Survival horror game

Survival horror is a prominent video game genre in which the player has to survive an onslaught of opponents, often undead or otherwise supernatural, typically in claustrophobic environments in a third-person perspective. Horror movie elements are used liberally. The player is typically armed, but not nearly as well-armed as the player in a shooter game. The player's goal is generally to escape from an isolated house or town that is inhabited mostly by zombies and monsters through shooting and puzzle solving. Isolation is generally one of the most recurrent themes within this genre.

History

The term Survival horror was first coined by Resident Evil (1996). The Japanese version (Biohazard) was marketed under the previously non-existent Survival horror genre on the game's cover. A line of text also displayed the phrase "Enter the world of survival horror..." while the game was loading.

Related Topics:
Resident Evil - 1996 - Japan

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Despite this, Alone in the Dark (1993) is considered to be the first survival horror title, though some feel that Halloween (1983) on the Atari 2600, Friday the 13th (1985) and Ghost Hunters (1986) on the C64, Transylvania (1986), on the Apple II, and Sweet Home (1989) on the NES are the fathers of the genre.

Related Topics:
1993 - Halloween - 1983 - Atari 2600 - 1985 - Ghost Hunters - 1986 - C64 - Apple II - Sweet Home - 1989 - NES

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The survival horror genre was popularized by Resident Evil (1996) on the PlayStation and Sega Saturn video game consoles. Resident Evil was heavily influenced by both Alone in the Dark and Sweet Home. ' (1995) predates Resident Evil, but it was only released in Japan and is not well known. D (1996) is perhaps the best known of a group of point-and-click horror games produced in Japan in the mid 1990s.

Related Topics:
PlayStation - Sega Saturn - Video game console - 1995 - Japan - D - Point-and-click - 1990s

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Clock Tower (1997) and Silent Hill (1999) created a group of survival horror games that focus on psychological terror rather than violence and gore. This category deemphasizes combat in order to increase the vulnerability of the protagonist and consequently build tension. Similar titles include Fatal Frame and Siren.

Related Topics:
1997 - 1999 - Tension - Fatal Frame - Siren

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