Editorials
Who Else Is Ready for a Horror Video Game from the Marvel Universe?
It has been a while since there was an interesting horror-related release from one of the most famous comic brands in history. Actually, when you look through its vast catalog of titles, you’ll find that there aren’t many video games with horror elements in them at all. 2007’s Ghost Rider, a “God of War wannabe” adventure, is the most recent title that comes to mind — and it wasn’t up to much, with its repetitive structure and brainless combat. Then, we could remember a couple of Blade’s entries that allowed us to play as the most badass vampire hunter from the big M. Perhaps some would include a classic such as Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage for its main characters and narrative bits, or even some segments from the Ultimate Alliance franchise, but that’s about it. There isn’t something of remarkable quality that screams “horror” when thinking about the Avengers’ house of games.
Speaking of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Marvel’s Avengers was a flop and it has a murky future. Apparently, the next-gen consoles updates are still coming — even if they have been delayed twice — and a bunch of DLC characters will arrive “eventually”. On the other side, Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales received an overall positive reception and a sequel will probably be in the works, but years away. Elsewhere, there’s radio silence for a new Marvel vs Capcom entry, so at this time, it seems the company’s horizon regarding video games is somewhat uncertain.
Then, why don’t we imagine a fresh, future project full of frightening elements and starring some of our favorite superheroes and villains? You might say “because that’s never happening, mate” and… that would unfortunately probably be right. Even after more than 20 films in the MCU, there isn’t something of the horror genre — only finding a recent example if we consider a movie from “outside” like The New Mutants. Perhaps the incoming Sam Raimi’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will provide us with that horror spark? In video games, a horror-infused Marvel game seems even less likely. That doesn’t mean we can’t wonder what one could be. In fact, we are doing that right now.
For starters, let’s select a protagonist. While there are hundreds of possible picks, I’d keep the one thing that’s actually pretty good from Marvel’s Avengers: Kamala Khan. This young Muslim Pakistani-American woman is by far the most interesting and endearing character. Her commentary and views both of the world and the Avengers themselves were the most genuine moments. For our “horror experiment” I’d keep her as the main protagonist, with a little twist: she’ll take a bit longer to be able to actually use her powers. Her innocence and charming personality will remain “intact”, but stretching her limbs and getting big is out of the question. Surviving the threats and dangers she’ll have to face will be a thing of hiding and escaping at the right moment. At least, for the first levels.
But hold on a moment. Who or what are these “threats” and “dangers”? I believe that a millionaire villain controlling every aspect of our life using technology is a bit too common in our real lives. Here’s where the decades of work and breathtaking library of stories and characters made by the company can provide us with some interesting picks. From “classic” horror creatures with their own “marvelous” adaptations – like Dracula and the Werewolf By Night – to more original creations, such as the vampire Morbius, the “Fear Lord” Nightmare, and the failed experiment Man-Thing. Some of these characters, like Nightmare, could work like the movie icons they are based on (in this case, old friendly Freddy Krueger). Nightmare attacks people’s dreams, absorbing power from the fears of others. He’s so fearsome that his effects don’t end when the subject wakes up.
This is only an insignificant portion of the possibilities. There’s such a wild catalog of characters, including X-Men’s Mr. Sinister, the Skinless Man, the Jigsaw’s comic counterpart named Arcade, or even the freaking Son of Satan (called Daimon Hellstrom). From the allied side, more familiar faces like Dr. Strange or the aforementioned Blade and Ghost Rider could bring a hand from time to time to Kamala. If Ms. Marvel wasn’t the first choice, then there are plenty of other inexperienced or not so overpowered characters to select from, such as young mutants like Jubilee, Rogue, Nightcrawler, Negasonic Teenage Warhead, or Wolfsbane.
From a plot perspective, much can be created or adapted when we discover that the Marvel universe has its own Necronomicon called “The Darkhold”, created with dark matter and full of unimaginable and forbidden spells that can cost the soul of the user. The Darkhold was held by different personalities, even agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, provoking a series of unfortunate events in the process. There are even more classic Marvel horror tales, like the 70’s series called “The Tomb of Dracula”, among many others.
For those who would prefer to see their all-time favorite heroes in a more “living dead” fashion, the 2005’s series called Marvel Zombies, written by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman, might be a perfect choice. In this story, most of the characters have been infected by an unknown virus called “The Hunger”, brought by a zombified version of Sentry. Our heroes became zombies, but not like the regular kind of living dead: their personality, intellect and powers are intact. However, The Hunger made them eat and infect all human life.
Creating a setting and selecting the characters might be the easiest part. It gets tricky when we think about how it should play. Personally, I am all in for a good brawler or beat ‘em up experience fighting Brood, Symbiotes, Kree, Skrull, and Anansi, with a bit of exploration and well-implemented jumpscares. As long as the combat doesn’t get as repetitive and grindy as Marvel’s Avengers, and also includes a selection of well-known villains as bosses, it could work.
Spinning things in a different direction, a more exciting and engaging experience would be, without a doubt, to go a bit more Survival Horror, with puzzle-solving, little to no real combat at all, and a menace that exceeds our possibility of surviving. Feeling despair while being gifted with supernatural abilities might be harsh. Or not really. It only takes an overwhelming villain with powers out of our reach and even understanding, a temporal or permanent suppression of our abilities and that’s it. In fact, Marvel could even capitalize on its recent WandaVision series success and use something similar to that. Without directly spoiling anything of the show, Wanda Maximoff, a.k.a. Scarlet Witch, is an incredible character that can twist the threads of reality to fit her wishes, which could lead to a wild spinoff from established Marvel stories and characters. Hell, some of our protagonists or allies could lose their life and remain permanently dead rather than ‘comic book dead’.
These are just my personal ideas for what could make a compelling Marvel horror video game. There is just so much material and so many possibilities within this universe that you might have thought of completely different characters and stories to create a Marvel horror game. And again, getting a title with any of this seems unlikely at the moment, but we could do with a nice horror dream.
Editorials
Before ‘The Blair Witch Project’, ‘Alien Autopsy’ Showed How Real Found Footage Could Feel
The line separating artist from con man is a lot thinner than you might initially believe. While I think we can all agree that lying for the sake of profit is actively malicious behavior, isn’t it also true that the faux documentary aspect of The Blair Witch Project is half the reason why that film became such a cultural phenomenon? After all, if there’s one thing filmmakers have in common with stage magicians, it’s that misleading and misdirecting audiences is simply part of the job.
That’s why I’ve developed a habit of mostly ignoring the moral quandaries behind many of film and television’s biggest “hoaxes” in favor of appreciating the narrative elements that drive productions like Mermaids: The Body Found and even Animal Planet’s highly underrated The Cannibal in the Jungle. However, if there’s a definitive case of a highly publicized broadcast fooling the world into taking it seriously, it has to be Fox’s infamous 1995 TV special Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction.
It’s been over three decades since that eerie footage first haunted television screens right at the peak of the ’90s ufology craze, and in that time, the video has taken on a life of its own. From countless parodies and references in everything from The X-Files to Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater (as well as John Dower’s recently released tell-all documentary The Alien Autopsy Scandal, which I’d highly recommend to genre fans everywhere), there’s no denying the legacy of the Alien Autopsy video. However, I rarely see the tape discussed as what it truly is: a highly convincing found footage film directed by a passionate stage magician and brought to life by masterful practical effects work.
That’s why I’d like to invite readers to join me on a deep dive into one of the most infamous broadcasts of all time in an attempt to reevaluate the footage as a fascinating narrative experience rather than a complete hoax.
The TV Special That Convinced Millions It Was Real
Ray Santilli next to Extraterrestrial replica in ‘The Alien Autopsy Scandal’
For starters, regardless of whether or not you believe that there was in fact an extraterrestrial crash in Roswell during the summer of 1947 and that some form of autopsy was performed on the victims, the producers behind the black & white recordings, Ray Santilli and Gary Shoefield, insist that their video was a “restoration.” Though I’d argue that the proper word is “remake”of genuine footage that was too damaged to air on television. That’s why the duo went on to recruit filmmaker and eccentric magician Spyros Melaris and sculptor/monster designer John Humphreys to bring their version of the autopsy to life and sell it to the highest bidder.
This is where the story of the Alien Autopsy as a narrative experience really begins. Melaris claims that his approach to the faux recording consisted of striving for extreme period accuracy in both shooting equipment and setting while also planting subtle details that would initially seem like mistakes but could later be revealed to actually fit the time period. That being said, the filmmaker was under the impression that the short would be released for free as a PR stunt, with the team later producing and selling an informative documentary chronicling exactly how the footage was faked and commenting on how easy it is to manipulate public perception with a good old-fashioned magic trick.
This obviously isn’t how things went down, and that’s likely the reason why Melaris has since distanced himself from everyone else involved with the project. Yet, no amount of behind-the-scenes drama can undermine the genuine effort that went into making the short as impressive as it is. From the sourcing of real animal organs from a local butcher to make the organic part of the creature more lifelike to the highly detailed sculpt that made use of a hollowed-out underlayer that could be filled with fake blood and assorted viscera, there’s a reason why so many Hollywood specialists are still impressed with the artistry on display here.
Of course, the believability is only half the story, as I think that the best part of the autopsy is how Melaris builds on the existing tension by obscuring certain details and often embracing the chaos of what a real examination of extraterrestrial life could feel like. The camera often goes out of focus at just the right time to make certain effects hit even harder, and we can only speculate as to what the hazmat-suited doctors are gesticulating about during the operation. There’s a real air of mystery to the whole thing that almost makes it feel like a cosmically terrifying, cursed film containing forbidden knowledge that civilians were never meant to see.
So when Fox’s Fact or Fiction brings in the specialists to comment on the film and its otherworldly subject, it’s no surprise that we end up with one of the most memorable mockumentaries of all time – albeit one where the participants are unaware that the footage they’re commenting on is basically a large-scale practical joke. A joke that the network was obviously in on, as many participants claim that the TV special cut out significant portions where guests point out that they believe the footage to be an elaborate hoax.
The Lasting Impact of the Hoax Turned Cultural Event
Regardless, I remember going to bed terrified after watching reruns of the special and thinking about the respected pathologist who claimed that the body was almost certainly inhuman, with even effects maestro Stan Winston commenting on how difficult it would be to recreate some of these visuals through practical puppetry. That’s not even mentioning Jonathan Frakes’ dramatic hyping up of the disturbing imagery as if he was talking about the tape from The Ring, with his spooky demeanor here likely being responsible for his later role as the host of Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction a few years later.
Personally, I’d argue that the Alien Autopsy phenomenon had just as much of an impact on me as a horror fan as The Blair Witch Project, a film that was almost certainly influenced by the success of this immensely popular hoax (to the point where they even produced their own TV special commenting on Heather’s found footage). Even if Fox didn’t intend to produce a narrative feature about the aftermath of the Roswell crash, the end product still holds up remarkably well as a highly entertaining mockumentary exploring the idea that we may not be alone in the universe.
While neither Santilli nor the rest of the production team has ever commented on this, I also think it’s very likely that the idea of a faux Alien Autopsy could have been influenced by Dean Alioto’s The McPherson Tape/UFO Abduction. I’ve already written about how this granddaddy of found footage was co-opted by rogue ufologists who began selling bootlegs of the tape at conventions as if it were real evidence of a close encounter, so it’s not that much of a stretch to imagine that Santilli and company could have heard about this phenomenon and been inspired to come up with their own highly profitable hoax.
At the end of the day, it’s unlikely that the Alien Autopsy film is recreating any real footage from Roswell, but I can still appreciate the short and the accompanying television event as a standalone horror story that still influences the way we see found footage to this very day.
After all, the possibility that something could be real is often much scarier than finding out for sure – and that’s why I think Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction is still worth revisiting three decades down the line.
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