Toyama was a Neuroscientist

Hey guys, Tim here.

With the recent release of Silent Hill 5 (they call it "Homecoming", but we know motherfuckers, we know) I've been thinking about the series past, and how it bends the expected style of a survival horror game, and gaming in general.

Upon listening to the most recent episode of 1up Yours, Sean Elliott brought up a book called "Proust was a Neuroscientist". It's about the relationship between science and art, and how in many cases, a very direct correlation can be drawn.

For example, the composer Igor Stravinsky wrote a piece that, in effect, broke down classical music strategically. He peaked when musical tradition said he should valley, and vice versa. This angered his 18th century audience, and the first performance broke out in a riot.

Fucking hard core.

Anyway, that 1up Yours conversation lead to how great it would be if this technique was brought over to videogames, which got me thinking, has it already?

Surely no one has done it on the level of Stravinsky, but there are numerous examples that can be taken from gaming. Silent Hill 2 does it on multiple occasions. To illustrate, the players first meeting with the creature known as Pyramid Head (because he has a pyramid for a head) is not a meeting delivered with much fanfare. After the game prepares you for what the player would think is a huge battle, the Pyramid Head simply stands behind a gate, staring at you, giant blade in tow. It's a tense encounter not because of the danger of in game death, but because of the lack of it. That whole meeting simply feels wrong. This is not how a game is supposed to be. The player expects a battle (which does of course eventually come) but for the time, your enemy just stares at you. And it is unnerving.

The second example from that same game is the giant stairway to nowhere. Upon locating this deep stairway that leads into the depths of Silent Hill, you begin your journey down. And you continue down the steps. And the music builds. And builds. And you keep walking. And walking, and then... nothing. All that anticipation that was built up has nowhere to go, which then makes that anxiety simply dissipate, leaving the player waiting for that eventual payoff, which does eventually come, but from a different place. Good stuff.


So, I think it would be fun to look into the games we play, and find examples of this kind of craftsmanship. There's no one game out there thats sole purpose is to confound it's audience (at least not a mainstream one) but there are many smaller examples in front of us.

So keep your eyes open.