Since the dawn of entertainment, horror has been one of the most popular genres. Whether it's movies, TV shows, books, or even video games, horror has persisted, remaining one of the most profitable and beloved genres out there. But as is the case with every immensely popular genre, there's bound to be a range of subgenre off-shoots, and horror is no different. Psychological horror, body horror, slow-burn, and monster are just a few examples that are prevalent across all media. But survival horror is one subgenre that's remained intrinsically tied to the video game industry, and its roots can be traced all the way back to early days of gaming with titles like Alone in the Dark and Resident Evil.

Though the survival horror gaming genre had been around for about a decade before it, 1992's Alone in the Dark set a new precedent for the genre and laid the groundwork for every subsequent survival horror title, including the most popular survival horror series of all time, Resident Evil. But with the recently announced Alone in the Dark reboot, it seems as though both franchises have come full circle.

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Alone in the Dark and Resident Evil Have Come Full Circle

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The first Alone in the Dark game, released in 1992, is widely considered to be the very first survival horror game to use 3D graphics. Utterly groundbreaking for the time, Alone in the Dark used pre-rendered backgrounds with 3D polygonal character models pasted on top. As players moved their character between rooms, the camera angle would shift, and the background would change, now showing a new environment. It's pretty primitive compared to modern survival horror titles, but for its time, Alone in the Dark was immensely impressive, and the rest of the industry took immediate notice.

Around the time of Alone in the Dark's release, Capcom began work on the very first Resident Evil game. According to series creator Shinji Mikami, the release of Alone in the Dark made a monumental impact on Resident Evil's development. Before the development team had played Alone in the Dark, Resident Evil was planned to be a first-person shooter, but after playing the game, Resident Evil quickly changed into a fixed camera angle, third-person survival horror.

The influences didn't stop there. The first Resident Evil seemingly takes quite a bit of general DNA from that first Alone in the Dark game. Both games are set in a spooky mansion, filled with hidden rooms and antiques, and both games see their players attempt to complete a series of obtuse puzzles while fending off monsters.

But as the Alone in the Dark series faded into obscurity over the next decade or so, the Resident Evil franchise only continued to grow. Over the next two decades, the Resident Evil franchise would evolve quite a bit, going from a fixed-perspective camera, to a third-person, behind-the-shoulder angle. The tone of the series would also shift a little, heading more into action territory than just pure survival horror. And now, the Resident Evil franchise's most successful recent entries have been remakes of the second and third games, with Capcom re-creating them from the ground up to retain the same survival horror atmosphere of the originals while transforming them into modern day third-person shooters.

A new Alone in the Dark remake has just been announced, and in a unique twist of fate, it's taking direct inspiration from the recent Resident Evil remakes. Though the general plot outline will be the same, and similar events will occur, this Alone in the Dark reboot is being made from the ground-up, swapping out the original's fixed-perspective for an over-the-shoulder angle, and that's not where the similarities end. Based on the footage released so far, it seems as though this Alone in the Dark reboot is trying to imitate the lighting, monster design, and atmosphere of the Resident Evil remakes. So, while Alone in the Dark may have once influenced Resident Evil, it's now Resident Evil that's inspiring Alone in the Dark, bringing both franchises full circle.

Alone in the Dark is currently in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.

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