Halloween is just around the corner, and that’s why we want to ask you what has been your favorite game within the «survival horror» category, a genre where we can frame from classics of the caliber of Alone in the Dark to some of the Resident Evil installments, passing, of course, through the fantastic Silent Hill, among many others.
I have to admit that this is one of my favorite genres, and that therefore I have played many such titles in the more than 30 years of “gamer” that I have been behind, both on consoles and compatible. With this in mind, I am sure you will fully understand that it is very difficult for me to choose a single favorite game, but I am going to give it a try.
The first game that really marked me within the genre was not Alone in the Dark, but Resident Evil, for its more serious approach, its plot and its greater graphic quality. The first time I played it was with friends, on a rented PS1 we had for a weekend. I remember it like it was yesterday, we took turns passing the remote every five minutes, and we got stuck in the puzzle of the pictures and the crows. It has rained a lot since then.
Later, I was able to play it on PC, where I managed to finish it with the two characters without problem. I also enjoyed a higher graphic quality, thanks to the 3D acceleration that allowed me to use my S3 Virge 3D with 4 MB under Direct3D with resolution of 640 x 480 pixels, although unfortunately it didn’t offer hardware transparencies, so if I screwed up the puzzle that filled the room with poison gas, I wouldn’t see anything, just static color.
Silent Hill was also another of the titles that I liked the most, and I consider it the true master of survival horror in the 32-bit era. It was my favorite game within that genre for quite some time, an honor that later had Resident Evil Code Veronica, a real work of art that I could play on Dreamcast. Over time my tastes have changed, and the truth is that there are innovative games that have fit very well in this genre, although a priori it may not seem like it, like Dying Light, for example. You do not believe me? Take a walk around the city at night, and then you come to tell me how such.
My favorite game within the genre is The Evil Within
My closest friends know that I am an absolute fan of the Resident Evil series, and that I have dedicated an enormous amount of hours to it over the years. Within the franchise, Resident Evil Core Veronica is undoubtedly my favorite game, and until a few years ago it was considered the best of its kind, something that totally changed with the arrival of The Evil Within.
On a technical level, The Evil Within is no masterpiece. It has some shortcomings and was not well optimized on PC, but its graphic finish strikes a good level, has excellent stage and enemy design, and fantastic light and shadow effects. This, together with the narrative and the gameplay, with those unique details that provided, for example, the use of matches to finish killing enemies, made it my “fetish” in the world of “survival horror”.
I think I have completely finished it twice, and not just the original game, also its three additional contents, and I must say that every time I remember him I want to play it again. Only the lack of time prevents me from finishing launching, although I do not rule out doing it again taking advantage of some vacation days.
If I had to pick a classic, I would stick with Resident Evil Code Veronica, hands down. Now is your turn to you all, What is your favorite game in the survival horror genre?
