Summary
While the “ghost ship” may have cemented itself as a horror trope in fiction, its role within video games has expanded from that of exclusively nautical vessels to even the bounds of intergalactic transport.
From long-lost space transports to sunken wrecks bulging with treasure, the “ghost ship” trope may be often used in fiction but that has done nothing to quell the fear that many players will undoubtedly feel when traversing within them.
While the annals of decrepit ghost ships in video games are unsurprisingly filled with examples from the thriller and horror genres, that is not to say that haunted vessels are exclusive to terror-fuelled experiences. Case in point is the setting and atmosphere of the “Abandoned Ship” ofPokemon’s third generation.
Nestled in Route 108 - between the Gym towns of Dewford Town and Slateport City - within Hoenn’s vast oceanic waterways, the S.S. Cactus, known to players as the ‘Abandoned Ship’ is a rare insight intothe darker side of the typically family-friendly Nintendo franchise. With rusted portholes and rotted-away doors and floorboards, the hazy waterlogged fate of the S.S. Cactus adds to the gloomy tone of the ship. Bolstered by a chain of locked doors and hidden keys on the ship’s lower levels, which are only accessible after players have access to the Dive HM and leads to the Captain’s Office and hidden Scanner item, the sunken fate of the “Abandoned Ship” is a uniquely chilling location in thePokemonfranchise.
Originally touted asa passion projectofPapers, PleasedeveloperLucas Pope,Return of the Obra Dinn’s eight-hour narrative surrounding the fictional 1802 disappearance and further apparition of the titular merchant vessel is an experience that is uniquely focused on the fate of the ship’s former crew.
Using a paranormal pocket watch to relive the last moments of the 60 souls who were lost on the Obra Dinn’s voyage round the Cape of Good Hope, players must surmise the identity and fate of every passenger. Displayed in a retro-inspired black-and-white binary image style, the Obra Dinn’s South African travels were filled with all manner of dangerous occurrences; from the paranormal to the mystical, and murder.
Similarly to the claustrophobic tone of recent immersive sims such as 2007’sBioshock,Close to the Sunnot only traps players within the bounds of one location but gives it a ghastly personality of its own. Set within the crumbling decadence of the ocean liner Helios,Close to the Sun’s"unbound utopia" is transformed by “the stench of rotting flesh.”
Inan alternative-future 1897, where technological powerhouses Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla fight for superiority over the globe, the quarantined halls of the Helios are home to the last gasps of many of its guests, ranging from proclamations of cruelty, passion, and heartbreak. As players unravel the mystery ofClose to the Sun, the art deco-inspired glamour of the Helios begins to peel away, and the corruption of Tesla’s utopian vision for humanity gleams through.
While players spend most of their time during 2015’s survival horror titleSOMAwithin thecramped confines of the underwater Pathos-IIresearch station, the safety and hope that the MS Curie submersible symbolizes becomes too tantalizing to ignore.
As such, although its hull has been reclaimed by the sea and is damaged beyond repair, the player ventures further into its metal corpse to investigate further. Unfortunately, the halls of the MS Curie are being similarly stalked by the terrifying humanoid figure of a Flesher. The MS Curie’s last gasp of life is used by the player to eject its escape pods it self-destructs, taking with it the Flesher but also one of the shining hopes for those trapped underwater within Pathos-II.
Although most ofAlien: Isolation’s 18-hour runtimeis spent on board the darkened confines of Sevastopol Station hiding from a skulking Xenomorph, the role of the USCSS Torrens as a ferry for Amanda Ripley to the dying space station and as a hope for escape is paramount to the game’s narrative.
While damaged nearAlien: Isolation’s start, and threatened with being dragged down by Sevastopol Station itself, the USCSS Torrens' place within the title’s final moments is gripping and terrifying. With a striking interior similarity to the USCSS Nostromo from the originalAlienmotion picture, the Xenomorph’s ferocious spree transforms this nostalgic design into a horror-inspiring setpiece that is seemingly lost in the endless vacuum of space as Ripley throws herself and the titular Alien out of the spacecraft’s airlock.
Within their role as the existential threat of the entireMass Effectuniverse, the position of Reapers is that of a purely antagonistic force that should be approached with immense caution due to their destructive capabilities. As such, the existence of the Derelict Reaper orbiting Mnemosyne that players can venture withinduringMass Effect 2is a wholly unique one in the series' history.
With a team of Cerberus researchers having gone silent on board the formerly sentient ship, players find themselves similarly trapped when they venture within the Derelict Reaper to surmise their fate. Traversing within the organic hull of the series' greatest enemy faction is an immensely panic-inducing experience, and the existence of the Husks of the research team adds to the horror-inspired themes of bioorganic terror.
Based on the somewhat factual reports of a missing vessel of the same name, the fate of the SS Ourang Medan during the eponymous narrative horror title from Supermassive Games is as terror-inducing as it is open to interpretation.
Abandoned for 72 years before being discovered by the player’s group of amateur divers, the WW2 cargo ship is home not only seemingly to pirates and supernatural beings but a hearty dose of very real danger for the friend group. Trapped in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, players navigating the rusted and decrepit hull ofThe Dark Pictures: Man Of Medan’s ship are tasked with the twisted challenge of keeping every one of the avid explorers alive while exploring the dark corners and rotted glamor of the 20th-century freighter.
Regardless of whether players experience the dense body horror and claustrophobia ofDead Space’s USG Ishimura within the bounds of the third-person survival horror’s original 2008 release or the 2023 remake, the terror of the CEC’s flagship remains the same.
With the arachnid-esque Necromorphs taking cruel advantage of the Ishimura’s low emergency lighting and ventilation systems, and the suffocating expanse of space blocking any form of escape, players have no choice but to force themselves through the ship’s deathly quiet halls. Existing almost as a gasping creature itself, the USG Ishimura is not only the setting for arguablyone of the most influential horror titles of the seventh console generation, but one of the scariest horror-title locations in the entire genre.
