Video games are a popular pastime among numerous teens and adults. Many at SCHS have also explored horror video games. Some students and teachers enjoy the suspense of the games, while others discussed how they can have negative effects, especially on younger audiences.
Horror is very popular among many young people looking for a thrill, including freshman Gabby San Luis. San Luis enjoys the feeling of wanting to experience suspense while also being scared.
“Waiting for something to happen, like jump scares and something jumping out, that always has you on the edge of your toes,” San Luis said. “You always want to find out what happens next and watch more, even though you might be hiding under the covers half of the time.”
Similarly, senior Andrew Cabarloc prefers horror games to normal video games because of how different and challenging they can be with the addition of fear.
“Regular video games, they’re fun, but at the same time, you can get bored of it, consistently playing them,” Cabarloc said. “Horror games, it’s kind of like taking on something new”
Spanish teacher Justin Williams described the interest in horror games as something drawn from a base instinct that many have. He finds that playing them can increase adrenaline levels in an exciting way.
“One of our first instincts is always to run… a kid playing tag, that’s basically children practicing how to run away from something,” Williams said.
While some may voice concerns over teens being exposed to violent or disturbing content, many students do not feel that playing horror games has negatively affected them. Although part of participating in horror is feeling somewhat scared, students like Cabarloc, do not feel that these games are overly disturbing.
“I wouldn’t say they are generally super-super scary to the point where I get disturbing thoughts,” Cabarloc said. “It could shake me up a bit, but it’s not to the point where I’m completely affected.
As a child, Williams, however, felt scared while playing disturbing games.
“I remember even as a kid playing a stupid little Atari game called ‘Haunted House,’ where no one would be scared in their right mind of this game ever, these days,” Williams said. “But as a little kid, it scared the heck out of me. I could only play it for about five minutes.”
San Luis also believes that the psychological impact of younger children playing horror games can lead to darker thoughts as an adult.
“If you’re really messed up mentally, I think you might sometimes side with the killer, even though it might be really dark,” San Luis said. “I think that your thoughts will go into really dark places. You’ll probably be very pessimistic and think of the worst possible solutions because you’re influenced by horror themes and things like that.”
Horror games are seen by students and teachers as both positive and negative. They have created a community for gamers, but they can also be very addictive and sometimes overly disturbing.
“They are like brain candy. Everything that they do from their lights, from their constant interaction, from the essential immortality that you have playing a video game, your ability to redo whatever mistake you make, it’s incredibly satisfying,” Williams said.