depper and darker for sure.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses? It would be a scare to have the player see something covered in the corner of an empty room. The player goes over to uncover it, when he has it uncovered halfway, the game plays a sudden shriek or scream (not from the corpse) or the door suddenly slams shut.

Really good ideas actually. And lots of blood. Just blood, randomly. FEAR combat features a level of an insane asylum that has bloody matresses in some rooms. Random, yes, unexplained, true, but inevitably freaky as shit.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point? Such as whenever The Roach reaches Point A, it has a 50% chance to head to either Point B, or Point C. And it has that chance whenever The Roach reaches Point A.

Yeah, it shou,d patrol, that way even if you know your way through the level, you can't predict where the scary stuff will be, adding horror in the replay value.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there? Such as there’s a 10% chance for a wolf to be in the map, other whys it wouldn’t be there at all? (Would make it fun to see a wolf at a hallway you thought was safe)


That's a great idea. I wouldn't necessarily call it fun, but it would certainly be scary as hell.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline (such as E1) or should it be more like the Tech demo, which would be a lot easier for me. Or should it be a mix?

I think it should definetly have a story line. When you know more about the characters, things get less shock horror and more thrilling. It's great stuff.


I hope this helps

 

[Massive_attack]

what scares me ?

bjork - where is the line ?

http://www.radioblogclub.com/open/31696/bjork_where_is_the_line/Bjork - Where Is The Line

Thats the scariest sh*t ive ever seen. (or rather, heard)

 

[brad.dude03]

what else scares me is a techno remix of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "O' Fortuna" there is one...and its weird!!!! i dont understand why someone would remix something like this...but it happened. add that to your game an i may run away in fear.

Heh I have it. And is that Mozarts? It's part of the Carmina O Beurona is it not? Or is that Mozarts too? I dunno classical shit, either way, that techno remix kicks ass.

I'll put it in a map just for you.

 

[GST_Nemisis]

well im not exactualy sure but i first heard the remix on here when Massive_Attack linked it too me:

http://www.radioblogclub.com/open/1...ng Amadeus Mozart - O' Fortuna (Techno Remix)

where it claims it was composed by Mozart....it doesnt really matter who composed it anyways, its crazy no matter what.

 

[DarkDenizen]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Sewer pipes, preferably with a few inches of something worse than water. Also, hige, dark caves, preferably with small cliffs on the sides just a few feet wide that you have to walk along. Cluttered rooms with nasty critters will do in a pinch.


Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Monsters should be really big. As big as they reasonably can be. Also, mutants or scientific experiments are very scary. Make them act like the poison headcrab zombies from Half Life 2.


Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Dim lighting s my favorite. Not pitch black. Make it so that you have almost enough light to see by, and in some places normal light.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Make it variable. Also, make it run out of batteries quickly.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Monsters should be met randomly. Make it so that you aren't running into a constant stream of them, but enough that you never feel safe.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Hell no. If you do make things linear, make sure there are several logical ways to solve any given problem.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Yes, but you should do things like make a part or two where you go back up the the ground floor or get a window outside, just enough to tease you with freedom. A bit like the original Half Life did in places.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Only very very rarely.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No, they should be running around randomly. Make them seem animalistic.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Yes.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
Yes, but don't make it something that restricts the player.

 

[Minotour]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?

I think it would be large areas, with no places to run, blood dripping from the ceiling,and most of all, growling/babies crying in the background at some point.
Question 2: What scares you in monsters?

Very sneaky, skinny tortured looking monsters, Say a man looking monster, with a strap of rag around his eyes, acting as a blind.. His jaw ripped off. And hooks pulling the skin on his back, and the other side pulling the skin on his cheek.Sometimes elderly looking monsters, that seem like a person,than grow wings and horns and their eyes glow red, and they blow fireballs at you. Or a small child.
Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Flickering lights, and pitch black.
Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
You should have so many minutes before the batteries run out.
Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Very rarely.
Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Not very much.
Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Yes.
Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Only a small amount, Don't mass the corpses.
Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No.
Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Yes, that would be great.
Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
Indeed, It would be a drag without a storyline.

 

[Dil999]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
I like the map layour to be random but still have some reason to it. Its fun to not know where your going so you have to wander and potentially get lost in the level.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
In monsters i feel the scariest thing is how they show up. For example, if you see it coming from 20 feet away its not as scary as if your walking with a flashlight giving you a 2 inch sight radius and suddenly have those 2 inches filled up with monster face.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Having things such as almost dead flickering lights always sets the mood quiet well. I can imagine an old light flickering in the corner, giving you full sight of the room for a second, none for 5 seconds, back and forth. This goes back to helping the monsters present themselves scarily.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
I think it should be a very narrow beam, and that it shouldnt have a constant intensity. it should be flickering between weak and strong.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
I think you should meet the monters not too often, because meeting it too often removes the sense of fun and just makes it repeated Kill walk Kill walk Kill. if you make the monster a deadlier force which you have to be strategic to kill it adds a sense of fear to the gameplay that it will be right behind you.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
I enjoy it when you have a single goal, but which may take a long time to complete. For example, you may have to make it somewhere, so you would have to first activate the power in X place, allowing you to take the elevator to Y place.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
I think it should start our pretty dark, and get darker over time. A great idea i had was making the flashlight get dimmer as you go deeper, as if the air was getting thicker filled with dust.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Yes, corpses add to the mood and fear factor of the game alot.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No. It is better when you dont know when or where you will confront your enemy instead of having a set point where you go to kill stuff.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
There shouldnt be any monsters immediately when the game loads. This would just lead to frustration and doesnt give the time for the fear or suspense to built up.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
Yes, i think it should have a rough storyline but it shouldnt have any type of set path you HAVE to go on. There should be choices of where to go.

 

[Deminisher]

5 VERY important things to keep in mind.

I can tell you right now the key of fear in movies/games.
1 : Music, creepy music is a absolute must in anything horror related. Would you be afraid of a zombie approaching to the song I'm Walking On Sunshine? No, I don't think so. Creepy music boosts the horror attribute in everything.

2 : Lighting is very important. It is important to not have it to dark, to where it is impossible to see the events. Or to bright, to where things are to visable. You must keep lighting down just right at all times.

3 : A Ratings, it sounds crazy but a naked being is much more creepier than a clothed one.

4 : Element of surprise. Now, this is effect is ruined in ohmost every horror movie to date simply because they make the mistake of either hinting towards it, or taking to long for whatever it is going to happen to take place. The faster you throw it out there the better, but not to sudden, it will seem like a pop-up book horror, nobody likes those.

5 : Unknown, one of the most scary things is not knowing what/why/how something is or came to be. Make things strange, and try not to give to much of a explanation to why it is there, or how it came to be. When you don't know what you're face to face with, it can be pretty scary.

And thats all I got for you, hope it helps.

 

[Deminisher]

Ok, now for the questions you asked.

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
-Shrug-

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
When you can't pinpoint what they are, or how they even came to be.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Dim rooms, Pitch black corners, very dark hallways.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Dim, sometimes flickers

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Make it a moderate rate, make them expload from random area's.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Gameplay needs to be at least moderate in all sections before being any good.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Sure.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Few.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
No, monsters should never really be in plain view.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Of coarse.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline.
There should be a story-line but not in depth, that way you can use you're own thoughts to come up with whats going on, but never really know for sure.

 

[Teh_Ephy]

Two things"

1. Double posting is not allowed, make that one post.
2. You could have done that in one post anyways.

 

[WindexGlow]

Thanks for all the answers so far people, I'll +rep you tomarro.

 

[Redeemer59]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?


Pretty much any place with nowhere to run. Hiding means nothing to me, running is about it. Anywhere that corners you, basically.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?


Things that eat stuff alive in front of you, and then turn their dripping maws towards you and hiss/snarl. In terms of shape and size, anything completely alien and incomparable to anything I've ever seen. Think along the lines of Zerg or Scrin.

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?

Just light enough to make out shapes. That's it. You may as well be blind. I know that kind of lighting scares the crap out of me.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?

Both. Or a choice. Either one has potential for scares.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?

Often enough to keep you on your toes, but not so often it becomes trivial. Like, one every couple rooms or something.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play

I personally think a less-linear style would benefit horror more.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?

Depends. Just as long as the level of eeriness stays high.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?

Plenty. As mauled, deformed, battered, and half-eaten as possible.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?

/shrug, I'd say just have them all hide.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?

Variation would be nice, yeah.


Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline

Your choice, I dont care either way personally.

 

[mikke95]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Hmmm, creepy small places or BIG forests, anything where its hard to escape


Question 2: What scares you in monsters?

You know ''Scream'' right? the famous horror film, well he is creepy
And Texas chainsaw massacre, maybe something simulair,
Wearing: Mask, old cloths
And pretty big and using a meele weapon, axe, knife, or anything
And some animal sound for making him ''Unhuman''

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Lighting? Well, something that blinds you in 1 sec sometimes(Tell me if this wrong cause i don't understand it)

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?
Not good, sometimes turns off and not to flashy, thats scary!

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Hmm maybe when the game starts after 5 min, and when you don't expect it! ';..;'

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Sry i don't understand?

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Hmm, darker could be cool, and smaller rooms, but the players should dare to go further in !

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Many, with blood everywhere.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
Hmmm, i don't get it again...!!! :-(

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
I doooon't geeet iit...

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline
Yep of course maybe a story about a serial murder or something!

Sry if im wrong within these questions and my bad understanding!

 

[SilverScyth1023]

1.Long hallways leading to a very deep darkness.
2.Monsters that have complete awareness of your position if they see you and that pop out from anywhere....literally.
3. Rooms that have light in it but so dim you can't see the whole room and feel safe.
4.Wide beam but have somewhat of a distance.
5.Rare so when a monster comes out you jump a little.
6.No i like having several choices to see which is best
7.It should start out dark to begin with a give a creepy feeling but as you go farther in it gets darker and darker.
8.Yes but in a good amount and in the right places to give most creppiness feeling.
9.Yes.
10.Yes so it keeps ya guessing whats there.
11.Yes but a small one with open room for enjoyment and freedom

 

[SilverScyth1023]

1.Long hallways leading to a very deep darkness.
2.Monsters that have complete awareness of your position if they see you and that pop out from anywhere....literally.
3. Rooms that have light in it but so dim you can't see the whole room and feel safe.
4.Wide beam but have somewhat of a distance.
5.Rare so when a monster comes out you jump a little.
6.No i like having several choices to see which is best
7.It should start out dark to begin with a give a creepy feeling but as you go farther in it gets darker and darker.
8.Yes but in a good amount and in the right places to give most creppiness feeling.
9.Yes.
10.Yes so it keeps ya guessing whats there.
11.Yes but a small one with open room for enjoyment and freedom

 

[NearbyHermit]

Lol Moon guess that ure new here

 

[Kaitech[SanD]]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?
Question 2: What scares you in monsters?
Question 3: What scares you in lighting?
Question 4: How should your flashlight work
Question 5: How often should you meet monster?
Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play
Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?
Question 8: Should there be any corpses?
Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?
Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?
Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline

1. Lots of rooms, lots and lots of rooms...
2. Well, monsters, I find Spiders scary so I guess a lot of legs and creepy..
3. Lightning, or sitting in a room with a candle then it goes out.
4. Oooh, shouldn't start with it, make it a buff..
5. Make it random.
6. Let them go freely.
7. No, don't get darker, get lighter, as if they go to a power core, then get darker.
8. Definately, corpses are only rubbish if your people are getting poofed away by wizards.
9. Yes, definately
10. Yes, this creates randomness, so that no game is the same, if a game is the same it's not worth playing.
11. Noo, no storylines, except maybe an intro story.

 

[SilverScyth1023]

Veins are possibly the scariest ass thing in the world. Jesus christ they make me want to look away, I can see a guy get chopped in half by a clown's teeth but so help me god I cannot bear to watch anybody or anything for that matter slit their wrists.

i agree completely
(sorry about the double post and no ive been here a while just been quiet)

 

[NearbyHermit]

Agree with both u guys when i see cutdown veins i kinda think of my own an start to have the chills

 

[MaD_cOw_DiSeAsE]

1: Open areas where wherever you run, you might hit more monsters
2:Very fast monsters scare the stuff out of me, ones that charge, or jump at your and slice you with claws and make load screeching noises when they see you (Playing HL2 on hard in ravenholm with those fast screeching zombies was scary, I hadn't known HL2 could be scary until then) (ranged monsters aren't scary), also monsters coming from odd places (Floor, cracks in wall, maybe even a ninja-style monster)(smart monsters are also scary, dumb slow ones are just dumb and slow)
3:If there was a way for it to be pitch black except your flashing but every once in a while a light flickers and you can see outlines of monsters
4:If you've played doom that flashlight is scary because its a little beam, and you cant shoot while its out, it should be like that
5:Not too often, I think its more scary to walk down a dark hall tense, waiting for something to happen
6:Not really
7:A generator could go out or something on some floor to make it darker
8:A few disemboweled corpses
9atrolling monsters can be scary if you're trying to sneak past them and they stop every once in a while and maybe turn around randomly and go the other way
10:I totally hate this in games, because it get me very lost because usually if I see monsters I haven't been this way yet, but yes it does make it scarier
11:If you make the storyline well , if you're not good at that at least make a little story

One more thing, if there's a part where it forces you to walk backwards while shooting, thats always scary because there might be something behind you

 

[WindexGlow]

This be the day the developers released the tools!
I"ll +rep everyone when my orgasm has gone down from it. Might take a few days though D:
THERE ARE NO GUNS IN THIS GAME. while you can kill monsters in the game, IT WILL BE VERY DIFFICULT TO KILL ANYTHING WITHOUT USING THE ENVIRONMENT (dynimate near a hot water pipe, this will make it crack and cause hot steam go through it)

 

[Elenai]

My greatest fears:
being buried alive.
Hights (when I don't have any thing to keep me stable).
Insects and bugs (at a distance the're ok but not near me).
A dishonerable death.

 

[Dr00d]

To go with Elenai's post, I'm not going with the questions.

I'm afraid of dieing without a cause really. If I am murdered in my sleep, that would suck.

If I dei trying to save someone, that would be a dream come true.

I don't want my death to be meaningless, THAT is my bigest fear.

 

[Darkey]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?


As I can remember, as a child I've for some reason feared to be in a gigantic room. But the space we are talking about is even bigger than a curch so nothing like it really exists, it's just my mind that's fucked up.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?


It's unpredictability. (Smart monsters that is)

Question 3: What scares you in lighting?

I don't like the idea of having a flash light in a pitch black room, who knows what you might see?

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?

Like a sun.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?

Hard question, they shouldn't have a predictable pattern, like jumping out of a dark corner, that lame.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play

Non-lintier game play is the way to go.

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?

Probably I guess, depends on what you got in store for me.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?

Nah, that'd be too predictable, maybe a little blood, but no visible corpses. Just empty silence.

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?

If it's randomized yes, since that way it's more unpredictable.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?

If not any monsters, there should be some way to creep the crowd out.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline

Preferable yes, I don't like games when you just get dumped in a dark spot and a text showing something like: Get to the other side of the building before the time runs out our you will be raped for no reason. A story line is needed to improve the effect of a map.

 

[Elenai]

I have new fears to add.

Demon like children, possesed babies, and the sounds of screaming children. that gives me the quakes.

 

[Ihaterednecks]

Acidic Yoshi skeet in my eyes.

 

[SimonKurciski]

Question 1: What scares you in geometry, such as map layout?

Dimly lit, narrow halls that sometimes leat to pitch black open spaces.

Question 2: What scares you in monsters?

Something dangerous that I cannot see. Something that grabs you in the shadows and rips your liver out.


Question 3: What scares you in lighting? [/b]

In narrow, smallish spaces, just dark enough to be able to see hwo mush you can't see. In wide, open spaces, pitch blackness.

Question 4: How should your flashlight work?

Very dim and wide or bright and narrow. Make it not reveal much.

Question 5: How often should you meet monster?

Rarely, and make encounters short but terrifying.

Question 6: Do you enjoy linear game play

NO

Question 7: As you go deeper inside the place you’re in (where the elevator leads you from the tech demo) should it get deeper and darker?

Yes, definatly.

Question 8: Should there be any corpses?

Yes

Question 9: Should monsters have a chance to patrol a certain point?

No, meeting monsters should be completely random and unexpected.

Question 10: Whenever a map loads, should there be a chance for a monster to appear/not be there?

Eh. Indifferent about this one.

Question 11: Should this mod be centered on a storyline

There should be a stroyline, but not too linear.




Whatever you're doing sounds really cool, WindexGlow. Will you let us know when it's done?