It's a topic that has come up on various gaming sites recently... Many so-called "survival-horror" titles of this generation (such as Dead Space and Resident Evil 5) are taking more action-oriented routes to attract a larger audience, thus losing the "survival" aspect that many older horror games were known for.

But is survival horror slowly disappearing? Or is it simply evolving and adaptaing to suit a more mainstream audience? And if that's the case, is this change for the better?

Resident Evil 5 is joining Dead Space in a new quadrant of the survival horror genre. These games are akin to survival horror in their look and style, and sometimes in the trappings of their stories, but when it comes to gameplay, they are faster paced, and emphasize tighter controls and tactical decision-making, not the ability to use as few bullets as possible on hard-to-hit monstrosities. The reasons for these gameplay changes have been carefully examined by designers and gamers alike.

Most people believe that when the old survival horror controls (characterized by tank-like movement, awful aiming, and terrible hit-detection and avatar integration into the world) were upgraded, the old, shambling enemies in RE and the like were untenable. Supposedly, to make up for the players’ newfound maneuverability and combat prowess, enemies had to be made faster and more vicious, provided with long-range attacks, and imbued with a different kind of menace.

Gone are the days of skulking uncomfortably through dark mansions. Now, players run through decrepit villages, mines, spaceships, and castles, fending off hordes of vicious, infected humans. Understandably, people are accusing Resident Evil of straying from its venerable roots. It’s no longer truly frightening they say, just bloodthirstily fast and brutal. The same kinds of comments were made about Dead Space; people kept on talking about how Dead Space “was” Aliens, not the slower, more tension-conscious Alien. Regardless of whether or not the team behind Dead Space misrepresented their game (and the gameplay demos they gave showed just how vicious and fast the combat could and would be), the ways that these and other modern survival horror games (and their predecessors) produce horror are changing.

It should be mentioned that RE 4 does make some gestures at its predecessors. Many of the areas are foggy and dark, and the game’s early encounters can be eerie and creepy. Still, like RE 5, Leon Kennedy’s latest adventure degenerates into endless action set pieces, set in castles, labs and military facilities. The same could be said for Resident Evil 5, to a lesser degree. The designers remember how to scare you, using a pitch-black mine sequence where the only light source must be carried by one’s teammate. Aside from that though, it’s all action, and no fear.

Miss Razz via gametopius.com »