‘What Game Scared You?’ Developer Q&A

To celebrate Halloween, Gamecloud has published a Q&A in which several different developers share their stories about the scariest game they’ve ever played. There are several classic horror titles mentioned, but I’d have to second the vote for the hotel level of Troika’s Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines:

Matt Zimmitti – Tilted Mill: To throw in my two cents I’d have to say that the (Haunted Hotel) level of Troika’s Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines has some of the creepiest gameplay moments I’ve experienced in a long time. It’s a wonderfully crafted level that starts with tons of cheap but effective gags (falling chandelier, picture falling off the wall). Over time it builds up to a much more serious tone with phantasms appearing just for a moment as you turn to look where a strange sound came from, etc. When you finally make it to the basement and find a newspaper with a gruesome headline (“Child’s Severed Head Found in Hotel Laundry Room!”) you realize that you have more than just some run-on-the-mill Scooby Doo mystery on your hands.

Going back and playing the game again with other characters, I always rush through that level as fast as I can even though I already know what is going to happen. Good stuff.