The murderous and deranged Jack Baker closes in to attack in Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. (Capcom)
If you’ve ever sat down to watch a horror film, you’ve probably found yourself shouting at the screen, imploring the main character to do something, anything, to avoid their inevitable fate.
Don’t open that door! Don’t go into the garage alone! You’re dead if you walk down that dark hallway — you know that, right?
Now, what if you were that person in the movie? Could you muster the courage to move ahead, knowing you couldn’t progress without letting the monsters out of the closet?
Therein lies the central allure of horror video games, exemplified by the recently released Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, the latest in a series that arguably defined the form.
In it, you play as Ethan Winters, an unassuming everyman who ventures into the muggy Louisiana bayou to search for his missing wife, Mia. He soon finds himself trapped in a dilapidated estate inhabited by the Bakers, a demented family with a penchant for murder and dismemberment.
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If you were a character in a horror movie, would you walk through this door? In Resident Evil 7 you’re faced with choices like this on a regular basis. (Capcom)
The aura of suspense and dread is amped up by the use of first-person camera, limiting your view to whatever Ethan can see in front of him.
It’s the perfect setup for someone or something to slither behind you as you peer into the dark corners of the estate. It also exemplifies why video games are such a fitting vehicle for this genre.
“Even the scariest horror film can’t compare to a well-orchestrated horror game, because as the instigator of the events, you literally can’t look away,” says Toronto-based game developer Benjamin Rivers.
“Games are not a passive form of media,” says Peter Counter, a horror culture writer and founder of the blog Everything Is Scary.
“If you close your eyes while watching a scary movie, you can avoid the parts that frighten you, but if you close your eyes while playing a horror video game nothing happens – the scary part just sits there waiting for you.”
Survival horror games
Released in 1996 for the Sony PlayStation, the original Resident Evil put players in the role of Jill Valentine or Chris Redfield, two special forces agents trapped in a giant mansion infested with zombies, monsters and elaborate booby traps.
It was a breakout hit in an emerging genre that would become known as “survival horror” games.
It spawned a franchise of over 25 games and spin-off titles that have sold more than 75 million copies, as well as a film series starring Milla Jovovich that has grossed more than $1 billion US worldwide.
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Source: CBC