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why we love to be afraid...
ving Offline
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#1
why we love to be afraid...

I was thinking about the question Why do we love this game so much when it scares the crap out of us? It seems to me to be illogical that we would voluntarily place oursevles in a situation that would do that... I am guessing any that have put thought into this have felt the same way.

...Anyhow, for me its a bit of adrenalin, and a bit of I know there is light at the end of the tunnel and I am willing to sit there peeing my pants till i reach it. But all this thought made me want to do some research...

TO THE GOOGLE MACHINE!!!

My google search came up with heaps of hits as to why we love horror as a genre so much and i thought I'd share one with you... its a simple but interesting read.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/200...152040.htm
12-07-2010, 04:17 AM
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Aphotic Offline
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#2
RE: why we love to be afraid...

I've never been a satisfied with the "because we love to conquer the feeling" explanation, just because it seems like we DO crave the sensation of fear itself. After reading this article, though, I still remain unsatisfied. It tosses out the aforementioned explanation without giving much a replacement explanation other than "because we can measure it, and the people who avoid the fear seem to still enjoy it".

I don't think we should concern ourselves with why, though, lest we try and explain human nature. Personally, I'm content just knowing that I enjoy shitting my pants. =D
12-07-2010, 08:21 AM
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Alex7754 Offline
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#3
RE: why we love to be afraid...

Its not so much the being afraid I love, If that were the case I would think movies and games with creepy little girls and faces popping out enjoyable. To me the fear mostly is to force the player into immersion. For if your afraid and care about what might happen to your character you automatically will bring yourself into the moment and experience the situation with an attachment to the things happening. But as I said this alone isn't what makes it enjoyable. Once you are, "In It", what frictional games does so well is creating a strange lore to explore and making you think. "I don't understand" what are these monsters" "what was that, was it human" ..
I think Philip in penumbra can explain this further,- "Whatever I was going into was 200 feet below ground and blocked by two 6 inch steel hatches, hidden in the desolate reaches of northern Greenland." <--- (note this is not quoted word by word, just the best I can remember)

Also I like to be very afraid, so that occasionally I get the chance to be brave.

But that's just me, I would be curious at why other people like being afraid, or like to experience while in a frightful atmosphere.

Edit: Also, I think the fear in these games is more.. "feely".. then the fear in games like doom and condemned IMO, I never found games to tied to the human or even "paranormal" sides of horror scary. You might feel tense or afraid, namely of pain, but when there's just a crazy person hunting you with a rusty shank and you can look at the situation and understand why your afraid and of what it is your afraid of, Its near impossible at least for me to feel that feeling of boundless terror and fright. Its just to familiar in my opinion. Even in games like doom where a gate into hell is opened, hell by now is just a part of the human belief and is also familiar. So yeah that's how I feel. wow I didn't mean for this to go on so long what am I doing
(This post was last modified: 12-07-2010, 10:19 AM by Alex7754.)
12-07-2010, 10:02 AM
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MooseTheScared Offline
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#4
RE: why we love to be afraid...

(12-07-2010, 10:02 AM)Alex7754 Wrote: To me the fear mostly is to force the player into immersion. For if your afraid and care about what might happen to your character you automatically will bring yourself into the moment and experience the situation with an attachment to the things happening.

This is true for me, but "conquering the feeling" also takes place: I find comfort knowing that I am able to act and move towards the final goal in such terrifying environment as Amnesia provides.
(This post was last modified: 12-07-2010, 01:55 PM by MooseTheScared.)
12-07-2010, 01:55 PM
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Aphotic Offline
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#5
RE: why we love to be afraid...

See, that's weird to me, because I crave the fear itself.
12-07-2010, 08:15 PM
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MooseTheScared Offline
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#6
RE: why we love to be afraid...

Well, I don't think I ever desire to experience fear just for fear, but I can imagine this as a kind of curiosity, when one wants to know what it is like to be scared. And watching horror movies or playing horror games is a good way to satisfy this curiosity without exposing oneself to the real danger.
12-07-2010, 09:47 PM
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Alex7754 Offline
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#7
RE: why we love to be afraid...

(12-07-2010, 01:55 PM)Romendakil Wrote:
(12-07-2010, 10:02 AM)Alex7754 Wrote: To me the fear mostly is to force the player into immersion. For if your afraid and care about what might happen to your character you automatically will bring yourself into the moment and experience the situation with an attachment to the things happening.

This is true for me, but "conquering the feeling" also takes place: I find comfort knowing that I am able to act and move towards the final goal in such terrifying environment as Amnesia provides.

Yes I know what you mean.
12-07-2010, 11:13 PM
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hollowleviathan Offline
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#8
RE: why we love to be afraid...

Craving fear is just another way of craving challenge. People who insist on climbing the most dangerous mountain is the same urge, same instinct as people who spend the night in abandoned insane asylums with bloodstained mattresses. You want to feel a rush, something that feels impossible gives one just the same as something bone-chilling.
12-07-2010, 11:53 PM
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Crabski Offline
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#9
RE: why we love to be afraid...

I don't play horror games because I like the feeling of relief after beating them; I play because a really great horror game is one of the few things that can completely take me in. Being chased around in the Prison, for instance, is just so intensely terrifying that it completely immerses me in the world. I find myself running from the Grunts/Dogs/Infected/whatever just like I was running from them in real life.

Other forms of horror (books, movies) just don't come close to that level of immersion, and 95% of horror games are only mediocre anyway. FG is one of the few developers that always manages to get me. Big Grin
(This post was last modified: 12-08-2010, 01:20 AM by Crabski.)
12-08-2010, 01:13 AM
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sagdashin Offline
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#10
RE: why we love to be afraid...

(12-08-2010, 01:13 AM)Crabski Wrote: I don't play horror games because I like the feeling of relief after beating them; I play because a really great horror game is one of the few things that can completely take me in. Being chased around in the Prison (in Amnesia), for instance, is just so intensely terrifying that it completely immerses me in the world. I find myself running from the Grunts/Dogs/Infected/whatever just like I was running from them in real life.

Other forms of horror (books, movies) just don't come close to that level of immersion, and 95% of horror games are only mediocre anyway. FG is one of the few developers that always manages to get me. Big Grin

Indeed. Other (major) companies should be ashamed of themselves for being literally crushed by a (low-budget?) game made by an indie! Just look at the best awards nominees, jeeze. That's what I call efficency with money, and everything else..!
(This post was last modified: 12-08-2010, 01:23 AM by sagdashin.)
12-08-2010, 01:20 AM
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