Creepy Carnivals In Horror Games

Before we begin, I should point out that whilst I’m still not starting a proper third “season” of my “Horror Videogames Series” yet, this article (and another one later this month) does technically fit into the series.

Anyway, a recent fascination with stage magic reminded me of an article I was planning to write for the second “season” last year, but didn’t get round to at the time. So, this is something of a “lost article” from that season.

Anyway, I thought that I’d talk about creepy carnivals, terrifying theme parks and frightening funfairs in horror games today. Although I obviously haven’t seen literally every example, and have only directly played…some…of the games mentioned here, I hope that this serves as at least a basic overview of the topic. It certainly isn’t an exhaustive list, but it will at least provide you with a few examples.

First of all, in case it isn’t obvious, videogames didn’t invent this style of horror. It famously goes back to at least the 1932 movie “Freaks”, not to mention that another classic example is Ray Bradbury’s 1962 dark fantasy novel “Something Wicked This Way Comes” too (which, on a side note, is well worth reading for the atmosphere and writing style). Season 2 of “The X-Files” also included a carnival-themed episode as well. Creepy carnivals are literally nothing new in the horror genre. Still, let’s look at some examples of their appearances in games.

This article may contain SPOILERS for the first and third “Silent Hill” games.

One of the very earliest examples is probably the 1982 computer game “3D Monster Maze”. As well as being a very early example of a first-person perspective game and a precursor to modern “run and hide” survival games, the footage I’ve seen of it possibly appears to take place in a carnival. At the very least, the game’s introduction – a precursor to the “content warnings” in old survival horror games – features a “carnival barker” character.

Moving onto the 1990s, there’s the 1995 game “Bad Day On The Midway”. Created by an art collective called The Residents, the footage I’ve seen of this horror point-and-click game seems to take place entirely in a creepy funfair of some kind which is filled with strange and disturbing characters. It appears to focus a lot more on atmosphere, storytelling and visual design to scare the player than anything else, and it also appears to be the only “serious” horror game to have gotten a BBFC “12” rating in the UK.

Following the “point and click” theme, another game is the 1996 game “Goosebumps: Escape From Horrorland”. Although I only have vague memories of playing this once at a friend’s house back in the 1990s and seeing a comedic “let’s play” video of it in late 2021, it was a horror game that was primarily aimed at children. You play as a young character who is searching an eerie theme park for their friends. Even so, it still has a wonderfully gloomy and eerie atmosphere that is still very memorable.

Another example from the 1990s is probably the 1997 horror-themed shooter game “Blood“. Although this action game is as much of a referential parody of the horror genre as an example of it, one of the levels in the first episode takes place in a wonderfully eerie carnival. This is filled with mini-games that the player can win items from, mimes to obliterate in gruesome ways, a grisly hidden reference to “Duke Nukem 3D” (1996), rats roasting in the food stalls and a reference to the movie “Freaks” as well. It’s dark and gruesome, but has its tongue firmly in its cheek.

This is a screenshot from the “Dark Carnival” (E1M4) level in “Blood” (1997). Oh, I forgot to mention the brilliantly atmospheric circus music in this level too.

Following on from this, the 1999 “Nightmare Levels” expansion to the regrettable bug-riddled 1998 sequel “Blood II: The Chosen” also briefly includes a carnival area, mostly as a reference to the first game in the series.

Then there is, of course, the classic 1999 survival horror game “Silent Hill“, which includes some segments set in the Lakeside Amusement Park. This is a small theme park, which has seen better days. It is covered with rust, shrouded in darkness, filled with monsters and is just generally a thoroughly creepy place.

Not only that, one of the game’s boss battles – with a possessed version of a friendly character – also takes place on the merry-go-round too. Interestingly, there are two ways to complete this battle. If you picked up an obscure item earlier in the game, you can exorcise this character with it… if not, it is a tragic and grisly fight to the death.

Moving on to the 2000s, this location returns in “Silent Hill 3” (2003). Not only does the dream sequence at the beginning of the game take place there, but you also get to explore the amusement park in more detail later in the game too. Not only is it creepier and more detailed than in the first game, but it also contains the Borley Haunted Mansion – an absolutely stellar set piece, which was a bizarrely prescient parody of “walking simulator” horror games (before they were even a thing!).

This is a screenshot from “Silent Hill 3” (2003), showing the exterior of the Borley Haunted Mansion, complete with Halloween decorations. It’s only a relatively short set-piece, but it is one of the game’s more memorable moments and is more clever than it might initially appear to be too (thanks to all of the dramatic contrast – between old and modern horror, between active and passive gameplay etc...).

Like in the first game, there’s a boss battle on a merry-go-round but, not only is it creepier – thanks to both the music and how you literally have to kill the “horses” before the boss appears – but you also find yourself fighting against an evil past version of yourself too.

Another example from the 2000s can be found in the 2004 “Battle Out Of Hell” expansion for the horror-infused shooter game “Painkiller” (2004). Whilst the first level of this expansion – set in an orphanage – is one of the scariest and most disturbing things that I’ve even seen in the FPS genre, the second level lightens the mood with a creepy theme park setting.

This is a screenshot from “Painkiller: Battle Out Of Hell” (2004). And, yes, this level will seem joyous and light-hearted after you’ve played the first level…

It’s a fairly standard “evil carnival” type of thing, but the thrilling fast-paced action makes an interesting change from the slower pacing of traditional horror games, not to mention that it has a cool set-piece set on a rollercoaster too. It’s more fun than frightening, but still a good example.

Likewise, although it has been ages since I played it, the gruesome zombie apocalypse shooter game “Left 4 Dead 2” (2009) includes a large multi-part level set inside an abandoned theme park. It isn’t exactly ultra-frightening, and you can do all sorts of cool stuff like finding a garden gnome and setting off fireworks, but it technically fits into the category.

As for the 2010s, I’m not really an expert on horror games from this decade. The only carnival-themed examples I can currently think of include one of the scariest mid-late game levels in the overlooked survival horror game “The Evil Within” (2014), set in a grimy underground factory with a spinning blade and eerie carnival music. This level doesn’t look like a carnival, but parts of it have that kind of atmosphere – albeit filtered through the “Saw” movies.

Plus, although I haven’t played it, there is also the 2016 game “The Park” too. From what I’ve seen and read, it’s a short horror “walking simulator” game set in a creepy abandoned theme park.

Moving on to the 2020s, there seem to be at least two or three modern horror games which make good use of creepy carnival-like settings.

First of all, there is Casper Croes’ excellent 2021 “fixed-camera” survival horror game “Alisa“. One segment of this quirky and eerie 1990s-style game is set in the “House Of Fun”, a carnival-themed area with a big top, creepy circus music, evil clowns and all manner of other scary stuff. It is definitely one of the most stylised and atmospheric versions of the setting that I’ve seen.

This is a screenshot from “Alisa” (2021), showing part of the game’s creepy carnival-themed area.

If you haven’t played the game since it’s release in 2021, be sure to check out the “Developer’s Cut”  update which was released in September 2022, since it adds something… extra… to this segment of the game which somehow makes it twice as scary as it was before.

Secondly, in 2021, there was a brilliantly disturbing trailer (warning – flickering lights/gory images) for a then-upcoming asymmetrical multiplayer horror game called “Carnival Hunt”. I haven’t played this game but, from the trailer, it involves sentient mechanical rabbits (evocative of the theme park mascot in “Silent Hill 3”) trying to escape and/or hide from a gruesome skeletal magician in a blood-drenched carnival of some kind. It looks a bit like what would probably happen if Tim Burton made an “Outlast” game. Scary stuff!

The other modern horror game in this category I can think of is another one I haven’t actually played. The 2021 horror game “Poppy Playtime” is apparently set inside an abandoned toy factory, but the footage I’ve seen of it definitely seems to include some theme park/carnival style elements too. Again, I haven’t played it but it certainly looks creepy!

Again, this isn’t really a complete or exhaustive list but, if you’re interested in this style of horror, then it certainly shows up in a few games.

——————-

Anyway, I hope that this was interesting 🙂