Amongst the more recent trends in horror games, Five Nights At Freddy's has created a popular jump scare experience based around a surprisingly simple idea.
Although a game, not a film, this particular example has very compatible links to the direction that this project is taking.
There are two elements to this game which I find particularly interesting. The first is setting/ environment, the second is the way that you experience it.
The game is set in a pizza restaurant, a place for fast food and children's parties. As part of this there are several mechanical creatures, such as Freddy the bear, that are used to entertain the children. However, at night, this place becomes very different.
As a night guard, your job is to look after the restaurant. But once the lights go out, the whole building turns from being an innocent children's pizza restaurant to something far more sinister. Everything is plunged into darkness and the every shadow could be dangerous. You begin to feel more and more paranoid and increasingly closed in with every second that passes. And this leads on to the second point.
The game is set in a pizza restaurant, a place for fast food and children's parties. As part of this there are several mechanical creatures, such as Freddy the bear, that are used to entertain the children. However, at night, this place becomes very different.
As a night guard, your job is to look after the restaurant. But once the lights go out, the whole building turns from being an innocent children's pizza restaurant to something far more sinister. Everything is plunged into darkness and the every shadow could be dangerous. You begin to feel more and more paranoid and increasingly closed in with every second that passes. And this leads on to the second point.
The way that the restaurant is explored is via the use of CCTV. You have visual access to the whole building through this network, allowing you to keep eyes on the creatures which have now come to life and are on their way to kill you. There is a catch though. Using the CCTV uses up power. But you also need this power in order to close the doors which seal you from the rest of the building in the event of the creatures getting too close for comfort.
This results in a vicious cycle of paranoia as you try to balance battery power between observation and protection. To make matters worse, you cannot move from your seat, you can only check the cameras.
This use of CCTV is so interesting to me. It means that the environment can become so familiar to you, but then change so suddenly. This is one of the reasons for Five Nights At Freddy's having such success with jump scares. The game builds up the tension through the footage that you observe, but you are aware all of the time that something is getting closer to you, whether you can see it or not.
I would love to capture this essence in my own work and use this balance of knowing, or suspecting, what is there regardless of whether or not it can be seen directly. Establishing a sign or marker or set of clues could be ways to do this. I will be experimenting greatly with these ideas.
This results in a vicious cycle of paranoia as you try to balance battery power between observation and protection. To make matters worse, you cannot move from your seat, you can only check the cameras.
This use of CCTV is so interesting to me. It means that the environment can become so familiar to you, but then change so suddenly. This is one of the reasons for Five Nights At Freddy's having such success with jump scares. The game builds up the tension through the footage that you observe, but you are aware all of the time that something is getting closer to you, whether you can see it or not.
I would love to capture this essence in my own work and use this balance of knowing, or suspecting, what is there regardless of whether or not it can be seen directly. Establishing a sign or marker or set of clues could be ways to do this. I will be experimenting greatly with these ideas.
www.screenshots.en.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/69695000/69695555/five-nights-at-freddys-05-700x395.jpg
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws-yd9YPfdE&spfreload=10
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws-yd9YPfdE&spfreload=10