Poll of the Day > What non-horror games scared the shit out of you when you were younger?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I had three. Something about the Wizpig in Diddy Kong Racing made me shut the console off in terror whenever he'd invade the hub world. Going out of bounds in Wave Race 64 made me assume you just fell into the ocean and died when the timer ran out and inspired a fear of the ocean that I still partially retain to the day (not the worst fear to have, respect the open ocean). And lastly... Pikmin. Olimar was on the verge of starvation or asphyxiation that entire game unless he hauled ass and got off that planet. The cartoonish vibes just kinda made it worse for me.

the intro to tony hawk underground 1 when a sewer monster grabs a skater from a manhole and eats him has irreparably damaged me, many fearful baths for many years

https://youtube.com/watch?v=urSzZBDMaN8&feature=share9
just rewatched it, yo fuck neversoft for this

I still have never finished Donkey Kong 64, because a lot of places were dark and scary as fuck. Seriously, there was very little lighting in many places.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_R6hzBxzAs

Wouldn't say scared, but redeads creeped me out. Never felt safe even though you get a song to paralyze them and they're really not that hard to kill as an adult.

redeads were definitely up there, probably because of the forced lack of control (if you sucked, which I did). those fucking hands during the miniboss fight under the well too, kinda

Redeads..yeah F those

that damn eel and piano in super mario 64

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Yw5jkAHgME

I was fine with redeads but the dead hand was fucked up

agesboy posted...

What non-horror games scared the shit out of you when you were younger?

This wasn't really a thing for me, because when I was "younger", games looked like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO-kU0KbHAk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3k8E3zJaJTo


About the best I can do is mention that this scene/music gave me at least one nightmare as a teenager (not because it was scary while playing, per se - but because the creepiness of the dolls/music apparently got into my subconscious):

https://youtu.be/ql8ioGcURpw?t=140


Also, I know I had the "Tetris Effect" a few times after playing the .hack games, because the Protect Break/Data Drain animation burned into my brain and I had dreams about it. But it was never really scary.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_cusbAv67Q

Microsurgeon, for the TI-99/4a. Looking at a persons insides and listening to heartbeat/lungs on hardware from the early 80s is its own brand of creepy.

Not whole games, but there were some moments...

The double-claw room in A Boy and His Blob is scary.

And the game over in CastleQuest is scary but for a weird reason... ok, when you game over it just plays the dying jingle a second time on a black game over screen, but because of the way old CRTs worked on that particular game over screen the dying jingle was slightly down pitched and there was a low buzz afterwards... THAT was scary.

All the enemies that attacked by voreing Spyro in his games.

This big hovering beast from R&C 2:
https://i.imgur.com/W0yx6dS.png

TheSlinja posted...

the intro to tony hawk underground 1 when a sewer monster grabs a skater from a manhole and eats him has irreparably damaged me, many fearful baths for many years

https://youtube.com/watch?v=urSzZBDMaN8&feature=share9
just rewatched it, yo fuck neversoft for this

Damn I had forgotten about those old Neversoft intros

33Elite posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Yw5jkAHgME

Oh man the bit in Sonic 2 Chemical Plant with the rising water got me as a kid

I just remembered the game over screen for Zelda 2. That was kind of scary as a kid also.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GxARm_QiCo

All the flashing and red background and silhouette and I just wasn't used to a game laughing at me either. It seems really tame now but I was very young lol.

GTurtlte posted...

that damn eel and piano in super mario 64

To add to that, Dorrie, of all things. I read the sign saying she was dangerous, and I avoided her at all costs until subsequently learning that she's totally harmless and you actually need her to get a star or two (at least, a normal person needs her, since I wasn't talking about parallel universes when I was 8).

PMarth2002 posted...

Wouldn't say scared, but redeads creeped me out. Never felt safe even though you get a song to paralyze them and they're really not that hard to kill as an adult.

Read that as "redheads" and was like

One of my favorite games as a kid was an Atari 800 game called Mountain King.

If you were foolish enough to venture down to the bottom level of the mine, there was a giant spider that would suddenly rush out and if it caught you, it would encase you in a web. If you didn't escape by the time the spider returned, it would eat you alive. As you progressed through the levels the spider would get harder and harder to see, and more and more difficult to escape its web. At level 8, the spider became completely invisible, and impossible to escape from.

The spider can outrun you, so your only hope is to jump over him, or jump or climb away from the bottom of the mine. But there are tunnels where you can't jump, so the only thing you can do is run and hope you can get out of the tunnel before the spider catches you.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/7/6/2/AAQwHjAAEw36.jpg
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/7/6/3/AAQwHjAAEw37.jpg

captpackrat posted...

One of my favorite games as a kid was an Atari 800 game called Mountain King.

omfg I've been looking for the name of this game for fucking years thank you

I used to play this game at my neighbors house and remember it fondly but could never remember the fucking title

MeatiestMeatus posted...

omfg I've been looking for the name of this game for fucking years thank you

I used to play this game at my neighbors house and remember it fondly but could never remember the fucking title

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtCq53IouHk
(This guy really sucks at it)

Jump to 10:00 for the spider.

keyblader1985 posted...

I still have never finished Donkey Kong 64, because a lot of places were dark and scary as fuck. Seriously, there was very little lighting in many places.

The thing that scared the shit out of me was mainly those houses where once you either completed or failed your objective a gruff voice would yell "GET OUT" and then a crosshair and countdown would appear on the screen. Super unsettling.

Other things that freaked me out were the Moblins and Wallmasters in Ocarina of Time.

In Metal Gear Solid 2 when the Ninja person

calls you out of nowhere to tell you to watch out for claymore mines.

I think a few NES games scared me last century. However, it was mostly from shocks and unpleasant surprises. At times, it was the color or design grossing me out or putting myself in the characters' situations.

It unfortunately does not take much to spook me when it comes to video games. Any game with decent atmosphere will set me on edge.
Kinda weird how I enjoy scary movies though

The forest temple in Ocarina of Time, the creepy music was one thing but the scary expanding shadow below Link and sound from wall masters scared me so much I couldn't get any further and didn't play it for years afterward.

Redeads never scared me since they were so slow and you learn how to kill them back as child Link.

Redeads.

I didn't come back to Ocarina for fricking months after the first one grabbed me. Sad to think I waited so long to beat one of the best games of all time just because of that. But it really scared me that bad at the time. But I gained a much thicker skin against horror material since then, and I'm pretty much desensitized to all horror and violence nowadays.

Phanto in Mario 2 comes to mind.

Can't recall any particular game, but for movies I was somehow scared of Hulk (2003)

The ending of doom where you see daisy's head on a pike. That disturbed me as a 5 year old

Zelda oot. First true 3d game

Metroid Prime stressed me out a fair bit. 2 even moreso.

Blue_Thunder posted...

All the enemies that attacked by voreing Spyro in his games.

This big hovering beast from R&C 2:
https://i.imgur.com/W0yx6dS.png

That whole desert area was kinda spooky. Fantastic game.

ReturnOfFa posted...

Metroid Prime stressed me out a fair bit. 2 even moreso.

I remember the power outage in the lab after you get the thermal visor...good times

Zareth posted...

I was fine with redeads but the dead hand was fucked up

Yeah the redeads didn't bother me too much but the dead hand was intense.

Metroid Fusion

Metalsonic66 posted...

Metroid Fusion

I would argue that game counts as horror-themed since you are literally being hunted.
But to mention Super Metroid even has a jump scare of sorts with Crocomire after you beat him.

supervaan posted...

I remember the power outage in the lab after you get the thermal visor...good times

ok yeah that's memories, lol

Only game thats ever scared me was bioshock but that was a horror so understandable.

Maybe Detroit become human when youre in that boat and theres shadowy figures running around

castlevania 1

i don't think it's considered a horror game per se, anyways

Way back in the early days of PCs, I bought a cheap game bundle that came with Life & Death. The game used CGA graphics (4 whole colors!) and the PC speaker. None of the games in the bundle came with manuals, so I had no idea how to play or that it could use the speaker.

So I headed off to surgery. First thing I did was pick up the scalpel. The nurse helpfully told me I should anesthetize the patient first. "What kind of hospital is there where I have to do everything myself?" And I started searching for the anesthesia. I had no clue what anything was, but I finally found a syringe labeled with the letter "A". A for anesthesia, maybe? I gave the patient an injection of "A" and then picked up the scalpel. The nurse didn't say anything, so I figured that must be it. I took the scalpel and cut a large square on the patient's abdomen.

The computer SCREAMED

This absolutely startled the hell out of me, and then I burst out laughing at the absurdity of the whole thing.

AltOmega2 posted...

I would argue that game counts as horror-themed since you are literally being hunted.
But to mention Super Metroid even has a jump scare of sorts with Crocomire after you beat him.

True

I can't think of anything. And the only horror games i ever played were The 7th Guest and Carn-Evil. Carn-Evil was cool not scary.

Oh. Another. Not really scared but creeped out

True crime streets of LA. Goes from cool gun shooting kung fu fighting to being chased by zombies, demon concubines and taking out a fucking dragon all while hunting for the guy that played Lo pan in big trouble in little china

that is IF you go one of the paths in the story.

GTurtlte posted...

Oh. Another. Not really scared but creeped out

True crime streets of LA. Goes from cool gun shooting kung fu fighting to being chased by zombies, demon concubines and taking out a fucking dragon all while hunting for the guy that played Lo pan in big trouble in little china

that is IF you go one of the paths in the story.

yesssss the thezombies in the sewer always scared me, I had forgotten about that part, the sequel also had this crazy part in an insane asylum that I hated

GTurtlte posted...

Oh. Another. Not really scared but creeped out

True crime streets of LA. Goes from cool gun shooting kung fu fighting to being chased by zombies, demon concubines and taking out a fucking dragon all while hunting for the guy that played Lo pan in big trouble in little china

that is IF you go one of the paths in the story.

This sounds interesting.

Bioshock, but its kind of horror.

When the GameBoy battery light started to fade and flicker and I was not yet at a save point

Shalebridge Cradle in Thief 3 and the Ocean House Hotel in VtMB

Zareth posted...

Shalebridge Cradle in Thief 3 and the Ocean House Hotel in VtMB

Though not as bad as the Cradle, the Asylum in Thief 4 was pretty scary.

Thief 1, 3 and 4 all had their creepy/scary levels.
2 didnt really have any horror elements though.

captpackrat posted...

One of my favorite games as a kid was an Atari 800 game called Mountain King.

If you were foolish enough to venture down to the bottom level of the mine, there was a giant spider that would suddenly rush out and if it caught you, it would encase you in a web. If you didn't escape by the time the spider returned, it would eat you alive. As you progressed through the levels the spider would get harder and harder to see, and more and more difficult to escape its web. At level 8, the spider became completely invisible, and impossible to escape from.

The spider can outrun you, so your only hope is to jump over him, or jump or climb away from the bottom of the mine. But there are tunnels where you can't jump, so the only thing you can do is run and hope you can get out of the tunnel before the spider catches you.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/7/6/2/AAQwHjAAEw36.jpg
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/7/6/3/AAQwHjAAEw37.jpg

Weirdly, while I haven't played Mountain King... the image of 2 swords over a pool sticks with me. I think it was used in other games such as Montezuma's Revenge as well