1 free read left. Create a free account for unlimited reading + AI research.
Create free account
Horror Protagonists - How Ordinary Characters Make Scarier Games - Extra Credits
Key insights
6 takeaways- 01Effective horror design relies on a triad consisting of the monster, the setting, and the protagonist.
- 02Horror protagonists must be ordinary, relatable individuals rather than trained combatants to ensure the audience can project themselves into the narrative and experience disempowerment.
- 03The protagonist is the most critical element of horror design, as the effectiveness of fear is determined by the relationship between the character’s capabilities and the threats they face.
- 04True horror requires the protagonist to be fundamentally outmatched; if a character is too powerful, the genre shifts from horror to action.
- 05Protagonists who overcome provide a sense of catharsis, while those who fail challenge the notion of free will by demonstrating the futility of the struggle.
- 06The protagonist who embodies the horror themselves is the most potent archetype, as it forces an uncomfortable confrontation with the audience's own potential for darkness.
Ask AI about this video
Transcript
[Music] happy Halloween everybody it's time once again to Dawn our costumes and talk about something fine okay happy All Hallows everyone today we're going to talk about an often over looked element of the Trinity of Terror the protagonist now most of the time when I hear people talking about horror I hear them talk about the monster or maybe the setting and while those are very important there's a third part of that Triad that can't be overlooked the main character that interacts with those two is equally important how we as players or viewers experience the monster and the setting of a work of horror depends very much on who the protagonist is the first thing that's necessary for a successful horror protagonist is that they have to be someone that we can identify with the more like us they are the more we can understand the terror they're experiencing this usually means that the
best horror protagonists are average in everyday people like lri Strode in Halloween Harry Mason in Silent Hill or even William Dyer in at the mountains of Madness even in strange and fantastic settings you'll find that effective horror protagonists tend to be pretty ordinary folks like Ellen Ripley an alien in fact alien's a good example think about how much more frightening alien is compared to the movie Predator now a predator is awesome and certainly has some tense moments but it's not as viscerally frightening as alien because it's harder for most of us to associate with and understand the terror of a hulking member of the special forces who can still whip up some nasty traps and explosive arrows in a pinch but Ripley she's just a blue collar Miner thrown into circumstances Beyond her understanding that's somebody we can identify with which brings us nicely to our next Point horror is about disempowerment it's about feeling fear in a safe place this means that the protagonist has to be Weak and Powerless compared to the forces they face a babysitter versus a psychopath a writer trying to protect his daughter from a hellish town a geologist up against unfathomable Cosmic evil the very thought of which will drive a man insane the closer the protagonist comes to
matching the power of the forces array against them the more things drift toward action rather than horror after all Simply Having a monster doesn't qualify something as horror horror doesn't come from the monster's mere existence it's built around the relation between the monster and the main character this means that the more we empower the protagonist the more we straight towards making them a cop or a soldier or a criminal the more helpless we have to make them in the face of the threat we put in front of them the more disproportionately small they have to seem compared to the forces they come in contact with otherwise you're just going to end up with an action story with some extremely neat dades so now you have a protagonist with whom an audience can associate who they can feel POS for and experience Terror with and feel catharsis from knowing that in the end unlike the protagonist they'll be able to walk away from this experience and return to their safe everyday lives now once you have that there are three types of horror protagonists you can deliver the protagonist that overcomes the protagonist that fails and the protagonist that is themselves the horror the protagonist that overcomes is the type that leaves us feeling a little more upbeat at the end relatively you'll recognize this protagonist from many American horror films they start out completely completely outmatched and
disempowered but over the course of the experience they grow and Harden and finally become a match for the monster they face whether that be a cosmic horror or an escaped killer naturally this type of horror leaves us with the sense that no matter how bad things are we can overcome so by its very nature this outcome takes some of the terror out of an experience at the end the second type on the other hand the protagonist that fails leaves us feeling small and Powerless this type of protagonist struggles against the monster but in the end succumbs to it calling into question the one thing that most of us use to Anchor Our Lives free will by questioning whether or not we actually do have control or any power at all over our destiny in the face of the darkness that surrounds us it forces us to confront a fundamental human fear to highlight this the protagonist that fails is often made to appear to be the protagonist that overcomes until the very last moments of an experience when all of their supposed control is shown to be an illusion this is very common in Japanese and Korean horror with the quintessential example being ringu or the US version the ring if you prefer the final type of horror protagonist and the one that I find to be the most potent is the protagonist that is themselves the horror this is Dr
Frankenstein Dorian Gray or James Sunderland this is the protagonist who reflects the darker nature in all of us they're people who we can respect and we can associate with who we can even view as ourselves but as we come to realize over the course of the experience they are the true monster they frighten us and Intrigue us because they represent that fine line that holds back our darker impulses they show us how easily we ourselves might trip to the other side if it weren't for this thin veneer of civilization we all wear these protagonists leave us shaken they don't rely on the visceral scares of the other two types but instead play play on some deeper fear they leave us Disturbed perhaps horrified rather than really frightened because they ask us to face our own secret desires and the wicked thoughts or Primal instincts that flash through our head in that moment before we say to ourselves oh that's terrible and shake them off and to me this is the experience that's the richest it's the hardest to pull off well but when it happens watching or playing such a protagonist teaches us something about ourselves well I hope you guys enjoyed that thanks for watching and have a happy Halloween [Music]
n [Applause] a
Summary
Effective horror design relies on a triad of the monster, the setting, and the protagonist. The central thesis posits that the protagonist is the most critical element in shaping the player's experience, as the effectiveness of horror is determined by the relationship between the character’s capabilities and the threats they face. To maximize fear, protagonists must be relatable, ordinary individuals rather than highly trained combatants. This relatability allows the audience to project themselves into the narrative, making the experience of disempowerment more visceral and impactful.
The core of the horror experience is defined by the protagonist's vulnerability. When a character is disproportionately weak compared to the forces arrayed against them, the narrative maintains a sense of dread. If a protagonist is too powerful—such as a soldier or a trained fighter—the genre shifts from horror toward action. True horror requires the protagonist to be fundamentally outmatched, emphasizing the fragility of human safety in the face of overwhelming or incomprehensible threats.
Horror protagonists generally fall into three distinct categories based on their narrative arc. The protagonist who overcomes provides a sense of catharsis, suggesting that human resilience can triumph over darkness. Conversely, the protagonist who fails challenges the notion of free will, leaving the audience with a sense of helplessness by revealing that the character’s struggle was ultimately futile. Finally, the most potent archetype is the protagonist who embodies the horror themselves. By reflecting the audience's own potential for darkness and suppressed impulses, these characters move beyond simple fear to provoke deep psychological disturbance, forcing an uncomfortable confrontation with the viewer's own nature.
Comments