Game Design Analysis - Delivering Dread 1/2

Before we begin; yes, this is a obligatory spooky post for October.

Oooooh, so spooky!

This will be part one of a two part analysis on the sense of fear and dread in video games. This post will focus on delivering dread through frightening visages and 'jump scares'; with the following post focusing more on the dread caused by subtle scenarios and audio.

Both posts will talk about scares that happen in popular video games, so [Scare Spoilers Ahead]? However no story will be discussed, so you're safe there.

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So the first thing that comes to most people's minds when you begin discussing scary games is horrifying sights, usually accompanied by sudden loud noises. These are affectionately(?) referred to as 'Jump Scares".

Jump Scare Simulator... Now please flinch.

The most notable games that use jump scares is the Slenderman Games and the Five Nights at Freddy's franchise; both of which are games that all gamers probably know about, willingly or not, and both of which are/were pretty popular. The main draw of these jump scare type games is the sudden shock each player experiences (usually when they die...). Every time those monsters jumps out of the darkness the players experience a rush, that shock and brief moment of panic. Those moments are what most players want to feel, and what most player want to overcome to succeed. It is akin to a right of passage. You came, you saw, you flinched and you finally succeeded in overcoming the shock to win the game. To be a successful mechanic jump scares have to be spread out or unpredictable enough that the player can never expect when the next one will come. In Five Nights at Freddy's this is the moment when players check on the doors and peer out into the darkness. While staring out into the darkness the players have to pause and make a sudden decision that will decide if they live or die and the wrong choice ends with a, sometimes adorable, animatronic ripping you to pieces.

While the shock tactics of jump scares are common place and most known by gamers they are also leave little impact overall. After the initial flinch and a second or two to collect oneself there isn't a lasting feeling of dread. One spike in adrenaline and then that's it. If jump scares are too common place in a game then they also become a nuisance more than a frightening mechanic. So there is a fine line that one must ride when crafting a shocking experience.