@toguchindraws 100% agree on the comedy. I do think it's viewed as "lesser and safe," which is ironic cause I think comedy is harder to do (when it's good). Cause it not only has to get laughs (and it's hard to do that after multiple viewings) but also it needs to age well (which this tends to be the genre that doesn't).
Funny enough, I'm playing DreadOut (almost done with act 1....if it'll ever load again ;w;) and I LOVE the weird comedy that's in there. Sure it's at the beginning of the game before the scary stuff happens. And it doesn't really further the plot along (the guy getting a door closed on his head, the random high stakes bout of patty cake, slap that follows, the strangling of a friend and their classmate taking a picture-like I wouldn't mind playing a game that was just 100% this it was funny) none of that furthers the plot along.......but it does establish character and character relations.
And I 100% agree about people feeling that 100% grittiness is what you have to achieve to make it dark.