Safety Coffin

Safety Coffin is the direct result of my Master of Design project at AUT, answering the question:

“How can I integrate analog horror aesthetics and self-psychology within a psychological horror game reflecting personal fears and experiences to authentically scare myself?”

This research attempts to develop a psychological horror game that scares me. It covers the visual elements of analog horror, delving deeper into understanding myself through self-psychology research, analysing deep-seated fears and experiences, and using them as game design techniques and mechanics. It takes inspiration from various analog and psychological horror media, such as The Boy and the Bath (Doctor Nowhere, 2024), Skinamarink (Ball, 2022) and NINAH (CRITICAL REFLEX, 2025), to create a steady foundation for effective analog horror aesthetics, as well as psychological horror through game design.

Safety Coffin consists of 4 levels, each depicting fears, events and personal locations in my life, culminating in my most feared scenario: being buried alive. It does not allow the player to run, hide, or protect themselves; they simply have to walk through environments, pick up and interact with objects to continue the game. The underlying meaning is open to interpretation, but I'm the only person who knows the game's true purpose. Once an attempted psychological horror game, now a personal outlet to express ideas and struggles.

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Game Controls:

WASD - Movement

E - Interact / Look at

LMC - Interact / Look at

Esc - Pause

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Special Thanks!

I want to thank everyone who helped me achieve my master's project, I couldn't have done it without them <3