Halloween is the best time of year to get your spooky games played. You can shut off the lights, wait for the evening to draw close, maybe light some candles, and delve into various gross of terrifying situations.
To celebrate spooky season this year, we’ve put together a list of games you absolutely must play. And you can find each of these as part of the big Halloween sale on Steam, so everything here is a bargain with discounts up to 90% off the usual price.
Cult of the Lamb
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While Cult of the Lamb isn’t scary, it does have some great horror vibes that can’t be denied. The cult imagery, the monsters to defeat, the sacrificing of innocents to feed the hunger of demons that can bestow power, y’know, normal creepy stuff. This is only part of the game though, that’s all for community management. The real action takes place in dungeon-style areas where you’ll utilise your strength and favours from cult worship to defeat the old Gods and establish yourself as the one true deity. It’s a roguelike gem that should be praised by all.
Subnautica
There are two fears sparked by Subnautica; the first is the claustrophobia of being stranded in an underwater world; the other is the feeling of being entirely alone in a world so much bigger than you. We’re talking more about existential terror than horrific monsters chomping at your limbs, though there’s some of that too. The goal is to survive and you’ll get there, but it’ll feel like you’re constantly fighting against the odds.
Little Nightmares II
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Small creepy children. Check. A terrifying world of adults surrounding you. Check. Obscure horrors lingering at the periphery of your vision. Check. Little Nightmares II will give you nightmares if you aren’t careful. This oddly charming horror game does its best to keep you unsettled. There’s a creeping sense of dread when making your way through each area and it doesn’t really leave when you close the game either.
Alien Isolation
Perhaps the most terrifying game on this list, Alien Isolation is a survival horror where the emphasis in on survival more than ever. Because really it’s just you and an angry Xenomorph hunting you down. You’ll hide in lockers or under beds all in the desperate hope it won’t spot you and claw out your guts. There are other enemies as well, but with less focus on combat, you feel utterly helpless at every turning point. This is edge-of-the-seat gaming at its very best.
Inscryption
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You wouldn’t think a card game could be scary. Although, perhaps scary isn’t the right word when it comes to Inscryption. It’s the ambience and the overall style of this narratively driven card game that makes it ideal for Halloween. Everything is drenched in darkness, macabre imagery is littered throughout, and there’s little sense of safety while you’re sat playing games with animal-based cards. It’s all very disturbing and leaves you feeling a bit squirmy throughout.
DOOM Eternal
No fear here, just bloodthirsty demons on the rampage, all set to a heavy metal and industrial soundtrack that gets the blood pumping. If the other games on this list are comedy horrors or psychological tales of terror, this is the outlandish slasher that doesn’t care about anything except gore and hyperviolence. You don’t get scared in DOOM Eternal, you tear about with epic weapons serving up plates of justice to demons by ripping their limbs off or shoving the barrels of guns into their extremities.
Hunt: Showdown 1896
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The fear felt in Hunt: Showdown 1896 has only grown in the years since its release in 2019. What started as an outback extraction shooter based on monsters of legend has become something truly terrifying. Everything is evil, except your crew, and that includes other players in the map who are out to grab your bounties and kill you in the process. No matter where you turn, monsters are steadily creeping towards you, sometimes out in the open where you can handle them, but other times in the darkness of old barns or houses where they can prey on your senses and put the fear into you.
Pacific Drive
Survival games can always have a hint of fear to them; after all, you’re facing off against constant dangers. In Pacific Drive, the supernatural dangers around you are constantly drawing near with only the shell of your car keeping them away. The only way to survive the danger that lurks in the darkness is to keep moving forward, repairing your vehicle, and hoping that you’ll make it to the next stop safely. Think sci-fi danger pressing in on you and the world feels like its ending at every moment, then you’ll understand the thrills and chills of this one.
Left 4 Dead 2
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Probably the finest example of multiplayer horror in gaming - though you can play solo, with AI teammates - Left 4 Dead 2 throws waves of zombies and unique monsters at you in a gauntlet you have to survive. The aim of it all is to escape while the game’s director throws everything at you to prevent this. With epic combat, tremendous setpieces and enough jumpscares to make you check your underwear after you play, this game should be played by everyone. Nothing beats hearing your friends scream as they’re attacked and everyone dashes to the rescue in a bid to survive.
Signalis
With an old school flair, Signalis does a great job of paying homage to the classic survival horrors of old while still injecting a new sense of fear into everything it does. All the hallmarks of great horror are in here; dystopian society, lonely space station, darkened corridors hiding freakish enemies, and there’s a constant sense of being backed into a corner while something chases you. The retro graphics only heighten the tension by partially obscuring some details letting your brain fill in the gaps. It’s a true gem for recent horror.