Indie Horror Game Showcase

I recently discovered that Lone Survivor, an indie horror game, had been released. When I say indie, it is meant much in the same sense as an indie film. Indie or independent games are often created by small, unknown developers without the financial backing of a publisher. Indie games exist in every genre of gaming and can have just as many gameplay mechanics. In this post I will cover some indie horror games, including Lone Survivor.


Lone Survivor

Lone Survivor , created by Jasper Bryne, is a 2-dimensional side-scrolling survival-horror game. Players control a nameless protagonist who is struggling to survive as the last person alive after disease destroys the city's population(Bryne, 2012). The game is incredibly atmospheric and is directly inspired by Silent Hill in that players are open to explore the game world, which has a unique take on pixel graphics(Bryne, 2012). I tried out the demo and can say it is well worth the $10 he is charging for the full version.

The Chzo Mythos (5 Days A Stranger, 7 Days a Skeptic, Trilby's Notes, 6 Days a Sacrifice)

Created by Ben Croshaw, the Chzo Mythos is a horror game series that includes the above-mentioned titles(Croshaw, 2004). Also called the Days series, these games were made using the Adventure Games Studio engine and are presented and control like old, point-and-click adventure games, with the exception of Trilby's Notes. The games deal with Lovecraftian themes of ancient evil and the story spans a set number of days according to the number in the title(Croshaw, 2004). Most of the games in the series contain reoccurring characters such as gentleman thief Trilby(Croshaw, 2004). All of the Games are available for free (Croshaw, 2004).

Amnesia: The Dark Decent


Considered one of the best games of 2010, Frictional Game's Amnesia casts players as Daniel, a man who awakens in a castle with no memory other than his name(Frictional Games, 2012). As players roam the dark castle in search of Daniel's past, they encounter unspeakable horrors that take a toll on Daniel's sanity(Frictional Games, 2012). Sanity plays a major role in-game, and players must manage their sanity. Failure to do so causes the castle to peel away as Daniel is left trapped in his own mind(Frictional Games, 2012). The game's controls are similar to the developer's past work, which rely heavily on physics and contextual mouse movements (Frictional Games, 2012). An example of this is when players open a door, they click on the doorknob and either push or pull the door open by moving the mouse. Amnesia: The Dark Decent is available online or in stores for around $20 (Frictional Games, 2012).

Indie games offer a developer freedom to create their work without the constraints of creating for marketability and reaching an extremely broad audience under the influence of a publisher. This freedom extends into horror games, which many see as too niche to profit. Aside from the examples above, there are many Indie horror games available for almost every platform.


References


Bryne, J. (2012). Lone Survivor [Game Website]. Retrieved From: http://www.lonesurvivor.co.uk/


Croshaw, B. (2004). Fully Ramblomatic - Games [Games Page]. Retrieved From: http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/games.htm

Frictional Games. (2012). Amnesia: The Dark Decent [Game Website]. Retrieved From: http://www.amnesiagame.com/#main