Haunted House (1982): The Origins of Survival Horror Video Games
In 1982, Atari released Haunted House, a pioneering adventure game that placed players in the eerie confines of a dark, monster-filled mansion. Developed by James Andreasen, Haunted House stands out as one of the earliest examples of survival horror, laying the groundwork for the genre long before it became defined by later hits like Alone in the Dark and Resident Evil. Players navigate the mansion as a pair of glowing eyes, searching for pieces of a magical urn while avoiding tarantulas, vampire bats, and a persistent ghost. The gameplay, while simple by today’s standards, introduced elements of tension, item management, and exploration that would later become staples of survival horror games.
The gameplay in Haunted House is deceptively straightforward: recover three pieces of a shattered urn hidden in a mansion with 24 rooms. But this seemingly simple task is complicated by the dark, dangerous environment. Armed with only matches to illuminate the way, the player must explore the creepy mansion, one room at a time. The mansion’s corridors are filled with roaming enemies that can steal items, force players to restart, or worse, cause the loss of one of the player’s nine lives. The challenge ramps up as locked doors, disappearing stairways, and increasing darkness add layers of difficulty, making each run through the mansion unique and unpredictable.
What made Haunted House so innovative at the time was its design. The game used player-controlled scrolling to transition between rooms, something rarely seen in early video games. This gave players the sense of moving through a larger, interconnected world rather than a series of disjointed levels. The limited lighting mechanic, where matches briefly reveal parts of the mansion before plunging the player back into darkness, heightened the suspense. The ominous atmosphere and lurking enemies made each moment of exploration feel risky, a sensation that later survival horror games would fully embrace.
Despite its simplicity, Haunted House was well-received upon its release. Publications like The Space Gamer and Electronic Games praised the game for its innovative gameplay, though some reviewers found its difficulty and lack of intuitiveness frustrating. Over the years, Haunted House has become a cult classic, often cited by video game historians as one of the earliest forays into survival horror. While it lacked the immersive environments and complex narratives of modern horror games, its focus on exploration, item collection, and survival in a hostile setting laid a foundation that would influence future titles.
In the decades since its release, Haunted House has seen various re-releases and reimaginings. A 2010 version for the PC, Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii revived the original’s mechanics, while Haunted House: Cryptic Graves (2014) shifted toward a more atmospheric horror experience. The latest installment, a roguelite-styled game released in October 2023, pays homage to the original while modernizing the formula for today’s audiences. Haunted House remains a beloved entry in Atari’s catalog and a key milestone in the evolution of survival horror. Its enduring legacy proves that even in its most primitive form, horror has a unique power to captivate players.
