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1981
Volume 13, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 1757-191X
  • E-ISSN: 1757-1928

Abstract

Popular horror video game titles such as , and are well-known for their effectiveness at evoking negative affects of terror and anxiety. The various camera tricks, control schemes, and visual cues these games deploy to confuse players and limit their sense of control and personal mastery. This article examines how Frictional Games’s pairs confined spatial layouts with an intentionally vague user interface design to disorient players and heighten the likelihood that they will walk into one of the game’s threatening monsters. This article deploys Marxist and Affect theory conceptualizations of proximity and space to analyse how the game’s use of corners frighten players by narrowing their available field of view. The resulting analysis examines the negative feelings and subjective experiences players are likely to feel when they are unable to properly see the virtual diegetic world with absolute clarity.

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2021-03-01
2025-05-17
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  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): corners; embodiment; first-person; horror gaming; space; user interfaces
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