Horror games provide some of the mostenthralling, atmospheric experiencesplayers can find on the shelves today. Few genres have the same attention to tension and tone as horror titles, with the intended feeling often being one of suspense, dread, or simple, outright terror. Even among the many subgenres within horror that exist today, such as survival horror or psychological thrillers, the best games available will instill players with this unsteady feeling they can’t quite put words to.
Horror games are not usually known for their combat, but the aforementionedsurvival horror formatdoes tend to give players a few more tools at their disposal. Between the many options of horror games available for players, however, there are some absolute gems that stand out beyond the rest. Unfortunately, among these gems, there are some titles that will nail their setting and atmosphere, but fall short where combat is concerned.
TheSilent Hillseries is known for many things. It holds one of themost disappointing cancelationsof all time as a badge of honor, it essentially rewrote the rules for atmospheric horror games on consoles, and it created one of the most iconic horror settings in any medium.
What it did not do, unfortunately, was revolutionize combat. Combat inSilent Hillis slow and clunky, and while this does make the many enemies in game more of a threat, it also can frustrate the player simply trying to navigate an area of the town.
While the remadeSilent Hill 2controversially decided torevamp the game’s combat, causing fans to stir at the faithfulness of this project overall to one of the best horror games of all time, the originalSilent Hill 2’s combat, while innovating on its predecessor, left much to be desired.
There were a few different weapons inSilent Hill 2, most of them improvised but effective in the right contexts, but the game’s clunkiness and occasional lack of hitbox detection made combat still less of a hit and more of a miss.
A Classic Horror Title That Shows Its Age
Sweet Home
How many people will be able to escape alive…?The cursed mansion, Mamiya Mansion. A myriad of horrors attack the five TV station staff members who visit this mansion where no one lives anymore.Doors close, ceilings collapse. The spirit of the Mamiya family appears.Seeking an exit, the battle of the five begins. Will they be able to find the exit? How many people will be able to leave this mansion alive?
Sweet Homeis a gem of a horror title, serving as the inspiration forResident Eviland, funnily enough, also being one of those rare video games that falls into the category of being a successful movie tie-in, being based on a Japanese horror film of the same name.
The turn-based combat is reliable, but often incredibly difficult to the point of frustration, and enemies often appear out of nowhere that are well beyond the party’s current capabilities.
The Start To An Avant Garde Horror JRPG Series
Koudelka
Wales, Great Britain, 1898. A group of three characters, including the beautiful medium Koudelka are drawn to the mysterious Nemeton monastery. The dark, deserted and foreboding place keeps within its walls a secret mystery of witchcraft and sorcery.3 bighly individual characters, all with a part to play in an epic plotIncredible FIV cinematics and an immersive musical acoreComplete voice-overs that create a true movie like experienceThrilling and strategie turn-baved combat sequencesHighly detailed 3D backgrounds that give a true gothie atmosphereThe best of Japanese RPG meets a fully European atyle plut and gameplay environment
Koudelka is a fantastic horror JRPG, celebrating the works of Gothic masters like Mary Shelley and the eldritch stories of Lovecraft. It’s a unique JRPG in so many ways, and so is its subsequent series,Shadow Hearts, with each titlehosting multiple endingsand an overarching story of mysticism and occult magic.
JRPG combat in this game is at its most sluggish, with fights often taking a while due to tanky enemies and some slow animations that can really bring down the pace of this otherwise fantastic game.
Preyout of Arkane Studios is an impressive, gripping sci-fi horror title with a lot going for it in terms of its environment design and the overall narrative. Talos 1 might bea small location, but it’s jam-packed with personality.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the game’s combat, which frustrated many with its lack of weight and impact, alongside the shallow variety of useful weapons and enemy placement.
2Resident Evil 2
Combat Can Detract From An Otherwise Great Atmosphere
Another opus of the horror genre, Resident Evil 2 and its predecessor were as influential asSilent Hillin bringing horror to an entirely new medium,beginning a franchisethat would host some of the best survival horror games of all time within its ranks.
The combat in this game does miss the mark however, with fighting generally feeling clunky and unsatisfying. Unlike the previous title, combat is more frequent in this game, and this draws more attention to the ways that it falls short.
We Happy Fewis a game with a fantastic premise, and to an extent, the execution of this premise matches suit, giving players a grim, stark environment they’re forced to navigate both sober and also while hopped up on dangerous hallucinogens.
But thissolid, unconventional titlehas weightless combat that fails to leave an impression - even if combat isn’t the core focus of the game, it’s unavoidable for the most part, and players will find themselves frustrated with how ineffective virtually all forms of combat feel in this title.
