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

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

The game started rather plainly.

ʼThis 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 Iʼm 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.ʼ 

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

Karlʼs 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 youʼd 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. Iʼll 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 ʼhypeʼ 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 canʼt even skip this part.”

The fact that he couldnʼt skip all the boring intro made him want to tear his hair apart. A good horror game didnʼt need a cheap introduction like this.

This was a typical case of show and not tell.

ʼHopefully this shit wonʼt last long.ʼ 

He could see his viewers getting fed up.

Thankfully, it really didnʼt 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.

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 doesnʼt 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 Iʼve 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 whatʼs going on here.”

He calmly pressed the ʼWʼ key as the echo of the characterʼs 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 gameʼs 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 Iʼve 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.

ʼI should get this game over with.ʼ 

He pressed ʼShiftʼ and made the character move faster. By now, he didnʼt even care that he was wasting the characterʼs 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...

This was the moment the game changed.

Flick! 

The darkness swallowed the room once more, and Karl felt his body tense.

”Eh?”

The sudden rise in tension threw him off completely.

He took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself down before continuing forward. At the same time, he glanced at the chat, only to find that it was currently quiet.

ʼHuh? What happened...?ʼ 

Karl didnʼt have enough time to figure out what was going on before the lights suddenly flickered back on.

Flick! 

Turning the corner and into a different corridor, he noticed a change.

His expression grew grim when he saw the flowers on the door and the message that read;

[In memory of Ramille Niel] 

He felt his heart pound at the sight of the message, and just as he quietly swallowed his saliva, the lights turned off.

Flick! 

”Huak!”

Karl flinched, his hand reaching for his shirt as he looked around.

It was only after a second that he realized that the light had turned off, and he looked at the camera, embarrassed. He was just about to joke with the chat when—

Step! 

He suddenly heard the sound of a step coming from behind.

Because he was wearing headphones, the sound felt more pronounced, as though it was really coming from behind him, and his entire body shuddered, his palms sweaty.

”Oh, shit, oh, shit...”

Gone was his previous confident demenour.

Pressing ʼWʼ, he urged the character forward, the steps echoing loudly from behind.

ʼFaster, move faster!ʼ 

He pressed shift, but soon stopped when he realized he was draining the characterʼs stamina.

”Oh, fuck.”

His face turned pale when he saw that the stamina wasnʼt regenerating fast.

With a twitch of his fingers, he looked at the chat in order to distract himself, but—

Empty.

No one made a single comment.

ʼWhat happened? Did they leave?ʼ 

That quickly proved not to be the case as he saw the number of viewers almost double. Unfortunately, he couldnʼt pay much attention to them as he continued to hear the sounds of the steps coming from behind him.

”Akh, shit!....!?”

He hurried forward.

Karl soon began to find himself in a terrifying cycle of fear. Every time the light turned on, he would breathe before suddenly holding his breath whenever the darkness and the steps came.

Before he knew it, his entire body was drenched in sweat.

”Shit, run! Run faster! Haaak!”

By now, the steps behind him were running at him incredibly fast. Karl felt his heart in his throat as he tried his best to run, but it was of no use.

The character couldnʼt keep up.

His entire body tensed, his head moving away from the monitor as he hastily tapped on the keys of his keyboard.

”No, fucking run! Run!!”

He was practically screaming at this point, his hands shaking as he pressed shift, but soon enough...

[You have run out of stamina] 

A notification popped up, and the character stopped.

”No! Why are you stopping!? Ah, shit———!”

A crunching sound echoed shortly after as the head snapped back, displaying a terrifying empty face. Karlʼs entire body trembled as he fell back, his mouth and keyboard falling away.

”Kyaaaaaaaaaaa!”

The scream pierced through the room.

It was loud, and the raw fear contained within it woke up several of the nearby neighbors.

”Whatʼs going on?”

”...Did something happen? That was a scream, right?”

”Let me call the police. This might be serious...”

Such a scene repeated throughout the entire night as several screams filled the neighborhoods.

On that day, the police received more calls than it was used to.

And on that day...

A Regular Day in the Office started to trend.