cinematic v. horrific, or what i did on my summer vacation

[Timothy Toner]

-----Original Message-----
From: Bryant Durrell <durrell at innocence.com>
To: UA at purpletape.cs.uchicago.edu <UA at purpletape.cs.uchicago.edu>
Date: Thursday, February 25, 1999 12:54 PM
Subject: Re: cinematic v. horrific, or what i did on my summer vacation

>
>Interesting question, really.  I think horror can be cinematic.  I
>think cinematic is currently used in gaming to mean... pulpish action.
>Having your PC jump off the cliff with the cool certainty that the GM
>will reward your boldness by providing a helicopter.  But there's more
>to cinema than that.


I think in the post-modern era we need to invent a new term that allows us
to put certain conditions on an established genre.  For instance, Blade
Runner was futuristic noir, with the noir aesthetics overpowering the
futuristic aesthetics.  Something like "spin," I suppose.  Anyway, I think
the problem here is one of poor communication.  I see cinematic horror as
something along the lines of Evil Dead -- cartoony, in a sense, but still
damn creepy.  It goes against the precepts of horror, since most of the
protagonists in classic horror tales are really really fragile
(psychologically and physically).  Still, when done well, it's very good.  I
can imagine people playing UA with cinematic horror, just as I can see
people modelling after Cronenberg, and going for the classic horror.