Gameplay & Sound

Why together?

Why indeed would we want to put our sound and gameplay descriptions on the same page? Well, after being brought to the edge of my nerves in Thief and Thief II, scared witless in System Shock II and subjected to Blair Witch 1, I've come to the conclusion that sound and gameplay are inseparable in horror games. It's just not possible to be scared when you take the headphones off and play - sure, you actually die and get hurt a lot more often, but you don't jump in your seat and try to swallow your own heart back down.

The hellhole itself

He creeps me out

I noticed that none of the aforementioned games were tense or scary if you turned off the sound. In fact, when games get too scary, my first reflex is to take my headphones off, not close my eyes.

So what about Blair Witch 1? The sound is crystal clear, I'm sad to say. I played entire sections of the game without sound because even with the knowledge that my savegame was safely behind me, I couldn't shoot straight with moans, thunder and all sorts of creepy sounds keeping me distracted.

In fact, ammunition is vitally short throughout the game and putting holes in walls every time you hear a noise in the distance is not the way to win. (Trust me on this - I've been there and done that.)

I'd not want to bathe there

It's just... eerie

Now, remember that I haven't seen the Blair Witch movie - all I know is that it had a lot of hype, a small budget, a bad camera and made a lot of money. Kenn (the former Editor in Chief of FS - now at gamers.com) asked me about what Blair Witch 1 was like. I described it as being a lot of small puzzles, linear gameplay and tonnes of shooting, which led to one terrified games editor. Kenn, to my surprise, expressed his dismay. Apparently, Blair Witch 1 isn't true to the Blair Witch movie. It throws enemies at you, instead of incessantly hinting at them. The threat isn't a tangible feeling, it's a horde of Daemites running for you. So Blair Witch purists beware - our local fan didn't appreciate this.

Down to the important opinion

Does Blair Witch still scare? Oh yes, you'd better believe it. The mark of a great horror movie or book is to turn what seems like a normal place into something terrifying. Even better, this feeling will linger long after you've watched the movie or read the book (just try staring down the drain of your bathroom sink after reading or watching Stephen King's IT). Maybe Blair Witch 1: Rustin Parr isn't so great that you'll never want to step into a small town again, but it is very good. It gives a good combination of scaring through plot, actions and atmosphere as well as the physical threat itself.

See what I mean?

Main Menu

There are some problems with the play, however. Even with auto-aim enabled, you'll be missing a lot of shots before you get into practice. This makes the game rather difficult, as it's hard to find ammo at times and even harder to find health. Like Thief, Thief II and System Shock II, there is no "easy" difficulty - just normal and hard. Hard has tougher puzzles and combat (though you can adjust the difficulties of the puzzles and combat individually.) Regardless, either way, you play it once and you're done - there is no replayability. No more fun out of this baby; there is no multiplayer to speak of and the game is as linear as they get.