[SPOILER] Robosprog's Views on Game Design

[daortir]

Interesting points in the last part of your OP : ).

I disagree with involving stealth in every monster encounter though, mostly because I don't think there is a "better" type of encounter than another. A well made "IN YOUR FACE" monster spawn after a great tension buildup is in my opinion as good as a stealth phase after seeing the monster lurking in the level for 15 minutes. Both are equally great to me and I don't think FG included chase scenes in their game for no reason. They are really a very tense moment after a lot of buildup and stealth gameplay : I feel like stealth gameplay and nervous chasing parts really complement each other.

The waterlurker chase scene in the flooded archives occurs after 5-10 minutes of cautious walking and jumping, that's why it was such a stressful moment imo.

So yeah, I agree that stealth is a great way of making scary encounters, but I also feel like a game based only on stealth would be boring without a bit of pure, slightly brainless adrenaline.

(no big deal, but shouldn't you rename this thread Robosprog's views on survival horror game design ? Because I don't see anything here that is a general thought on game design ^^. I mean, the part you call "general game design monster encounter" focuses only on monster encounters made to scare you. Which has nothing to do with game design in general : /. Anyway doesn't matter a lot.)