Now with a sandbox!
It appears that many Nightmare Fuel pages have problems, including:
1. Listing non-scary things that made the viewer feel slightly uncomfortable at worst.
2. Having spoiler tags on them (which is against the page's guidelines).
3. Listing Fridge Horror and fan theories.
And much more!
On a few occasions, people from outside the site's community have pointed out our overly lax usage of Nightmare Fuel to make fun of us, meaning that it can legitimately harm our reputation to let this go unchecked.
The TRS thread
meant for redefining Nightmare Fuel started to become a place for cleaning up Nightmare Fuel pages in general, so we may as well move these discussions to Long Term Projects where they belong.
Here are the guidelines to determine whether something is Nightmare Fuel or not.
- This is a page whose name is intended to be taken more literally than most. It's not enough for material to be scary; to truly qualify, it has to be frightening enough to legitimately unnerve/disturb the viewer, with actually being nightmare-inducing as the ultimate endpoint.
- Good signs that something IS Nightmare Fuel include if:
- It left you feeling shaken even after the credits had rolled, you turned the last page, or are otherwise done with the work.
- You have a hard time falling asleep if you think about it at night, or have a literal nightmare about it.
- You dread that episode, scene, level, chapter, or song during re-watches, and consider skipping it.
- With that said, don't add something just because it happens to be your personal phobia. For example, spiders can be scary and many people have arachnophobia, but just because a spider happens to be in the work, it does not make a Nightmare Fuel entry. It needs to reasonably be scary to someone without the phobia.
- Don't confuse tension with fear. If the hero is in trouble, but you know he'll make it out okay at the end, it's probably not Nightmare Fuel unless the threat is especially disturbing.
- Good signs that something IS Nightmare Fuel include if:
- Explain WHY the entry scared you. Try to convey your sense of fear to your readers. Avoid putting up Zero-Context Examples.
- Remember that Weblinks Are Not Examples, and neither are quotes on their own. You should explain the horror in your own words, rather than rely on others to do so.
- Don't add things that might have scared someone. If it didn't scare you, and you don't personally know anyone else who was scared, you shouldn't be adding it to Nightmare Fuel.
- Nightmare Fuel should stick to you even after you're done with the work.
- If something is initially presented as scary but turns out to be harmless, it's most likely not Nightmare Fuel since The Reveal makes the scariness vanish.
- Jump Scares are a good source of Nightmare Fuel, but not all of them automatically qualify: being startled is not the same as being scared.
- Hypotheticals are not Nightmare Fuel:
- Remember that Trailers Always Lie: a scene that is presented as scary in the trailer could very well turn out to be inoffensive in the finished work. Only add examples from unreleased works if they were especially terrifying in the previews.
- Fan theories do not belong on the Nightmare Fuel page under any circumstance. No matter how much evidence they have to support them, don't add them until they've been officially confirmed. In the meanwhile, take them to Wild Mass Guessing.
- Fridge Horror goes on the Fridge page, not Nightmare Fuel. Don't add it unless it's Ascended Fridge Horror.
- Keep in mind the work's intended audience when considering whether or not something is Nightmare Fuel.
- If something is normal or expected in the genre, it does not automatically qualify. Violence in a Fighting Series or gore in a horror movie must be especially disturbing or gruesome by the work's standards to be Nightmare Fuel.
- Remember that Kids Shouldn't Watch Horror Films. If a work is rated PG-13 or higher but would only be scary to young children, it's not Nightmare Fuel.
- The standards on what qualifies as Nightmare Fuel are especially stringent on works aimed at children and pre-teens: kids have hyperactive imaginations, so even something benign can give them nightmares.
- Spoiler tags do not belong on Nightmare Fuel pages. Much of what scares us comes from inherently spoilery stuff such as death and the unknown, so finding spoilers on these pages should be expected.
- Nightmare Fuel is an Audience Reaction, so it needs to be scary for the audience. Describing how the characters react to something scary isn't needed. Just because something scares them, that doesn't mean it scares us as well.
- Nightmare Fuel is a No Real Life Examples, Please! page. Meta-examples involving the actors, production, or behind-the-scenes incidents are not allowed.
Guidelines when proposing cleanup of a page:
- Some rules are pretty objective. If you see a Zero-Context Example, Fridge Horror, Real Life example, speculation, In-Universe reaction that isn't scary to the viewers, examples that explicitly describe themselves as not being very scary (including "mildly creepy", "somewhat unnerving", and other synonymous phrases), or examples that are just scene summaries without going into detail about why it's so scary, you can (and should) remove them immediately without coming here to ask.
- You should also strip all spoiler tags from the page. Itty Bitty Wiki Tools has a tool for that, but it can cause problems, so if you use it be sure to preview the page and thoroughly look it over.
- Once you've fixed the objective issues with the page, bring it here so we can look at the more subjective problems, such as examples that may not be scary enough to qualify. If a consensus is reached that a certain entry does not qualify, it can be removed.
Edited by Zuxtron on Aug 1st 2020 at 9:40:30 AM
...Aren't people making audience reactions for their own works against the rules?
Jawbreakers on sale for 99¢
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
It's not my work. I meant that I can't be objective about Nightmare Fuel examples I wrote. My "work" in this instance is the examples on the page.
Edited by WarJay77 on Jan 4th 2021 at 7:14:01 AM
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Ah, okay, gotcha. Sorry for the misunderstanding ;^.^
Jawbreakers on sale for 99¢
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Nah, it's cool, I worded it badly :P
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Obsessively adds images to character pages.
Grotadmorv, I feel like you were a bit too rough with Persona 3. No offense.
Edit: Actually, you know what, nevermind. The examples aren't that scary.
Edited by Spidey on Jan 5th 2021 at 3:54:32 PM
"Unite GUN/BAZOOKA/LAUNCHER/TANK!"
Berserk Button: misusing Nightmare Fuel
I think it'd be weird for Persona 3 to not have a Nightmare Fuel page at all, considering how it's Darker and Edgier than most of the other entries in the series. But then again, every single one of these examples has a problem with it, so...
There's one thing that I think could be disturbing enough to be on the page, which is Ryoji telling you about Nyx, how she's going to destroy the world, and that there's nothing you can do about it. Sure, turns out he's wrong and you can do something about it after all, but the first time I saw that scene, it actually left me with that "pit in my stomach" feeling, especially since you have to wait nearly a month (of in-game time) with that knowledge before getting the chance to do something.
Now we're so young, but we're probably gonna die
P3 is still an M-rated game, I'd say most people that age shouldn't be losing sleep over a video game.
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
I found that to really be more of a Tear Jerker at first. It got really inspiring later, when everybody's encouraging you that you can end up defeating Nyx.
10,000 grams of pure caffeine
Anybody in to check NightmareFuel.SCP Foundation?
Cassie | he/they | But will it stop the pain forever? / I just can't be sure
I love Persona but agree that page is a mess. Most the scariest details of Persona 3 are more Fridge Horror than straight examples. It's kinda weird to get rid of the Persona 3 page (it's tone is comparable to a main Shin Magami Tensei game) ...
Since the page is so problematic lately, maybe Super Smash Bros. Ultimate should get a good cleaning and be locked. A good chunk of the page is about Galeem'sthreat level and how many characters he's killed (there's at least a dozen entries dedicated to who he's murdered) I think we should have one entry about his scary traits and a maybe bullet about his more notable kills. This is just a start and a good compromise.
Sephiroth's trailer wasn't particularly scary (it was badass and intimidating though) and doesn't count. Him stabbing Mario seems more like an example of Crosses the Line Twice. Just wanted to give my 2 cents on that.
Edited by Idisagree on Jan 5th 2021 at 6:45:38 AM
Maintenance?
On the Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony, I noticed many entries have been purged because they were either "not scary enough" or belong in another category. That said, I really do not understand why Korekiyo's execution had been removed. Imagine being boiled alive (with Tears of Blood to boot) before getting salted out of existence (with your face melting). Even if it Crosses the Line Twice with Salt Solution at the end, every other execution in the franchise also has some Black Comedy there and there, so that's a flimsy excuse.
Edited by DukeNukem4ever on Jan 6th 2021 at 4:44:08 AM
kiby :]
I'm not sure what the reason exactly was for cutting the example, but I assume it's because it felt more like the standard for executions than exactly stand-out scary.
(Don't) take me home.
It was cut because simply put, Kiyo's execution didn't have the same horrifying impact as Gonta's (getting stung to death by insects, impaled, and then burned), Kaede's (getting hung until she was choked out and then iron maiden'd by the piano), or Kirumi's (climbing up a thorny vine, cut by several saw blades, then falling to her death) simply put, it wasn't as gruesome as those three. Kaito's was also cut for the same reasons, plus it's a tear jerker. Had this been any other Danganronpa game, it likely would have stayed.
And like Persona 3 having been an M rated game, I doubt nearly as many people that age are going to find Kiyo's execution nearly as horrifying. Honestly had it not been for the Salting, it likely would have stayed.
![[down]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_down.png "[down]"){kind=icon}
Exactly. He killed Tenko and Angie to "send friends to his departed sister" and whether he was written like that by Tsumugi or not, the fact remains he is a Serial Killer.
Edited by Klavice on Jan 6th 2021 at 8:06:58 AM
Fair warning: I can get pretty emotional and take things too seriously.
Berserk Button: misusing Nightmare Fuel
Getting boiled alive can be disturbing, but the way it's presented in the game is more Played for Laughs and nowhere near as disturbing as most of the other executions. It helps that the person getting punished is one of the most despicable characters in the game, so there's less sympathy for his suffering.
Edited by Zuxtron on Jan 6th 2021 at 11:12:45 AM
I have to question at least the latter entry in YMMV.My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic S 1 E 25 Party Of One:
- Nightmare Fuel:
- Pinkie Pie's Sanity Slippage will send chills down your spine. There's a reason that scene is considered one of the darkest moments in the series.
- Those familiar with Cupcakes will also feel uneasy when Rainbow enters to check in on Pinkie. Alone.
Now a lurker. Thanks for everything. | he/him
Cut them both, neither are scary. As an ex-brony I don't recall there being much in MLP that was scary, so we might want to take a weed-whacker to the other examples assuming we haven't already done that (which I think we did.)
Redmess
The second one is Fridge Horror based on a fanfic, cut.
The first one though, I'm not sure. That scene was certainly a little unsettling. And considering this still is a children's show aimed at elementary school kids, it may count as nightmare fuel to that extent.
Optimism is a duty.
I deleted the Cupcakes one, but I'm leaving the first one in until we come to a consensus.
Very Spooky
The “will send chills down your spine” part should go either way.
back lol
Redmess
Watching Pinkie having a mental breakdown is quite unnerving. And the show enjoyed showing ponies having mental breakdowns. Each main character got their own episode for it, even.
Optimism is a duty.
I always felt "you will react in (X) way" sentences come across as speculation, so don't mind if I do.
Now a lurker. Thanks for everything. | he/him
Oh right I didn't think about that. If the first example is terrifying to its target audience keep it. Sorry about that.
TRS Queue | Works That Require Cleanup of Complaining | Troper Wall
Berserk Button: misusing Nightmare Fuel
Yeah, I do remember Party of One being considered one of the biggest Nightmare Fuel moments at the time, so I'm not opposed to keeping it (even though it didn't scare me at all, personally).
kiby :]
Enjoyed...? Not sure if that's the case, considering how the show plays those moments (or at least most of them) as a bad thing.
Anyone want to look over the page I just made for Flawed? I wasn't trying to exaggerate but it's hard to judge your own work completely objectively, so lemme know if there's any issues.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness