The first horror film hit the silver screen in 1896, but after all this time, people still feel compelled topay decent money to feel scaredand maybe have a few nightmares later.
According to Barbara Kciuk, senior narrative designer at Bloober Team and the mastermind behind theSilent Hill 2 Remake’s story, this is a quirk of the genre.
Inan interview with Rhiannon Bevan from TheGamer, Kciuc said “the interesting part about horror is that it is one of the best ratioswhen it comes to the cost of production and the earnings”.
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These favorable numbers go beyond the gaming industry. The 1999 hitThe Blair Witch Project, for example, had a budget well below $1 million, but raked in a whopping $248.6 million at the box office.
Kciuk highlightedParanormal Activityas one of the clearest cases of this phenomenon, with a budget of $215,000 that led to $194.2 million in returns.
One of the key factors that enable good horror games and films on a budget is that “looking cheap might actually be an advantage”.
Recent tabletop horror Buckshot Roulette stands as a perfect example of how “horror tends to have those breakout hits from very small teams, or even solo developers”.
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Like all artistic endeavors, there is no such thing as guaranteed returns. One of the most glaring examples is the 1997 space horror flickEvent Horizon.
The movie had a budget of $60 million, packed some of the most gruesome scenes in a major production at the time, anddespite having an undisputed cult classic status today, it failed to break even.
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Bloober Team says they feel as they’ve leveled up as a studio thanks to Silent Hill 2’s success.
Barbara Kciuk knows that all too well, as “remaking a cult classic is inherently risky” since you need to “manage the expectations of fans who played the game when it was first released and match their memories”, while also catering to those who discovered it recently.
Naturally, making a game two decades after the original story came out ismore than just porting itover. Kciuk says thenew technology forced Bloober to leave out some details, but that also meant others “can be added or expanded”.
The director is aware that you “can’t satisfy everyone”, but while Bloober Team came under fire during the game’s first reveal, thecriticism quickly turned to adorationas players got their hands on the game.
TheSilent Hill 2remakeis a strong candidate tosnatch awardsat this year’s The Game Awards, and it deserves all the love it is getting.
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