TNGs all the way, for pretty much all the reasons everybody else posted before me, but I'm gonna add one more to the list of reasons; laziness. Seriously, why bother making a horror map if you're not going to put any original thought into it? Anybody can chuck a body around and add a scream effect, but it takes originality to actually make playing the maps worthwhile.
Poofers can be useful, if played correctly. If you're wanting to scare a player into running like hell, but you don't want to actually kill them if they fail to get away in time is a perfect example. Especially if they were never meant to actually get away, and you were just trying to back them into a corner for effect.
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(04-05-2012, 01:09 AM)Kaizy Wrote: Unpopular opinion time
Quite frankly, I find poofers to be more annoying
Why? Well, with Teleporting Naked Guys, you just get the jumpscare. It happens, sometimes it catches you off guard (unless it's one of those jumpscares thats predictable as hell, which most are), its usually accompanied by the loud screaming noise...it doesn't provide much of anything that adds to atmosphere or story, but it's definitely an attempt to make someone jump. They're sudden things that are at least trying to startle you. Poofers are a big disappointment, and I hate every single one I see. There's usually no build-up, just like a TNG, you just see the monster barreling towards you screaming, running out of a closet or door, music starts up...and then right when he's next to you, he disappears, all of which happens in seconds. You're lucky if you even alter the bored expression on your face when it happens because they're just not scary, and its giving the monsters more facetime, which in essence makes them even less scary then they're becoming. If almost even closet has a Poofer running at me, I'm just seeing the monster more and more and getting desensitized to the whole experience.
The TNG accompanied with the trademark scream can usually get some kind of reaction from most players if not done half assed and predictable, but a Poofer is so boring. TNG's are sudden and can startle you at some points, which does provide entertainment in some respects (this is coming from someone who hates most of the jumpscares that are overtaking the horror genres these days), but a Poofer doesn't startle you at all...it's just kind of...there. I've found myself running up to any monster in these stories that doesn't have some sort of actual build-up because I KNOW it's going to be a Poofer. The environment in these maps is usually so terrible that I can just run around and any monster I see is hilariously not scary and I'm nearly desensitized by the abundant Poofers by the time an actual monster appears.
Really, I can predict them almost every single time, where as in some cases I cannot predict when a naked dude is going to come flying at me from somewhere screeching like a banshee. In fact, Poofers may be more predictable than TNG's, just sayin'. TNG's are just more entertaining in my personal opinion. I don't defend the constant usage of them or jumpscares alike because honestly, they're so predictable, they just don't work on anyone who has played a handful of custom stories, but Poofers are just so much more annoying because they're such a huge let down. If a monster starts chasing me, I want it to be because I either fucked up being stealthy, or activated an event that adds to the atmosphere. I would rather not have my enemies disappear in a puff of smoke every time I encounter them.
TNG's are stupid, pointless, don't work or add anything to a story or atmosphere, but at least they try to do something.
Poofers are just a waste of time, like teasing me with something fun and then taking it away before I can enjoy it.
So yeah
/unpopular opinion
It might be an unpopular opinion, but I think you're right.
'Poofers' actively make the player less scared of the Grunt/Brute/Suitor in general, which not only makes you bored whenever you see the poofer, it also makes you fear the actual monster less, no matter what custom story it's in.
Teleporting naked guys are dull, boring and cheap scare tactics, but they don't directly affect your experience of other custom stories. I gotta admit it really made me jump when I first saw it, but then it got overused. The same would be the case for any scare tactic which got overused.
Flying Jesus gets boring and annoying quickly. Poofers (on my opinion) feel great the first time, but after a while, they'll get annoying as well.
One good thing with poofers, if you use them periodically, and then place a real monster after those, you'll "trick" the player into thinking "oh, nother poofer", and when they'll walk into it... you get the idea.
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(This post was last modified: 04-06-2012, 04:24 PM by Robby.)
(04-06-2012, 04:23 PM)Nemet Robert Wrote: One good thing with poofers, if you use them periodically, and then place a real monster after those, you'll "trick" the player into thinking "oh, nother poofer", and when they'll walk into it... you get the idea.
I've experienced that feeling, and, IMHO, no, it's not good. It's more annoying to encounter that than being scared in my opinion.
After you go through a level door, if the room in the level you go in has any kind of monster (triggered or not) make the door lock behind the player when he spawns in the next level XD that would piss me off. I'm actually doing that in my custom story.
Just to add more tinderboxes to this fire of heated discussion, what are things people add in custom stories that really make it lose the effect or things that are overdone waaaay too much? (Feel free to keep discussing TNG and poofers though, this is really helping me out when I start my custom story work )
(04-06-2012, 05:00 PM)Electra Wrote: Just to add more tinderboxes to this fire of heated discussion, what are things people add in custom stories that really make it lose the effect or things that are overdone waaaay too much? (Feel free to keep discussing TNG and poofers though, this is really helping me out when I start my custom story work )
I don't know about you, but I'd like to play 24_iron_maiden.snt at my funeral. It's such a catchy tune, so I'm sure everybody will love it. It never goes out of style, really.
(04-06-2012, 05:00 PM)Electra Wrote: Just to add more tinderboxes to this fire of heated discussion, what are things people add in custom stories that really make it lose the effect or things that are overdone waaaay too much? (Feel free to keep discussing TNG and poofers though, this is really helping me out when I start my custom story work )
On that I´d have to say key puzzles. I mean, who locks every door in their house and hide the bloody keyes allover the place. A little more imagination on the whole puzzle bit would be nice. Don´t get me wrong, some doors are locked and requires a key, but in a lot of CSs, there is way to many locked doors
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