Some people don't call this horror

It’s the year of the sequel. First RE, then SH (europe), then FF, then Resistance, now there’s another Dead Space oming out, for the Wii. Check out the Calendar for the links. I personally had a great time with Dead Space and I found it odd that a lot of people didn’t consider it to be Survival Horror. Because that’s definitely the genre, and if you stopped being scared of these games, I’m afraid desentization has reared it’s ugly head and it’s time for more active immersion. Set the mood, play in the dark, turn the volume up, let the game scare you. People have such high expectations while the moodsetting is half the fear. You don’t watch a horror movie during broaddaylight either.

Looks good when you squint

Played Alone in The Dark on the Wii and it’s absolutely horrible. I know that they wanted to reach a broader audience and I respect that, but everything feels so tacked on and outdated. Everything that made the Xbox360 (or even the PS3 version) is missing and the remaining skeleton is then dressed up with horrible motion controls. Opening the inventory is a hassle. There’s literally a faq out there to explain how people can open their inventory more easily. That fact alone is comedy gold. This is why I’m looking forward to Dead Space Extraction, so far it doesn’t look to be a rushed downgraded port. I’m not one to complain about games (I always appreciate the effort people go through to please my digital needs), but I’m afraid something horrible happened during production. It could have been fantastic, and now it’s just mediocre at it’s best.

I am Alive, but what am I about?

Ubisoft announced that I am Alive would see a release early 2009. I updated the Calendar, but I’m still sceptic. Trailer looks nice and all, but it doesn’t seem to have a really special element.

Finished Prey, which turns out to be another unique entry; there’s a really interesting layer beneath all the action. It’s not just a gravity-flipping, portal-running, free-flying shooter, it’s got some great story elements as well. Survival aspects are defintely there although itemselection is almost non-existant. They’ve also changed the ‘continue’ into a sort of minigame. Really interesting and it doesn’t break the game’s flow. The Horror is definetly everywhere, the only reason people aren’t accepting as such is probably due to the fast-paced firstperson perspective.

Expect a new defining moment soon.

Downloadable Content really extends the replay value of a game, but we all know the dark side of paying for things that should have just been included in the firstplace. For your interest;

Why isn't this considered Survival Horror...

There’s an expansion for FallOut 3 coming up. An already brilliant game gets a new mission pack with assorted extra’s (outfits and such). For only 800 MSpoints (Xbox360) it can be yours soon. Lead Producer Jeff Gadiner said it will take about 4-5 hours to complete on average, or 10 hours if you’ve never played videogames before. Operation Achorage is the first expansion out of a promised set of three. I’ll update the Calendar soon.

Another Game addition is pretty much exclusive to PC gamers, but won’t cost you any money. If you’ve ever played the Thing intensely, then you’ve already know the number one gripe gamers have with it: Most Burst-Outs are scripted.

...and this is?

Luckily, one big fan is trying to creating a mod to make ALL burst-outs unscripted. The final mod would even include the option to take Team Members with you to the next level. The modder says this makes the game far more difficult and will balance it out a bit more by adding more Bloodtests (finally usefull!) and such. Check it out here and show your support!

Left 4 Dead: Filled with fun

Been playing Left4Dead myself. Every major game-element gets introduced in the first movie, yet it’s still able to keep surprising you due to the level’s randomizer. Love the final stages wherein you have to dig in and defend your team against the hordes and hordes of undead. The resulting chaos is unparalelled.

Can’t wait for it’s DownLoadable Content either. New stages with new bosses are promised which would definitely improve the main game.

We owe so much to this guy

To kick things off immediately, I’ve added the first Defining Moment. It’s about Resident Evil, one of the games that pulled me (along with many others) into the genre, so a fitting first entry for the site.

The Calendar will also soon be open, detailing which Survival Horror Games are coming up. 2009 looks to be quite a promising year with many new installments of old powerhouses.

Look forward to more additions and news.