Horror Films and Game Audio

"In general survival horror games rely on conventions of horror film sound to effectively create the mood of horror required for the game (echoing effects, screeching violins, dissonant bursts of symphonic noise at "startle" moments, etc.) but a psychoanalytic analysis reveals a shifted trajectory, at least in the case of Silent Hill. Neumeyer and Buhler (2001) write: In suspense films, subjective crisis and psychological rupture are often prominent themes, with the character experiencing a debilitating loss of centre, which is figured musically by the absence of a tonal centre. In horror films, the monster often embodies a kind of dystopian projection, a means of figuring unintended consequences of the system, which take musical shape as tonality gone awry to the point of incomprehension" [1][2].

Above is an extract from an article by Zach Whalen as he argues the point that music in video games "encourages and enhances the narrative experience of game play" [2]. As mentioned, he introduces the idea that survival horror games rely on the semiotic codes of horror film soundtracks to create effective moods, sometimes to the point that the music takes the shape of completely abstract and incomprehensible forms to show a degradation of the player's character and/or the environment's mental state. However not all survival horror's use this. 

The most common and memorable horror film sign however is silence. Silence in survival horrors and horror films usually means one thing. There are no threats or dangers, but there'll be one soon to shatter the silence and make the audience jump. When playing Dead Space I found that the lack non-diegetic music in certain scenes helps build vast amounts of tension because of the way I was waiting for something to suddenly appear: the more time there was nothing there, the more I became on edge. As mentioned here, "...the silence of the first scene puts the player on edge rather than reassuring him that there is no danger in the immediate environment, increasing the expectation that danger will soon appear. The appearance of the danger is, therefore, heightened in intensity by way of its sudden intrusion into silence" [2].  Because of the signs I have grown accustomed to in horror films and other survival horrors, I'm aware of the codes and the cliche that an enemy will appear at some point, but I still don't know how and when. What would be even more frightening is that the enemies wouldn't appear at all, leaving you in a heightened state of tension until you start to think that there are no enemies at all until one creeps up behind you...

[1] Neumeyer, David & Buhler, James. (2001) Analytical and Interpretive Approaches to Film Music (I): Analysing the Music. In: Donnelly, K.J. (Ed.) Film Music: Critical Approaches. New York, The Continuum International Publishing Group

[2] Zach Whalen, Game Studies - Play Along - An Approach to Videogame Music, Volume 4, Issue 1, November 2004, retrieved 20/05/09