In video games, we have seen over the late 90s and further, there’s been many games that feature paranormal investigations. This seems to be a reoccurring theme in survival horror games, to various extents. Alone In The Dark, the original survival horror game, set the bar for many games to come, including Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Siren, and later entries like The Evil Within. The three game series I am about to cover make me believe that there really is monsters in my closet.
Alone In The Dark 1 was loosely based on the works of HP Lovecraft, a famous horror writer who appeared to know much about things of supernatural means. He was rumored by his family to truly be a necromancer himself. Alone In The Dark featured a paranormal investigator named Edward Carnby who was investigating a strange mansion. Many games came after this one in the series all revolving around paranormal investigation involving monsters that are anything from werewolves, zombies, and giant worms in the attic. (Yes, the attic!) Later games even had Zombie pirates and a true “ghost town”. The Resident Evil and Silent Hill series were both rumored to take elements off of this groundbreaking series that last had a game in the original Xbox era. There was even an Alone In The Dark movie that starred Christian Slater and featured music from Nightwish.
Silent Hill is worth mentioning here, the game debuting on Playstation One. The first game, as I said, took off of Alone In The Dark. Harry Mason is investigating bizarre monsters appearing in the town of Silent Hill. (A real town in the United States that is found in Pennsylvania! It also is in ruins like in the game.) The series revolves around a horrendous incident that involved a young girl named Alyssa that was burned to death. This game series was so popular that it had two major motion pictures that were based on the games. The game has many monsters and demons in it, and some creatures are said to be manifestations of the characters’ mind.
There is one other unsung game to note. Siren, and its Japanese language sequel, are games that has a river turn blood red. The countryside becomes infested with monsters, and the characters must escape with little to no help. I chose this game because of its bizarre story. A psychic helps people learn an odd power called “sight-jacking,” which allows people to see through others eyes. It is taught by an odd psychic who was apparently immortal. Many Japanese folklore and mythical legends are mentioned through various storytelling items. It's sequel never made it to America, but also enjoyed success in Japan, and the original game will probably be known as a cult classic forever for Playstation two.
These are the game series that make me squirm in my sleep. I constantly am given reasons by video games to be afraid of what lurks in the darkness of the night. Will I be a victim of the monsters out there, or will I someday become Harry Mason or Edward Carnby and be plunged into a nightmare come true? I hope you enjoyed this, as I love a good scare as much as the next guy. If anyone wants a current gen game that will make your night go creep, check out the forementioned game, The Evil Within, by Bethesda, who brought us the games Fallout 4, Skyrim, and Dishonored. It's one that gets stranger and stranger each moment you play it.
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