Apparition Appear Effect

[Hamadriyad]

When a apparition comes in a room If torches fade, room gets cold, wouldn't it be nice? I think it would be a nice touch and I don't think it's hard to implement.

[SlyPT]

Are you implying that ghosts should be in the game?
I hope not, haven't you had enough of zombies? :P
But if they are going to include it, some creepy effects would be nice, and those you mentioned, shouldn't be very hard to implement at all, but it depends on the engine.

[Hamadriyad]

Ghosts are mostly harmless, they don't like zombies, do they? ;)

[Secondary]

i may be mistaken but weren't apparitions in the older games to begin with, i remeber appartitions of hammer priests in TDP and the gold version, theres no need to imply ghosts should be included, they already are:D

[Platinumoxicity]

Every creature in the earlier games deserves to be re-made, but all of them have to be improved a little. The apparitions could've been cool in T1 if they wouldn't have been so hilarious. :D The backwards-helium-voice was almost as hilarious as the keeper Enforcers' forwards-helium-voice. The apparitions really need to be creepified. How about making them like the ghosts in FEAR - Extraction point? You can only see their eyes and the shadow, and they hardly make any noise. :)

[Secondary]

yeah, the voices were a little strange but i found them no less creepy for it.

but i agree with Hamadriyad, a cool effect should accompany the appraoch of ghosts or appiritions, windows could frost and crackle, maybe you could see your breath. welectric lights should fail around them, like the puppets in the Cradle.

handt thought of it before but now that i am, i think its a really good idea

[Platinumoxicity]

-When an apparition moves to an area, all the sounds of wildlife fade and the wind stops. Everything becomes quiet all of a sudden.

[Davehall380]

Every creature in the earlier games deserves to be re-made, but all of them have to be improved a little. The apparitions could've been cool in T1 if they wouldn't have been so hilarious. :D The backwards-helium-voice was almost as hilarious as the keeper Enforcers' forwards-helium-voice. The apparitions really need to be creepified. How about making them like the ghosts in FEAR - Extraction point? You can only see their eyes and the shadow, and they hardly make any noise. :)

I actually found them quite scary for some reason! I had quite a bit of fun unleashing the library apparition on the guards of Casing the Joint. It seemed strange that Garrett couldnt be seen, but a murderous ghost going on a rampage was allowed (the little blighter took out cameras, turrets, the works!)

As for improvements, I completley agree. The Haunts need to be restored to their terrifying best, but the apparitions can bring a new sense of terror. Haunts were generally terrifying because they were hard to kill, quick and had great voices. The apparitions in T4 could take the well trodden path of fear induced by anticipation and the unknown. Haunts seem to take the 'jump' style fear, whilst ghosts could fade in and out, teasing the player etc

[DarknessFalls]

Some enhancements are needed for apparitions, definitely; and I hope ghosts are included. Good ones, and bad ones. I really enjoyed being startled by the harmless ones in T2; made me jump almost every time. But then to hear their stories and realize they were harmless was a nice touch.

I don't like it when gamemakers feel as though they need to make every NCP character be there to be your enemy and injure you. Variety is what I'd like with ghosts. Good ones, bad ones, good ones that startle, bad ones that startle, some that tell stories, some that act out stories, some where there's a slow build-up of psychological fear (like the library in T2, when you're behind the wall) leading to good and/or bad ghosts, etc.

Adding some environmental effects when they appear or where they walk would be nice in most cases, too. I don't want anything overboard, and don't want to feel like I'm playing FEAR or the Cradle.

[jtr7]

Apparitions and many different types of undead are in the games, especially the older titles. Apparitions attack with conjured projectiles, ghosts are harmless, phantoms are too. TDS only had Lauryl as a ghost, but there were no apparitions. The City is infected with necromancy, and the present necromancers are a threat that has not been exploited to the fullest.

[DarknessFalls]

Not sure if you're trying to, but you're making it sound like ghost, apparition and phantom are three very different things. I may have confused, too... but I was trying to use ghost and apparition as meaning pretty much the same thing; wasn't trying to say they were two different things. If anyone else is confused, this is from Dictionary.com:


Apparition
1. a supernatural appearance of a person or thing, esp. a ghost; a specter or phantom; wraith: a ghostly apparition at midnight.
2. anything that appears, esp. something remarkable or startling
3. an act of appearing; manifestation.



Ghost
1. the soul of a dead person, a disembodied spirit imagined, usually as a vague, shadowy or evanescent form, as wandering among or haunting living persons.


Phantom:
1. an apparition or specter.
2. an appearance or illusion without material substance, as a dream image, mirage, or optical illusion.

[kin]

When a apparition comes in a room If torches fade, room gets cold, wouldn't it be nice? I think it would be a nice touch and I don't think it's hard to implement.

If those phenomena stay on key places only and not in every 5 minutes of game play it would be creepy. Especially when you don’t know what this effect will be. One I like is the perspective distortion like the maze in Constantine mansion in TDP but implemented with an interactive way.

[jtr7]

The Cradle Puppets had that light-flickering phenomenon.

[Hamadriyad]

...windows could frost and crackle, maybe you could see your breath. welectric lights should fail around them, like the puppets in the Cradle.



Good ideas, especially I like, see breath part.

The backwards-helium-voice was almost as hilarious as the keeper Enforcers' forwards-helium-voice.

I find them pretty scary. Maybe I am too fearful. :D

If those phenomena stay on key places only and not in every 5 minutes of game play it would be creepy. Especially when you don’t know what this effect will be. One I like is the perspective distortion like the maze in Constantine mansion in TDP but implemented with an interactive way.
Agreed.

[Zahr Dalsk]

When a apparition comes in a room If torches fade, room gets cold, wouldn't it be nice? I think it would be a nice touch and I don't think it's hard to implement.

No. Appearing out of nowhere was startling. Adding other things as warnings would take away the surprise.

[Hamadriyad]

Disagreed. Noises and effects adds atmosphere If it isn't overkill. İt doesn't take away surprise, because effect and noise is surprise.

[esme]

kind of a reverse cheshire cat effect, start with a smile and fangs, then claws and work backwards to the complete monster with each added detail being nastier than the last

I agree, this can be extremely effective providing it isn't overdone

--EDIT--

or even something nice that turns nasty like the spirit in this scene from Indiana Jones and the Ark of the Covenant http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BT43tSRi6po about 2:53 from the start

[Davehall380]

Thief is based around sound - try playing RTHC without the sound on. The tension suffers, but seeing a haunt behind you without warning is nothing but terrifying!!

[Hamadriyad]

Definitely!

[jtr7]

Playing without sound and the light gem disabled.... Whew!

[Hamadriyad]

"Playing Thief without sound is harder than playing Quake without a screen."
Fullgame. (It was a TV show about PC games -in my country-. Unfortunately, it's over. Presenter was a huge Thief fan.)