Survivor horror games are as dead as Dead Space – Reader’s Feature

A reader is upset to hear that EA is mothballing the Dead Space franchise and fears that the whole horror genre is doomed to the same fate.

I can’t say I’m surprised to hear that EA are putting Dead Space ‘on ice’. The developers did a fantastic job with the remake, but it was pretty obvious that it hadn’t sold well, just from the lack of buzz around it, from anyone other than existing fans. I think in hindsight that EA did overestimate its popularity and now both they, and any other publishers looking on, will be convinced that big budget horror doesn’t sell. And I hate to say it, but they’re probably right.

EA were trying to chase the success of the Resident Evil remakes but what they failed to appreciate, other than the fact that Dead Space isn’t as popular or as good, is that Resident Evil isn’t really scary. Resident Evil 7, seven years ago now, is the last time any of the games had any real horror element to them and that was only in parts.

If I were Capcom, I’d continue to tone down the horror aspects because it’s clearly what’s helping them to buck the trend of horror games never selling. That’s the opposite of what I want them to do but I’ve resigned myself to the fact that big budget horror is never going to be a thing.

The problems are well known by now: unlike movies, horror games aren’t any less expensive to make than other types of games and yet there is only a limited number of people that want to be scared and grossed out by a video game. Especially as they’re almost always single-player, which is very much not the fashion at the moment.

This is clearly why so many horror games recently have been so mild in terms of frights. I’d never even have known Alan Wake 2 was supposed to be a horror game if Remedy hadn’t said and the recent Alone In The Dark, while interesting in some ways, was pretty much the same.

A horror game without the horror can work, because that’s basically what modern Resident Evil is, but that means it’s got to compensate with top notch action and interesting characters/stories. And neither of those other games, or Dead Space, did that.

Like many horror fans I have real misgivings about Bloober Team remaking Silent Hill but one thing I can guarantee is that it’s not going to sell. If it’s authentic to the originals it’s far too scary for mass market appeal and it’s combat was never very good, or even the point of the game.

The initial wave of survival horror games, led by Resident Evil and Silent Hill, might not have necessarily been cheap in comparison to other games but they were made at a time when all games were much less expensive to make. You only have to look at Silent Hill 1 to see how small the budget must’ve been, so they could afford to be experimental and lean into the horror.

Nowadays, you do get some indie games doing that, although I feel too many of them are obsessed with making retro games that mimic the old Resident Evil titles. There’s disappointingly little innovation overall, which is disappointing consider how inventive other indie games can be.

Maybe I’m just feeling down because of what’s happened to Dead Space (which is ironic because it’s far from my favourite franchise) but I just don’t feel there’s much future for horror games. The costs, the risk of alienating players, and the obsession with nostalgia has been more successful than any monster or knife-wielding maniac, in killing off an entire genre.

By reader 84Colbat