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This episode, Keepers Bridgett and Evan discuss Survival Horror with Matthew Dawkins!
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And thank you to our editor NATE for editing this episode.
Main Topic
Welcome everyone to the Main Topic! Tonight we are discussing Survival Horror. What it is, what it isn’t, what makes it unique, and how to use this subgenre of horror as a vehicle to enhance and diversify your storytelling.
And to help, we’ve brought on prolific writer, award winning content creator, and honestly one my favorite GMs of all time, Matthew Dawkins! Matthew, please introduce yourself to the people!
So, we’re jumping into Survival Horror. Before we proceed, let’s first define it- Matthew, what is survival horror?
- What is it NOT? Let’s clarify by contrast, what is survival horror compared to cosmic horror, investigative horror, apocalyptic, or psychological horror?
- What type of core elements can you expect from survival horror? According to the internets:
- scarce resources,
- Isolation
- unreliable combat,
- unexpected attacks,
- puzzle solving,
- evade versus confront enemies,
- vulnerable characters,
- maze-like environments,
- perception limitation
- What types of gamers or playstyles would be most attracted to survival horror?
- What do you personally enjoy most about survival horror? What are your favorite games/system that rely on this texture of storytelling?
- Ten Candles
- Mutant Year Zero
- Twilight 2000
- Alien: the RPG
- Locus
- This War of Mine
- The World Below
- What should you remember when creating survival horror content?
- Accounting for PC deaths early in the session?
Connect with Matthew Dawkins
https://www.patreon.com/matthewdawkins
https://www.matthewdawkins.com
https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/onyx-path/jadestorm
Homework
Dear listener, tell us – what is your take on survival horror? Where has it be done well in your gaming experience? Got links? Drop em!