Good Settings for a Horror Game

[Vasyenka]

Personally, I believe atmosphere is what makes for a good horror game per se. Your setting could be within a graveyard, but if it's daytime, you're with friends, there's joyous music, etc. it's not going to be "scary". However, take away the light, the company, the music, and add in other elements such as a sluggish mist, foliage, ambient sound effects, and possibly even whispers and/or apparitions, and you now have something most would consider "scary".

A good example of this, in my opinion, would be Silent Hill. Throughout much of the game, you explore areas that are well lit, not a whole lot in terms of ambiance going on, and you're lulled into this sense of security - that your character isn't going to die any moment. But when the game shifts to the otherworld, everything becomes dark, looks rusted/frozen, and you're unsure if what you heard was just ambiance or an actual monster on your trail - all while taking place in the same location.

Of course, personal preference takes a huge role in that, blah blah blah etc. etc., but atmosphere is my choice of what makes one on the edge of voiding their bowels in a horror game.