Survival-horror works fine on DS, says DS survival-horror dev

By Robert Purchese Published 11 June, 2007

Spooky!

Renegade Kid owner Jools Watsham reckons the DS is as suitable as any platform for a survival-horror game.

He was talking to Eurogamer about his upcoming scarer Dementium: The Ward, and said he wasn't worried that he may be pitching to the wrong audience.

"We're huge fans of the survival-horror genre, and we think a game of its type will fit perfectly into the Nintendo DS's library - there's still plenty of room for variety on the shelf," Jools Watsham told Eurogamer.

"Does the fact that the majority of DS games are geared towards a young audience alienate potential owners who are looking for mature content? The Nintendo DS is not just a kids' console. We're all old gits at Renegade Kid and it's our favourite system to play games on."

Dementium: The Ward is a run-and-gun game designed to make you fill your underpants. It's being touted as the first mature and gory game on the platform and is promising to push the hardware further than most.

You play the role of a man who wakes up in a weird hospital seemingly frozen in time. As you jump into his shoes and wander the halls of the infirmary you'll soon be confronted by all sorts of mutated and disfigured nasties.

And you shouldn't let the friendly nature of the DS distract you, because Watsham believes The Ward will be as scary as you let it.

"A handheld survival-horror game can be as scary as you allow it to be. It has been our goal to push the limits of what you may expect to see and hear on the Nintendo DS in terms of quality and variety. We recommend wearing headphones and visiting the toilet before playing Dementium: The Ward," Watsham continued.

"The Nintendo DS has a tremendous amount to offer technically, it is a very powerful console. We hope the Nintendo DS sticks around as Nintendo's main handheld system for a long time so we have the opportunity to really take advantage of its power."

Dementium: The Ward won't feature multiplayer, unfortunately, and has yet to be given a firm release date in any territory.

Head over to our Dementium: The Ward gallery for the latest screenshots.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (19) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Blerk #1 5 years ago

    To be honest, he would say that, wouldn't he? :-)

    I don't agree, though. The whole point of SH is the atmosphere. Without a big screen, a darkened room and the sound turned up loud then the atmosphere's just gone.

    You can make a survival horror for a handheld, yes. But I can't imagine it being quite the same.
    Edited by 1 at 11/06/07 @ 11:20

  • souljacker2000 #2 5 years ago

    plus Dementium looks cack

  • Genji #3 5 years ago

    Yeah, the DS is technically powerful enough to handle a survival horror game. The problem is not lack of power; it's lack of atmosphere. That goes for the DS and the PSP.

  • skillian #4 5 years ago

    I think he's taking the "shit your pants" angle a bit too far.

  • Steroyd #5 5 years ago

    Why shit your pants, when you can shit on the toilet?

    I mean the DS is a handheld afterall.
    Edited by 1 at 11/06/07 @ 11:29

  • Artemis_Matsas #6 5 years ago

    This type of game just isn't suited for handhelds, except if you lock yourself in a dark room and start playing.
    (although if you actually do that, you probably have other issues to sort out).

  • presbyterrorion #7 5 years ago

    It looks scarily bad, perhaps that's what he meant.

  • Steroyd #8 5 years ago

    Don't you have that the wrong way round Xiphos?
    Edited by 1 at 11/06/07 @ 11:45

  • mash the x button #9 5 years ago

    Sliced bread works in a toaster shocker, jointly declare a leading bread maker and electrical outlet.

  • spongebob #10 5 years ago

    Survival-horror works fine on DS, says DS survival-horror dev

    Best headline, ever!

  • Subquest #11 5 years ago

    from the screenshots it looks a little like Realms Of The Haunting on the PC several years ago.

  • Nikanoru #12 5 years ago

    I can never see the reason for artistic talent, programming genius, to be wasted on such small dimensions and a lack of scale


    That's bullshit, there are plenty of handheld games that show off their artistic talent and programming genius just fine, more so than some console games.


    That said, the kind of games that work on a console just don't work as well on a handheld, and vice versa. It's probably one of the main reasons why the PSP is being trounced by the DS.

    Same reason why I'm pissed that the next Silent Hill is on the PSP. It's not that I'm opposed to buying one, I just want to play that game on a big steady screen in front of me.

  • RenegadeKid #13 5 years ago

    Thanks for all of the lovely feedback chaps! :)

    What I'd like to know is, why does a screen have to be big for you to enjoy the atmosphere of a game?

    Does size really matter?

  • AcidSnake #14 5 years ago

    @RenagadeKid:
    If you really are on the dev team then a quick suggestion:
    Put in some insanity effects like Eternal Darkness did...
    Suddenly seeing the DS boot up screen again would freak me out...

    Probably something for the next project though...

    In any case, the bigger the screen, the bigger the chance that something can jump out and get you I guess...Also staring in fear at two or three pixels which "might've moved" on a big screen is totally different from the same small screen...

  • AceMaCool #15 5 years ago

    I think its a good idea. There's already a million puzzle games on the DS so something totally different like this could be brilliant IF done well.

    I generally like to play the DS in bed with the lights out and headphones in anyway so I should be in a perfect position to absorb the atmosphere.

  • Mr_Brown #16 5 years ago

    Can't see why it wouldn't work, sure you won't have surround sound but any genre can be adjusted to maximise the potential of any console. I find it hard to belive that a console, with two screens, a mic and a touch screen couldn't have a great survival horror game...just because its portable and doesn't run through the telly. People are just so jaded these days...and devs are too lazy to take up a decent challenge with new hardware (well publishes are too scared more likely).

  • dudefella #17 5 years ago

    It doesn't work as well as on consoles, for proof see Resident Evil DS

  • Kami #18 5 years ago

    @ Artemis_Matsas; Lots of people lock themselves in darkened rooms to play scary games on their PC or console, so why should it be any different to do similar for a handeld system?

    As for the screen - it's not the size that matters, it's what you do with it. Survival horror does work generally better on a TV because of detail and clarity, and also because of the power provided I guess - blocky monsters and grainy textures these days aren't quite as scary as they were a few years ago. If that can be achieved on a handheld then all should be well.

  • VMerken #19 5 years ago

    Hmm, but Resident Evil: Deadly Silence beat Dementium to being the first mature, gory survival horror game - even if it was just a remake. Or, if you look at it from a different angle, Sprung beats them all.

    Either way, you don't necessarily find horror on the screen (shock horror), you can find it inside your head as well (cerebral horror). If things aren't what they seem and they catch you off-guard, the old noggin won't know what to think. And it gets scared. That's why I don't think the medium is all that important to give a good scare - Kintaro's Revenge, a GBA game for those not in the know, was scary in its own charming way because it left you wondering about the sincerity of the characters you interacted with all the time.

    Silent Hill/PlayStation may not be the prettiest title on the block anymore, but it's still quite scary to many. Because it goes inside your head and stays there a jolly long time. Ergo, if Dementium aims for cerebral horror, the interface it chose won't matter - much.

    Lastly, I'm all for some more maturity on the DS although the line can truly be drawn right in front of witch touching, thanksverymuch. For example, I don't like how Konami did a Sunday Morning Happy Hour Cartoon Tween Makeover on the DS Castlevanias because that'd appeal more to a youthful target audience. Come on, just let Kojima do her artistic magic on those character designs so that the game is gothic through and through rather than unspectacularly halloweeny and again there will be cosmic balance.

    The more mature titles there are, the better. Bring it!