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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Rebecca April May

Inside the secret psychology of horror games – and why we can’t help pushing play

‘How can something feel lovable and wrong at the same time? … fluffy villain Huggy Wuggy in Poppy Playtime.
‘How can something feel lovable and wrong at the same time? … fluffy villain Huggy Wuggy in Poppy Playtime. Illustration: Mob Entertainment

The sound came first. In a San Francisco Bart train tunnel, Don Veca took his recorder and captured a train’s metallic roar – “like demons in agony, beautifully ugly,” he remembers. That recording became one of the most chilling sounds in 2008’s Dead Space.

“We dropped that screeching, industrial noise at full volume right after the vacuum silence – creating one of the game’s most jarring sonic contrasts,” Veca, who made horror history as the audio director for the Dead Space games, recalls. “Our game designer hated it – but the boss loved it. Over time, it’s become iconic.”

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