Resident Evil creator believes sequels to be a real problem in horror entertainment – Gaming news
Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami admitted that making sequels for horror genre is a big problem, as it forces developers to rely less on the scare factor and more on action.
While speaking with Eurogamer, the industry veteran pointed out that in sequels for horror games, players would already have a pretty good idea of who their enemies are. With the fear of the unknown and suspense compromised, the games find themselves significantly low on the scare factor, which in turn fills up a void.
In order to fill up that void and keep the game fresh, the developers are left with no choice but to fill it up with action, even at places where it does not really fit. This ends up ruining what was meant to be a scary and strongly engaging experience.
"Sequels are a big problem in horror entertainment," Mikami said. "As a horror game series continues you begin to know who the enemies are going to be. Just this knowledge naturally makes the game less scary. So to capture a wider audience designers add more action. That further reduces how frightening the game feels."
Mikami conceded that this was one of the many reasons why he decided to work on The Evil Within. By working on a fresh next-generation horror franchise, he will no longer find himself making any sort of compromises on the horror factor.
Another reason given by him to work on an all-new next-generation intellectual property (IP) is the graphics. He believes that they have reached to a level where he and his team can use them to truly frighten them.
"This has the capacity to make the fear much closer to you. We can add in a far greater amount of animation and make it context based, so, for example, we can change how a character moves in a certain situation," Mikami said.
Mikami admitted that he enjoys scaring people and that is why he is making the game. Rather than coming up with new ideas of doing that, he is simply aiming to go back to the roots of the survival horror genre.
The Evil Within is being developed by Mikami’s studio Tango Gameworks, with Bethesda serving as the publisher.
Tags: