Making Large Buildings More Tense

[theweef]

Hey everyone, new here, and not a lot of hours. I've been exploring a lot more in the game lately and I found that a lot of large buildings don't feel large (I haven't gone to the mall). For example, the Giga-Mart to me just feels like walking into my local Walgreens instead of some zombie-infested supermarket (I play with common hordes, Fragile, poor sight, good hearing, insane smelling). I've been thinking lately and I came up with a way to possibly make large buildings more "tense," giving the player a more scarier and immersive experience.

 

-More/darker Fog of War: Make shelves taller or have it feel like there's a twist at every turn. Zombies chilling near corners of shelves would definitely make the player freak out.

 

-Large building ambience: Walking into a zombie-infested supermarket needs some music. A dark, heavy guitar and maybe some very light vocals/synth makes a good combination making someone feel like they're somewhere big. Max Payne 3 does this aspect well (it certainly isn't the same genre at all, but it can give some pointers on its soundtrack). 

 

-Large building "saferooms": In the event of an apocalypse, I'm certain at least I would establish a safe area for other survivors in a supermarket. A backroom could have a chance of being a saferoom: A very large amount of zombies in return for some canned goods, water, and maybe a tool or two. This should have no indication other than noise. It could also give more incentive to explore an entire area rather than grabbing food and hauling your behind.

 

Now to keep this balanced, I think occupations should have different effects on the Fog of War and music.

 

Police Officer: Little Fog of War effect outside and near the main entrance, with an eerie soundtrack.

 

Security Guard: Little Fog of War effect inside the main area of the building, with a dark soundtrack.

 

Repairman: Little Fog of War effect in the back area of the building, with a tense soundtrack.

 

Farmer/Fisher: Little Fog of War effect around the back of the building (loading areas), with a deep soundtrack.

 

Burger Flipper/Cook: Little Fog of War effect in the cooking/food areas of the building, with an eerie soundtrack.

[ld-airgrafix]

"Sounds" like you just want to feel like you are in a movie??

[Zapp Brannigan]

Muting or toning down the zombie door-slamming would also help a ton. I hate sneaking into a huge, dark building, not knowing what's around the corner, only to hear door or window thumping from several stories up. Kills the suspense. They should only be audible when you're close by.