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Creepy video game characters guaranteed to induce nightmares
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There are plenty of terrifying video games on the market. Some rely on simple scare tactics while others delve into the depths of our psychological comfort zones and relentlessly push us to our limits. One of the driving forces of survival horror games is the characters inhabiting the haunted realms of gaming. Whether these characters are real or imagined within the context of the game, its purpose is to terrify the player. So pull up a chair and prepare to be introduced to a few of the most uniquely frightening characters in the video game world.
King Leoric
The computer game “Diablo” introduces players to King Leoric known also as “The Dark King” or “The Skeleton King.” Leoric is frightening because he once existed as a goodly king in the “Diablo” mythology, but due to Diablo’s demonic influence he now exists as a soulless monster. Leoric established his kingdom in the village of Tristram which was located next to an ancient and decrepit monastery. The monastery is the source of the evil forces in the game. King Leoric was slowly and methodically driven to madness by his wicked archbishop and the demonic Diablo. Leoric’s son was kidnapped by the archbishop and taken into the bowels of the monastery as the once-great king became suspicious of his own knights and people. Killing those closest to him in fits of rage, Leoric was finally put to rest by his chief knight Lachdanan. However, death offered no reprieve for the cursed king. King Leoric now leads an army of undead warriors within the monastery depths and appears as a large skeletal swordsman wearing a crown of thorns.
Nemesis
Certain video games make me giddy as soon as I hear the title. One such game series is the “Resident Evil” series. Appropriately, one of my favorite characters makes its home in Raccoon City. The fearsome creature, Nemesis is a hulking brute of re-animated human remains found in the third installment of the “Resident Evil” series. Created by the power hungry Umbrella Corporation, Nemesis exists for one purpose – to track down and eliminate all surviving members of Raccoon City’s Special Tactics and Rescue Squad (S.T.A.R.S.). As Jill Valentine, a member of S.T.A.R.S., the player must somehow discover a way out of the virus-infected city while constantly battling with the Nemesis bio-weapon. Nemesis acts as a pursuer, constantly tracking the player’s progress and popping up at the most inopportune moments. Nemesis is frightening simply because he is virtually unstoppable.
Big Daddy
The Big Daddy character is interesting because its existence is symbiotic one. Big Daddy is a protector. It protects the characters of the Xbox 360 game “BioShock,” known as Little Sisters. There are numerous Big Daddy characters throughout the game and they typically resemble large, faceless forms dressed in a type of diving suit circa 1837, with a drilling mechanism in place of an arm. The game’s protagonist, Jack, encounters these monstrosities along with their Little Sister counterparts throughout the game.
The unique aspect of the Big Daddy is that it will not attack unless it is provoked. This means that the player invokes its wrath by either attacking the Big Daddy itself or its Little Sister. Why bother with the Big Daddy? The Little Sisters they protect are carriers of a biological enhancing agent known as “ADAM.” By effectively harvesting the Little Sisters, the player can genetically enhance certain abilities like telekinesis and pyro-kinesis. Players must prepare to fight it out with the Big Daddy if they decide to take this route.
The Olaric
This entity is found in the first-person shooting game, “Return to Castle Wolfenstein.” The Olaric is a large, bipedal monster covered completely with the human faces of tormented souls.
“Return to Castle Wolfenstein” follows an American soldier attempting to uncover a secret plot during World War II. The basis of the plot revolves around the Nazi’s attempting to harness the power of an undead Saxon prince,
Heinrich I.
The Olaric is encountered early in the game when a Nazi officer removes a sacred dagger and unleashes the vengeful creature.
Red Pyramid/Pyramid Head
The “Silent Hill” series is frightening enough due to its eerie sound and atmospheric settings. Team Silent, the development team behind the frightfully disturbing series, has created plenty of freakish monsters to keep gamers company.
All of the “Silent Hill” creatures pale in comparison to the presence of Pyramid Head. Pyramid Head, sometimes referred to as Red Pyramid, is a creature that relentlessly stalks the protagonist of “Silent Hill 2.” Similar in appearance to the town’s historical executioners, Pyramid Head resembles a man dressed in a butcher’s smock and carrying a large, sword-like weapon that it effectively drags behind it with a scraping metallic sound.
Pyramid Head is named appropriately enough for its large and painful looking helmet in the shape of a pyramid. Every encounter with Pyramid Head leaves the player with a disturbing feeling that something just isn’t right about this character.
The most frightening aspect of Pyramid Head is its sheer brutality and lack of mercy, constantly stalking the player and methodically driving them to insanity by forcing them to confront the shadows of Silent Hill.
Ghouls, ghosts and boogey-men are found in nearly every example of human expression. They represent our fears and what might be lurking in the shadows. In the world of video games, these creatures are all too real and imposing.
C. COLT CRANE
BizTech Writer
