You’re not especially strong, and beneath all of your armor, you’re still very vulnerable to the dark beings that live in the ancient city. The slow pace of everything mixed with the non-linearity of the exploration gives you the feeling that you’re this small speck of a person within the sprawling labyrinths before you, uncertain as to which way you should turn next. It makes sense that you’re not jogging about the place like you’re fit, light as a feather and happy to be alive. They/you’re also trapped in an extremely gloomy setting where you don’t see sunlight for weeks or even years. You never see him or her, but you do know that they’re being bogged down with heavy armor, weapons, shields and items. Loading screens tend to serve as a reminder that what’s going on is just a game, so the lack of that feeling combined with the speed of the game makes your character seem a lot more human. But I feel it’s a fair trade off for what From Software did with that time not wasted on watching bars fill up.
The ones I’ve played have no load times, which is pretty much what makes the action move so slowly. As you go deeper into the cursed place, you happen upon bodies, bones, and dying soldiers hopelessly looking for their comrades this is all that’s left of the army, and it makes you come to terms with the fact that because you have the idol in your hands, you’re going to be next if you don’t get rid of it soon.
In King’s Field IV, for example, you go into the game with the knowledge that a thousand soldiers went into the Ancient City to try and do the same task you have been given (taking an unlucky idol back to its resting place). There are some cut scenes scattered throughout, but a lot of the story is told through what the player finds as they explore. Not the kind that makes your heart stop around every bend, but the kind that makes you progressively feel less and less at ease. But King’s Field provides just the right kind of horror for me. I don’t like horror games because I’m a big wuss. The scenery, music (or sometimes the lack thereof) and even the barebonedness of the mechanics all work together to create a very ominous, eerie field of play. They’re RPGs at heart, but I would say that they hinge on horror. It’s got atmosphere coming out the wazoo. The one thing that the King’s Field series really has going for it is its atmosphere.
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