I've been an avid horror fan for as long as a decade, and have been called a psychopath throughout. Movies, short stories, games. I enjoy them all. But why do I find the horror genre so intriguing? Most others avoid the horror genre out of fear while I am actively seeking it.
Firstly, what is fear? Fear is an interesting emotion that is hard to explain. Fear is a feeling built into all of us as a defence mechanism. You feel fear when you sense something wrong, and your immediate instinct is to avoid the situation as soon as possible. However, fear can be reduced over time with constant exposure to the stimuli, and this is exactly how I've managed to overcome my fear of all things creepy. For example, I'd force myself to take my time walking down the dark hallway once I turned off the lights. In fact, I would sometimes wave into the darkness as if saying goodbye to all the ghosts (I was a dumb child). As I forced myself into seemingly scary situations over and over again, the feeling of fear slowly faded away. I stopped having nightmares altogether, and dreams which would typically be considered nightmares (like ones that consisted of monsters) became fun and exciting.
Today, fear is hard to come by. Although I do get the eerie feeling from time to time, I'm able to shrug it off in a matter of seconds. By overcoming the fear barrier, I've formed a deep appreciation for the horror genre and the creativity behind it. Horror media is essentially media produced to trigger our deepest human instincts, which typically require a mastery of lighting, sound design, and pacing to pull off an effective scare. A great horror movie will leave a lasting impact long after the movie is over (usually a lingering sense of fear), similar to how other movies like Interstellar and The Truman Show leave you questioning your reality.
My favourite horror movie genre is the slasher, which is exactly what the name indicates it to be. Slasher movies tend to have a main killer that goes around town killing teenagers, and some kills are truly creative. A kill I can vividly recall watching and admiring the cinematography is from the 2018 reboot of Halloween where it's one long take of Michael Myers exiting a house and walking to the neighbouring house, where he slowly approaches the victim from behind and stabs her through the back of her throat. Anyways, the slasher genre reached its peak before the turn of the century with classic movie franchises such as A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream, and Psycho. Although I enjoy the slasher genre, I promise I have no desire to go on a killing spree myself. In general, people watch horror movies because they experience a rollercoaster of emotions (both negative and positive). Viewers tend to feel fear and anxiety for the first few seconds, then experience the rush of adrenaline once the scare.
Horror games are the most intense media of horror as it directly shoves you in the shoes of the in-game character. Instead of watching the action unfold from a distance like with movies, you are in control of the character and what happens to the character will directly depend on you. This added concept of control over the character is one not many can deal with, and honestly I have completely gotten over this one either. You make a wrong turn? You and your character are punished for it. The charm of horror games is that it takes the rollercoaster of emotions experiences when watching movies to the next level. The scare you experience is 10 times worse, but the adrenaline and relief is so much greater. It gives the player a sense of accomplishment when they get past a challenging part of the game, and this feeling can be truly rewarding.
I believe that horror can also prepare you for certain events. The charm of the true crime genre is that its scares are rooted within our very own reality. I usually listen to true crime podcasts and personal accounts when travelling, whether that would be on the plane or in the front seat of a car. Although it may sound ridiculous, I believe these stories sort of prepare me for uncomfortable situations where I may be exposed to something similar. It makes me more careful of my surroundings, you'll never catch me walking by the side of the road alone at night with both AirPods on and staring at my phone.
I encourage everyone to at least give the horror genre a try. If it's not for you then it's not for you. A gateway movie into the horror genre I'd recommend is the original 1996 Scream because it is a lovely mix of comedy and slasher. You don't even have to be a horror fan to enjoy the movie, and the movie isn't too scary either, perfect for someone who is just getting into the genre. I gave horror a shot around a decade ago, and it has dragged me into an entire rabbit hole of horror-related content. I appreciate and admire the creativity required to effectively achieve the sense of fear that horror media produces, even the bad ones. You feel scared when a scare is effective, and you get a laugh when a scare isn't, it's a win-win situation.
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