Our Game

You're walking down a dark corridor of an abandoned spaceship, there's a low growl humming in your ears. Out of nowhere, glass shatters to your left and a hideous monster is upon you - its hands clawing at Your FaceContent ='JJ Lin'> .

Welcome to The Callisto Protocol, the latest title to attempt what many have tried to do since the early days of video gaming - scare and shock players.

New technology has allowed its creators to make one of The MostContent ='JJ Lin'> gruesome gaming experiences ever seen, and they are unapologetic about it.

The GameContent ='JJ Lin'> has been effectively banned in Japan because The TeamContent ='JJ Lin'> behind it in order to pass local rating regulations, which would have required scenes to be modified and toned down.

Speaking to The Bbc , The GameContent ='JJ Lin'> 's chief creative officer Chris StoneContent ='JJ Lin'> says it is " absolutely valid" to have visceral scenes on screen, " without a doubt".

Whereas some horror experiences rely on a player's imagination to do most of The WorkContent ='JJ Lin'> , Stone and his team have also opted to harness the graphical power of the latest consoles to show, in intricate detail, what happens to The GameContent ='JJ Lin'> 's characters when they meet their untimely and bloody end. He argues That people who play horror games " inherently like the adrenaline".

" It's the same reason people skydive or bungee jump, " he continues. " On the morbid side, I think it's the same reason people drive slowly past car accidents. They like to see things at a distance, it's the taboo of it, That people want to be a part of. "

For Louise Blaine, horror expert and presenter of BBC Radio 3 's Sound of Gaming, " there's a real delight in being shocked by gore" if it's " justified" within The StoryContent ='JJ Lin'> That 's being told.

The Callisto Protocol is the latest in a long line of titles, like Resident EvilContent ='JJ Lin'> and Silent HillContent ='JJ Lin'> , That have used fear and plenty of blood to entertain audiences.

" Gaming is now able to tell smarter and smarter stories, they can splatter us with as much blood and guts as they like to get The Job done, " Blaine explains.

" Feeling a moment of horror, And ThenContent ='JJ Lin'> laughing at The FeelingContent ='JJ Lin'> it gave you, is a vital part of the horror experience. We need to go through something, otherwise what's The PointContent ='JJ Lin'> ? "

Like film and television before it, gaming has occasionally upset some who feel That it's unnecessary to display graphic Content on screen.

Gaming has largely moved-on from those conversations, just as its film and television counterparts have. But and question their validity.

Blaine thinks it's frustrating the horror genre can be treated in this way. " This debate raises its ugly head every time someone dares to Do SomethingContent ='JJ Lin'> a little different or pushes something in a New DirectionContent ='JJ Lin'> , " she suggests.

" As long as The Callisto Protocol can justify its gore, whether That 's for comedy horror, I-can't-believe-it-did-That outrage, or something darker, I think drenching us in monstrous alien blood can only be a good thing.

" And The TruthContent ='JJ Lin'> is, if you don't like horror games, no-one is making you play. As long as it's labelled for The RightContent ='JJ Lin'> audiences, they should be able to watch and experience whatever they want. "

The Callisto Protocol is an 18 rated game in Europe.

There's a fundamental difference between horror games and their film or television brethren.

In games, The PlayerContent ='JJ Lin'> is in control of The StoryContent ='JJ Lin'> and has responsibility for creating the outcome. The PlayerContent ='JJ Lin'> isn't passive, they actively choose to open a suspicious looking door or to walk down a creepy corridor, making The ExperienceContent ='JJ Lin'> arguably more personal and the scares more intense.

Stone says their overt use of guts and gore is designed to reward people for the deaths in their game. " The PlayerContent ='JJ Lin'> 's imagination is always going to build tension, and there's plenty of That in Our GameContent ='JJ Lin'> , But these Death ScenesContent ='JJ Lin'> validate That imagination, " he says.

Dying is integral to the mechanics of many Video GamesContent ='JJ Lin'> , whether it's being shot in Call of Duty or Mario failing to jump onto a platform. Death in gaming is often an event to learn from and avoiding it in The GameContent ='JJ Lin'> a challenge to overcome.

Stone argues, even though it may be " morbid" to say, The GameContent ='JJ Lin'> 's most gruesome moments are " almost a reward for dying in The GameContent ='JJ Lin'> and losing progress".

" There are plenty of games where you die over and over again in the same way, you get so tired of it That you put the controller down.

" That 's not what we want, " he adds, " we want The PlayerContent ='JJ Lin'> to find it painfully rewarding - so they want to do it again and see what happens next so we go through a lot of effort in terms of crafting all these horror moments. "

Actress Karen FukuharaContent ='JJ Lin'> plays Dani Nakamura, a central character who's busy leading A ResistanceContent ='JJ Lin'> group at Black Iron Prison. She's used to performing in projects with plenty of blood and guts on display, As One of the main characters in Amazon Prime show The BoysContent ='JJ Lin'> . She thinks horror experiences are popular because " people love to lose control" especially if " they're in a comfortable environment".

" There's a spontaneity That comes with horror, because there are these jump scares and tension building - especially in Our GameContent ='JJ Lin'> because it it's so brutal. Obviously these aren't things That you encounter in Everyday LifeContent ='JJ Lin'> . Being able to do That in a game, and have That kind of experience within yourself in a safe place, is what draws people into the genre.

" I love doing projects like this, which is funny because whenever I watch other shows with this much gore I'm just such a scardey-cat! I always say 'Oh No why would they show That ? !'. But whenever I watch My Own projects, or am actually doing The ScenesContent ='JJ Lin'> , I feel like a sort of comfort. It's just fun to be on set to work on these crazy scenes That make people uncomfortable watching. "

The Callisto Protocol has been made by some of The BrainsContent ='JJ Lin'> behind the Dead SpaceContent ='JJ Lin'> franchise and is seen as its spiritual successor.

Whether your a horror fan or not, it is not for the faint-hearted.

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Source of news: bbc.com