10 Terrifying Games to Play this Halloween
Spooky season is around the corner, so to set the mood here’s a list of horror games to haunt you.
A still from 'Nightmare of Decay'
Whether you are a fan of the horror genre or out of curiosity want to feel bloodcurdling terror crawl up your spine, immerse yourself in these chilling titles.
Nightmare of Decay
Zombies, cultists, demons, oh my! Winding up in a strange mansion with these horrible entities isn’t the dream you want but it’s the dream you got. Do you have it in you to wake up from this nightmare? This first-person survival horror game is an homage to a number of nostalgic titles ranging from Resident Evil to Amnesia: The Dark Descent to Silent Hill. It takes you back to the Cry of Fear days and has you running, terrified, trying to conserve ammo for the final boss fight.
Release date: May 2022
Platform: PC
Developer: Checkmaty
Inscryption
You wake up at a card table, in a dark cabin. It is only polite to indulge the host in a few rounds of cards, if you want to leave that is. Secrets hide everywhere, in the shadows, on the cards, so use them wisely. Losing means death. But don’t worry, death is not the end.
Release date: October 2021
Platform: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC
Developer: Daniel Mullins Games
Darkwood
The woods are lovely, dark and deep. This one though is also dangerous and unforgiving. It’s not wise to stay out after sundown. Forage for supplies in daylight, then return home, bar the entrances and hope you live to see the next dawn. You have miles to go before you sleep. A fascinating take on top-down survival horror.
Release date: August 2017
Platform: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One PC
Developer: Acid Wizard Studio
World of Horror
H.P. Lovecraft meets Junji Ito in this 1-bit pixel cosmic horror game. Strange events plague the town of Shirokawa, held in an eldritch grasp by an Old God. No session is the same with randomized event cards, a Dungeons and Dragons-like combat system; invest your skills wisely. What will be the first to give out — your sanity or your stamina? The doom clock ticks. Can you change your fate?
Release date: February 2020
Platform: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PC
Developer: Panstasz
Babysitter Bloodbath
An Eighties VHS style retro horror game with PS1 graphics. Your first night of babysitting Billy is off to a good start. You put him to bed and invite the cute guy from the mall to watch scary movies with you. Sounds like an easy gig? Too bad that a local serial killer picked tonight of all nights to escape the asylum and continue his murder spree. Watching all those slasher flicks was a good decision, at least you know what not to do.
Release date: 2013
Platform: PC
Developer: Puppet Combo
The Closing Shift | 閉店事件
Wiping down the last table being a barista in a coffee shop with the closing shift is hard work. Late-night customers and their complicated orders are difficult enough. Add a stalker and the situation turns for the worse. Unlike the other games listed here, The Closing Shift is more rooted in reality. This slow-build horror game keeps you uncomfortable from the get-go and the barista element really does its part of keeping you occupied so the scares hit you harder when you least expect it.
Release date: March 2022
Platform: PC
Developer: Chilla’s Art
If multiplayer games are more your style, then don’t worry, you can share the terror with your friends! Safety in numbers as they say. Find out whether or not you all will be screaming your lungs out or laughing your guts out.
Phasmophobia
You are a ghost investigator tasked with identifying the unwanted spectral squatter haunting the area. Use your arsenal of equipment to quickly discover the type of ghost and get the hell out. It’s not as easy as it sounds, the spirits are smart and will try to get you to join their side by any means necessary. Remember you’re ghost investigators not the Ghostbusters, there’s no proton pack to help you.
Release date: September 2020
Platform: PC
Developer: Kinetic Games
Bigfoot
Many have claimed the Sasquatch, the Bigfoot to be real and you want to prove it. Go alone or as a team and gather evidence. Alternatively, if you’re playing as a group- assume the role of Bigfoot. Humans have intruded on your territory and think they can take you down? Time to show them who’s boss. Hunt or be hunted!
Release date: January 2017
Platform: PC
Developer: CyberLight Game Studio
The Forest
Crash landing onto a cannibal-infested island isn’t a good vacation plan. But that’s what happens and what’s worse is that the cannibals have taken your son Timmy. Will you rescue Timmy and discover the secrets that lurk on this insidious island? Or will you forget Timmy and focus on building a charming log cabin with a gazebo? The choices are infinite in this Minecraft-esque first-person survival horror game. You can play it solo but it’s best played with a group (the maximum number of players is eight).
Release date: April 2018
Platform: PlayStation 4, PC
Developer: Endnight Games Ltd
Devour
Your ex-cult leader has been possessed by the very demon she summoned. It’s now on you and your fellow reformed cultists to put a stop to it and save her. Banish the demon or be dragged to hell. Devour is a four-player co-op game that can either be hilariously funny or downright terrifying depending on your playstyle.
Release date: January 2021
Platform: PC
Developer: Straight Back Games
