Safe States: Synchronic Liminality in Survival Horror

The video essay opens in a panic. The player is low on health and out of ammo in Signalis, and the key she needs won't fit in her inventory. Then a door hisses shut and "Moonlight Sonata" begins to play. Gertridge and Kim look at the few places in survival horror where the player gets to stop, like the save rooms of Signalis and the frozen dawn in Darkwood. The two authors take turns narrating over footage of their own play. They ask what kind of place a save room is, and why it never feels entirely safe.