Things that seriously creep you out

[RockyRan]

And I'm not just talking "kinda creepy". I'm talking something that seriously creeps you out, as in it hits your personal "creep nerve".

 

Let's keep this just with individual elements with games, not entire games. Also, let's keep this away from generic "jump scare" moments, but moments in a game that range from spine chilling to serious discomfort to just plain creepiness. And don't worry if it's something that's not MEANT to be outright scary. It can be something in a non-horror game.

 

I'm bringing this up because I believe people have a "creep nerve", similar to a "funny bone", where something in particular "resonates" with you personally, except for that something being particularly funny for you I'm talking something particularly scary/creepy for you.

 

I'll start off with an example of what I'm thinking of:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFeK9PwgjtI

 

This creeps me the FUCK out. The tingy, low quality of the "radio" (it actually eminates from a TV in-game) sound and the discordant nature of the "music" is pretty obvious, but it's also the fact that in-game this "song" only plays on an off-to-the-side TV in a completely trashed, collapsed, and darkened room in City 17. The image shown, as you guys probably remember, is the G-man standing on a boat in the middle of the ocean with a crow on his shoulder. Right after he adjusts his tie the TV turns itself off. And no, the TV isn't plugged into anything.

 

Just...*shiver*. I don't know why, but this is by far the thing that creeps me out the most of any game I've played in recent memory. It's subtle enough to not make it totally obvious in its creepiness, it's completely out of the blue, and listening to the audio of it even depresses me a little bit. These kinds of sounds have always creeped me out more than anything for some reason, but I think it's the subtlety above all. Far too many horror games are over-the-top and obvious, dampening the effect for me because I already know that I should expect it.

[Pirandello]

Dark corridors and faint noises. Which is pretty obvious as a creep-out in itself.

[Enervation]

In general, whispering really creeps me out (in a horror setting). Obviously if its like two guards whispering to each other in Splinter Cell I'm not going to freak out.

[「Advent Chaos」]

 

I never played Earthbound as a kid, and I sure am glad I didn't. A friend of mine remembered her experience and because of curiosity I checked out some gameplay videos. The whole concept of Giygas just leaves me an infinite feeling of nervousness, paranoia and illogical rationality. It's brief lines just spur my imagination into nightmare mode, my rational side is unable to keep me together and fear creeps inside, I just don't know...

When Giygas true form (part 2 and 3 of the video) is revealed and the background music (noise) that plays is just more to mess me up. Just like RockyRyan is creeped out by the radio sounds (which I am also, and by any regular static in AM) Giygas BGM noise just fills me with fear.

Edited May 4, 2011 by 「Advent Chaos」

[TheMightyEthan]

This isn't a video game, but the way the girl in The Ring moves creeps me the fuck out.

 

As far as video games go, the thing that creeped me out the most that I can think of is the -zombies? I don't even know what to call them- from Deadly Premonition. Not actually the zombies themselves, but the sounds they make, especially the ones that moan "Don't want to die...." as they're evaporating into the ground. Quite unsettling to me.

[Mr W Phallus]

I never actually played it as a kid, but when I finally got round to playing Ocarina of Time the game made me pretty depressed. It's a mixture of the crappy N64 textures and the actual horror present in the game. Coming out of the Temple of Time into the market square as an adult for the first time was a harrowing experience. Because of this, along with the general aimlessness of the open world and for some reason the fact I knew there were so many secrets that I'd barely scratch the surface of without a guide unnerved me so much that I stopped playing not long after becoming an adult (Edit:in game, duh).

 

I haven't worked up the courage to return yet.

Edited May 4, 2011 by Mr W Phallus

[Thursday Next]

In Black & White the game would whisper names and the "deeeeaaaath" (I think when a worshipper died). It only worked with common names, but any "Steves", "Johns" and "Daves" out there were rightly freaked out when they heard the game whispering "Steeeeeve... deeeeaaaath..." at them.

[TheMightyEthan]

Hahaha, that reminds me of this guy I know, his last name is Freeman. Well it freaked him the fuck out when he started Half-Life 2 and

 

 

He hadn't played Half Life 1, and didn't know the main character was named Freeman.

[P4: Gritty Reboot]

Underwater enemies, especially ones you can't see. Oh, and spiders that hang from the ceiling. Oh, and enemies that drag you to the ceiling. **Shudder**

 

[deanb]

They're called barnacles.

Just on Half Life the fast zombies freaked me out, hence it taking a couple years until I beat HL2.

[TheMightyEthan]

What I learned ITT: Apparently Half Life 2 is the creepiest game ever made.

[P4: Gritty Reboot]

They're called barnacles.

Just on Half Life the fast zombies freaked me out, hence it taking a couple years until I beat HL2.

Yeah, the barnacles, but also anything that drags you to the ceiling, like the Wallmasters in Ocarina of Time. Speaking of Ocarina of Time, this freaked me out as a kid:

 

 

[Kovitlac]

Atmospheric sounds, moody imagery and building tension really do it for me.

 

I've played a number of horror games in my time, some of which I found boring that other people love (Silent Hill). But I've almost never been as freaked out as I have been in Thief 3, during the Shalebridge Cradle mission (called Robbing the Cradle). Basically the Cradle used to be an insane asylum, and before then it was an orphanage. It caught on fire, and was abandoned. Garrett describes it as a 'house with bad dreams', which turns out to be quite right when you play through the mission.

 

 

This kinda stuff is what creeps me out. It's used quite a bit in Amnesia as well - building tension, when there really aren't any (or only few) enemies close by. The audio is also great in both games - distant screams, babies crying, voices with no visible speaker, etc.

 

I will admit though, that jump scenes really *do* scare me. I have a fear of loud sudden noises, so it's not the imagery that freaks me out. It's the loud noise usually accompanying it. But that's why I also play games like FEAR and Dead Space

[PanicDriver]

They're called barnacles.

Just on Half Life the fast zombies freaked me out, hence it taking a couple years until I beat HL2.

Yeah, the barnacles, but also anything that drags you to the ceiling, like the Wallmasters in Ocarina of Time. Speaking of Ocarina of Time, this freaked me out as a kid:

 

 

Oh yeah, this brings back memories when I got abonerscared of those silly creatures. Actually the whole Shadow Temple was pretty creepy. And the Grave yard.

[Pirandello]

This kinda stuff is what creeps me out. It's used quite a bit in Amnesia as well - building tension, when there really aren't any (or only few) enemies close by. The audio is also great in both games - distant screams, babies crying, voices with no visible speaker, etc.

I remember playing STALKER: SoC with the Complete mod once.

 

I was down in X18 (god forbid), when I started hearing noises of a little girl crying. Now, in X18, it is as quiet as shit, so when it started, it was pretty damn loud and made me jump from my seat. I freaked the FUCK out, and tried to locate whatever the fuck was causing it so I could kill it. Because there was no way in fucking hell that it was a little girl. Not in X-fucking-18.

 

And you know what? I was right. No sooner had I arrived at the location where I thought I heard it from, I was assaulted immediately by those trenchcoat-wearing dwarf dudes. Nothing bullets couldn't solve.

Edited May 12, 2011 by Pirandello