Serial killers – despite the fact that they are horrible, deplorable monsters – have long occupied the interests of many. Their minds are unlike those possessed by you and me. The average citizen would never be able to kill another human being so it is interesting for many to be able to explore the mind and read of a serial killer’s monstrous deeds. But how do fictional serial killers compare to the real life ones?
From the clinically insane to the cold blooded killer, the Horror Movies Blog goes to the computer gaming world in order to take a look at five serial killers in video games. Could they pass for real life serial killers? Let us know in the comments.
LA Noire – The Black Dahlia Killer/the Werewolf Killer
Garrett Mason aka the Black Dahlia or Werewolf Killer is the cruel and sadistic antagonist in the action adventure game, La Noire. Mason committed six brutal murders before he was brought to justice by LAPD detective Cole Phelps. All six of Mason’s victims were women. Mason left each of them beaten and strangled to death. Several of them were stripped naked and left with cryptic messages written on their bodies, he also kept certain items belonging to his victims as trophies for each murder.
Like most serial killers, Mason seemed like your average sort of guy. He worked as a bartender in several different bars throughout Los Angeles and didn’t stand out in any way that could draw suspicion. Mason intentionally varied his methods with each victim but he would always ensure that he left clues which would tie all the murders together. He would choose his victims carefully. Whilst working at the bars, he would observe and target women, all of whom who would share similar traits such as emotional problems and relationship issues, they would get drunk and confide in Mason who would then use whatever information he could get out of them in order to frame different people for his murders.
The Werewolf Killers sadistic streak is what would lead to his downfall. Mason was always toying with the police, teasing them, attempting to showcase how superior his intelligence was. But Mason shared a certain trait that numerous other real life serial killers possess; deep down, he wanted to be caught. Although the police were arresting and charging other people for his crimes, Mason taunted them by sending anonymous letters that contained extracts from a poem written by one of his victims. The letters also contained location clues to the real killer’s whereabouts – Mason’s arrogance new no bounds. At each murder location there was found an item belonging to one of Mason’s victims and another clue. Eventually, Mason’s vanity led police to his exact location where they shot and killed him.
Although those wrongly charged of murder were freed upon the real killer’s death, Mason’s actions and subsequent death received next to zero media attention due to Mason being related to a very high ranking politician.
The ‘Black Dahlia’ is based upon the real unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short in 1947. In LA Noire, Garrett Mason is the Black Dahlia Killer. In real life, however, the case remains unsolved.
Condemned – Serial Killer X
Serial Killer X – real name Leland Vanhorn – is the main antagonist in the Condemned series of video games. Leland is one of a number of serial killers who are at large in the games fictional city – Metro City. Metro City is a run-down place populated with a large amount of addicts, homeless people and criminals – crime in the area is rife. Vanhorn, however, does not prey on the public, instead he hunts and murders other serial killers using their own methods.
Vanhorn has 18 known victims, most of whom are other serial killers but police officers are also victims of the elusive Serial Killer X. Some of Vanhorn’s victims include; The Roadside Carver, The Bone Cutter, The Crescent Moon Killer and Carl ‘The Torturer’ Anderson. In Condemned 2: Bloodshot, Vanhorn enjoys experimenting on homeless people in his laboratory by implanting them with metal pieces. Although Vanhorn is hunted by protagonist Ethan throughout both Condemned games, he is never brought to justice nor is he killed, despite suffering a shotgun blast to the face.
Serial Killer X is certainly not a person you would want to meet in a dark alley on a rainy night.
Still Life 2: The East Coast Torturer
The East Coast Torturer is instantly recognizable by the gas mask he wears. So, unsurprisingly, this one will not be walking the streets and blending in with his fellow human beings. The Torturer murders a number of victims in a variety of gruesome ways reminiscent of the Saw films. The East Coast Torturer is as cunning as he is sadistic. He lures the games protagonist, FBI Agent Victoria McPherson into a trap so that he can torture her before killing her. Unfortunately for the East Coast Torturer, McPherson gets the better of him and successfully escapes. The East Coast Torturer is not killed or arrested, let’s just hope that there will be no copycat killers of him in real life…
Heavy Rain – The Origami Killer
The Origami Killer is a serial killer from the game ‘Heavy Rain’ who uses periods of extended rainfall to kill his victims. Although this may seem quite benign from the outside, the Origami is a sick and twisted individual who enjoys playing cruel games with the families of his victims.
All of the Origami Killer’s victims were young boys between the ages of 9-13, each killed in the same fashion; by being drowned in rain water. In a similar way to many serial killers, the Origami Killer left a certain trademark after every kill. Each victim was found with an origami figure in his right hand and an orchid on his chest. The killer also covered the victims’ faces in mud. The FBI suspect that this is evidence that the killer has no personal hostility towards his victims. The FBI also interpret the origami figure and orchid to be gifts. The Origami killers main pleasure comes after the abduction of the young boys.
After abduction, the Origami Killer sent each of the grieving father’s an envelope containing a letter with a poem written on it and a key to a locker. After opening the locker, the father would find a number of items including a phone, a memory card and a handgun. The phone would eventually show details describing five trials that the father must undertake in order to save their sons. They are also shown a video of their abducted son, caged in a well that is gradually filling up with water. The origami killer would then put the fathers through five different trials; danger, suffering, brutal suffering, murder and sacrifice.
The origami killer is a sadistic monster who sees murder as a game. The killer was eventually found out to be Scott Shelby, a private eye detective. The game, however, has multiple endings, depending on your decisions throughout the game, some of the main characters may die and the endings can be quite happy or absolutely devastating.
Manhunt
Manhunt is a stealth based psychological horror game that has been banned for sale in several countries due to its brutal use of violence, murder and death. The protagonist, James Earl Cash is a serial killer who is on death row. The game opens with Cash being given the lethal injection – the death sentence for the crimes he committed. However, soon after it is revealed that the injection was only a sedative, Cash is not dead instead he is kidnapped and will be the star of a new snuff film directed by a man known simply as ‘The Director’.
Talking to Cash through an earpiece, ‘the Director’ promises Cash his freedom, but only if he follows his instructions. Cash is bundled into the back of a van and sent to an abandoned section of the city that is patrolled by a gang of killers called “The Hoods”. Cash must murder the whole gang, all whilst being filmed by CCTV. During the game, the Director takes Cash to various parts of the city and forces him to face off against increasingly dangerous gangs including a gang of paedophiles and a gang of devil worshippers. One gang known as “The Wardogs” are a group of former military mercenaries who have kidnapped Cash’s family. Although Cash successfully kills all the members of the Wardogs gang, afterwards, the depraved Director sets up a TV stream where he shows Cash a video of his family being killed. Following this, Cash vows revenge on the Director. What follows is Cash’s gruesome hunt for the director which culminates in the Director receiving a chainsaw to the face.
If you play this game, you can see why it has been banned in several countries. Cash is able to murder his victims in a variety of ways including; bludgeoning to death with a baseball bat, strangulation and suffocation with a plastic bag.
Be aware, before long the computer gaming and esports world will introduce horror games to virtual reality technology and you may come face to face with one of these fictional serial killers.
How do these fictional killers compare to the likes of Ed Gein, Jeffrey Dahmer and Ted Bundy? Let us know in the comments section below.
Categorised in: Serial Killers
This post was written by iain112