The Scary World of Viral YouTube Horror Games - Caddicarus

Caddicarus64 minutes read

Viral horror games gained popularity on YouTube between 2010 and 2014, with "Amnesia: The Dark Descent" being a key player, influencing other indie horror games. "Five Nights at Freddy's 3" introduces new challenges and mechanics, increasing difficulty as essential systems fail simultaneously.

Insights

  • Viral horror games gained popularity through online videos, allowing viewers to experience the games without playing them, sparking a surge in specific horror games between 2010 and 2014 that hasn't resurfaced.
  • "Amnesia: The Dark Descent" is a first-person survival horror game known for its atmospheric setting, puzzles, and stealth gameplay, influencing subsequent indie horror games significantly.
  • The game "Yume Nikki" offers a unique experience with dream exploration and surreal imagery, while "SCP-087" presents anxiety-inducing gameplay based on an endless staircase, both contributing distinct elements to the horror game genre.

Get key ideas from YouTube videos. It’s free

Recent questions

  • What are viral horror games?

    Viral horror games gained popularity through YouTube.

Related videos

Summary

00:00

"Viral Horror Games: YouTube's Influence"

  • The speaker, Kyle Amar, discusses viral horror games, a subcategory of horror games that gained immense popularity on YouTube.
  • Viral horror games became popular due to online videos, allowing viewers to experience the games without playing them.
  • Between 2010 and 2014, specific horror games saw a surge in popularity on YouTube, but this trend has not resurfaced since then.
  • Kyle Amar mentions a charity dedicated to getting Matt Pat to respond to indie game Twitter accounts, urging viewers to support it.
  • The speaker delves into the game "Amnesia: The Dark Descent," a first-person survival horror game released in 2010.
  • In "Amnesia," players navigate a terrifying castle, solving puzzles, avoiding monsters, and managing light sources to maintain sanity.
  • The game's atmosphere, puzzles, and stealth gameplay contribute to its enduring popularity and influence on indie horror games.
  • Kyle Amar highlights the impact of "Amnesia" on the horror game genre, noting its influence on subsequent indie horror games.
  • The speaker also discusses "Yume Nikki," a top-down RPG Maker game from 2004 that gained attention around the same time as "Amnesia."
  • In "Yume Nikki," players explore dream worlds, collecting objects and encountering surreal and twisted imagery, creating a unique and immersive experience.

14:59

Unsettling games with unique gameplay and atmosphere.

  • The game "Punishments for Not Being G" is known for its thick, sloppy atmosphere and pushing players into uncomfortable territory.
  • The music in the game, despite being funky and jazzy, works well with the game's mood.
  • Getting the bicycle in the game is advised to make navigation easier in open areas and avoid distracting footsteps.
  • "Yume Nikki" is a unique and creative game, offering an unforgettable experience with relaxing yet unnerving music.
  • SCP-087 is a game based on an endless staircase in darkness, where players must report their findings while facing hallucinations and danger.
  • SCP-087 features a simple premise with anxiety-inducing gameplay, but some may find it boring due to prolonged periods of inactivity.
  • SCP-087 has an unusual control setup with unnecessary fire buttons, adding to the game's mystery.
  • SCP-173 is a sculpture that moves when not observed, a key antagonist in the SCP Containment Bridge game.
  • SCP Containment Bridge features various monsters like 106, 096, and 049, each with unique abilities and threats.
  • "IMSCARED" is a game that becomes truly special when it interacts with players outside the game, adding files and communicating through text and images.

29:41

"Horror Games: Ghosts, Slenderman, and Asylums"

  • The game "I'm Scared" immerses players in a haunted experience where the game itself becomes a ghost story, leading to a chilling ending where the ghost eventually makes the player hang themselves.
  • "Slender" is a game based on the Slenderman myth, where players must collect eight pages in a forest while avoiding the menacing Slenderman who becomes more aggressive as pages are found.
  • The game's slow pace and limited gameplay options make it frustrating, with the player having to walk slowly, sprint ineffectively, and find pages in specific forest landmarks.
  • Slenderman's appearance is underwhelming, lacking the expected scare factor, and the game's mechanics make it easy to avoid him by simply turning away whenever he appears.
  • In "Slender: The Arrival," the game is an improved version with better controls, visuals, and a more structured story, but Slenderman remains less threatening and easily avoidable.
  • The game introduces additional threats like a child and bony figures, but they appear infrequently, diminishing the overall scare factor.
  • The game's environmental elements, like conserving power and finding batteries for night vision, add depth to the gameplay but do not significantly enhance the overall experience.
  • "Outlast" places players in an asylum setting, where they must uncover the facility's horrors, avoid enemies, and use night vision on a camera to navigate the dark environment.
  • The game's reliance on finding batteries for night vision adds tension and challenge, as running out of batteries leaves players in complete darkness, heightening the fear factor.
  • Despite improvements in gameplay mechanics and visuals, the game's overall scare factor is limited by predictable enemy encounters and repetitive gameplay elements.

44:34

"Parkour reporter game with Duracell sponsorship"

  • The game features a battery company sponsorship idea, with Duracell being a potential sponsor.
  • Players take on the role of a parkour news reporter in the game.
  • The game transitions to a part where players are instructed to hide, marking the beginning of the actual gameplay.
  • Encounter rooms in the game feature tables that players can run around, a design aspect that poses a challenge.
  • The game shifts from crawling and hiding to running laps around enemies, losing the scare factor.
  • The game is likened to Mirror's Edge rather than Amnesia, focusing more on action than horror.
  • Characters like Chris Walker and the Johnson Twins reduce the horror element of the game.
  • Jump scares in the game are frequent and over the top, serving more as adrenaline shots to keep players engaged.
  • The game's mechanical feel allows for exploitable strategies, making it less scary but still enjoyable.
  • The storyline involves twisted experiments in an asylum and a paranormal ghost creature, creating a disjointed narrative.

58:37

"Guard chair PS3 game against Springtrap"

  • In this game, you are a guard super glued to a chair in a PS3, monitoring cameras to prevent an animatronic named Springtrap from reaching you.
  • Unlike previous versions, there is only one animatronic to worry about, but the game introduces randomness in essential survival elements like camera feeds, audio systems, and oxygen levels.
  • Rebooting failed systems takes 3 years, during which you are stuck on a screen unable to do anything else, increasing the risk of Springtrap attacking.
  • As the game progresses, systems break more frequently, requiring longer reboots, often leading to game over.
  • The game includes hallucinations from other games, adding to the challenge and unpredictability.
  • The game becomes more difficult as more systems fail simultaneously, forcing you into a reboot panel repeatedly.
  • The game "Five Nights at Freddy's 3" is described as frustrating and challenging, with the player feeling powerless and unable to progress past certain nights.
Channel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatar

Try it yourself — It’s free.