Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary! novel Chapter 53

Chapter 53 - The game that makes you scream [3]

The game started rather plainly.

'This is my third year working for the company. Every day is a struggle, and I hardly get any sleep. I am so tired that I think I'm starting to hear things whenever I leave my office. The only thing keeping me sane is my playbox. Only when I play it do I feel safe.' 

It started with a long and boring message that filled the entire screen.

Karl's eyes narrowed as he read the message.

"Not even a voice audio? Seriously...?"

While he already had low expectations for the game, this was even worse than he had originally imagined.

"And take a look at the graphics. It hardly renders anything. This is the type of stuff you'd expect to have been developed twenty years ago."

His comments were met with similar criticism from the chat.

—Low budget. 

—Could still be scary, right? 

—Bah... This looks boring. Switch to the next game. I'll switch stream if you continue to play. 

—I could probably do better lol. 

Reading the comment, Karl almost felt tempted to quit on the spot.

However, thinking about how he could still make a quick buck from the 'hype' the clip had, he clenched his teeth and decided to press on.

Another long line of text appeared.

It gave a rough outline of the situation. Tired worker. One who committed suicide. Music box helping him feel safe. Just a bunch of nonsense that was put in order to add some psychological effect on the player.

"Fuck, I can't even skip this part."

The fact that he couldn't skip all the boring intro made him want to tear his hair apart. A good horror game didn't need a cheap introduction like this.

This was a typical case of show and not tell.

'Hopefully this shit won't last long.' 

He could see his viewers getting fed up.

Thankfully, it really didn't last long as he soon found himself in front of a door, as he pressed his mouse and the scene changed to a long corridor. _{ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com}

A simple key tutorial appeared on the right of the screen.

"So I just walk?"

The commands looked rather simple, and Karl proceeded to move forward with the character.

"So far, the game feels somewhat laggy. My best guess is that the developer used U-Engine to develop the game, but rushed the game. The lack of rendering also seems to be because of that...? The sound also doesn't seem to be well placed. The steps are a little uneven, and the breathing is too consistent. Who even breathes like that?"

Karl started commenting while playing the game.

"The game cost about 5$, but I've seen cheaper games better done than thi—"

Flick! 

The screen suddenly turned black, and the darkness swallowed Karl from all directions except the side monitor that displayed the chat.

"What?"

Karl looked at the screen in confusion, then quickly realized what was happening.

"Ah, I see what's going on here."

He calmly pressed the 'W' key as the echo of the character's steps made its way into his ears.

"...Similar to gentle whispers, it appears that this game plays on sound and the lack of visuals in order to create tension while eventually giving rise to the jump scare in the end."

This was the standard structure of horror games, and as an experienced player, Karl saw right through the game's intentions.

But...

Flick! 

The light soon turned back on and he cocked his head.

"Oh? Was I wrong?"

He turned the corridor to see a familiar corridor in the distance. He had a look of understanding then.

"An endless labyrinth-type game? Okay, I think I've played this one before..."

He was trying his very best to make the stream entertaining, but looking at the chat and the lack of engagement, he felt his heart twitch.

'I should get this game over with.' 

He pressed 'Shift' and made the character move faster. By now, he didn't even care that he was wasting the character's stamina. He just wanted to die and move on to the next game.

However, just as he was about halfway through the corridor, the character stopped and took out his MP3.

"Eh?"

Before Karl could figure out what was happening, a certain tune began to play from the speakers of his computer.

It was a gentle tune that seemed soothing to the ears, prompting his mind to gradually relax.

—Wow, this is not bad. 

—Yeah... I like it. 

—Lmao. Did the developer spend all of his money on the music?

Karl found himself nodding at the comments.

The music was somewhat pleasant to the ears, unknowingly starting to make his body relax.

And this...

Flick! 

'Huh? What happened...?' 

Flick! 

[In memory of Ramille Niel] 

Flick! 

Step! 

'Faster, move faster!'