By guest contributor Gabby Foor
Horror games provide a unique experience compared to film because they are directly engaging. The sound is in your headset, you control the character and make the life or death choices; it’s you who are directly experiencing jump scares and conducting bloody battles. You get to be a part of the story, influence the outcome, as well as experience the adrenaline rush first-hand. This makes it all the more special when a game is committed to film or television, and you can relive those jump scare moments or tracking shots where you can recall running for your life where you just…barely…made it. This makes gaming the immersive experience people both want and watch now.
With the rise of The Last of Us, the continuous remakes of Resident Evil, the remakes of games coming to screens this year and the general influence of games on media such as The Witcher, Silent Hill, and a begrudging Willy’s Wonderland, I thought it timely to go over some horror games that have broken ground over the years. Agree or disagree, here are some of the most popular and influential horror games, loosely ranked, that I’ve played over the last twenty years.
Hunter: The Reckoning (2002)
A top down hack and slash game, White Wolf Publishing’s Hunter: The Reckoning was a horror experience ahead of its time. Driven by a grinding heavy metal soundtrack and even featuring its own music video, Hunter starred four super charged human characters – Avenger, Defender, Judge and Martyr- as they battle their way into a haunted prison to stop their city from being damned to eternity. Don’t be fooled by the machine guns and arterial sprays, the storyline is as meaty as its monsters. Beneath the town of Ashcroft lies heartbreak, loss, an unwilling serial killer, a vengeful spirit leading the hunters through an infested city, and a vampiric warden ready to sacrifice every soul in town to get his family back.
Resident Evil 2 (1998 & 2019)
Resident Evil is a staple in the horror survival and zombie apocalypse genre and Capcom’s release of Resident Evil 2, the dead to rights remake of the 1998 classic, showed the same commitment that made the game a standard. We return to Raccoon City and follow protagonists Leon and Claire as they try to battle their way out of an overrun town. Ignore the attempts at taking this to film for now as the Resident Evil entries cannot seem to find their footing on the big screen, not even the more recent and faithful Welcome to Racoon City. The graphics, characters, cut scenes and gameplay are faithful to the original and earned Resident Evil 2 Ultimate Game of the Year at 2019’s Golden Joystick Awards. It outsold its predecessor, right down to the zombies so squishy that they will run you out of ammo, and is a remake that is worth playing.
The Suffering (2004)
The Suffering is a first-and-third person horror shooter game developed by Surreal Software and based in psychological horror, morality and brutality. You are Torque, unsure of your guilt or innocence regarding the triple homicide of your wife and two sons. After an earthquake, you are tasked with escaping an island infested with monsters, represented with each incarnation of a form of execution (hanging, lethal injection, firing squad, etc.) Only through your choices in escaping the island and facing down your own demons can you determine if you really are an innocent man, or if the demons are coming for the right inmate.
Five Nights at Freddy’s (2014)
Five Nights at Freddy’s is a deeply twisted story created by Scott Cawthon with mountains of lore, multiple instalments and a devoted fan base. I have played the first three and it is a game based on knowing how to react to any given animatronic serial killer that comes your way. You see, Freddy’s is filled with animatronics that come to life at night, fuelled by the spirits of dead children killed in the restaurant. Your job is to use security cameras, doors, lights and a limited power supply to defend yourself. Sounds simple, right? After so many jump scares, your nerves are fried. Freddy’s has many games and (though it is denied) is rumored to have inspired the film Willy’s Wonderland, starring Nicholas Cage in a hilarious non-speaking role in a pizza parlor with a troubled past. The games and graphics are fairly simple with relatively minor changes made throughout the franchise, that keep it busting through your screen for more.
Silent Hill (1999)
Often referenced as one of the greatest games of all time, Konami’s Silent Hill is the first installment of the iconic series released to Playstation. Using fog, intense darkness and disorienting graphics, we are not the horror superhero; instead we are described as an “everyman,” in this case Harry Mason, searching for his missing daughter in the fictional town of Silent Hill and discovering the menacing cult lurking in its haze. The game urges you towards unseen deities and your daughter’s true origin and is loosely based on the real town of Centralia, Pennsylvania. Five endings are possible and the game’s graphics and mechanics make it a standout from other horror survival games which focus on fighting. Silent Hill did make it to the big screen in a film starring Radha Mitchell, Laurie Holden and Sean Bean, but failed to dazzle critics and audiences with its lack of commitment to the original game and what some could say was a flailing plot. Overall, the game solidifies itself more historically than the film franchise.
Dead by Daylight (2016)
Making death a team sport, Dead by Daylight, released by Behavior Interactive, teams you up with friends to outwit different breeds of killer that hunt you through fields as you try to rev generators, acquire totems and generally try not to get hooked like a side of beef onto a tree. Killers are given special abilities depending on your choice and those hunted are tasked to outwit their pursuer to survive the night. While certainly a popular game, I wouldn’t call DBD the most unique or interesting of the horror games out there. It is however great for parties, or for the lone wolves out there that enjoy being the killer…
Outlast (2013)
As far as survival horror goes, Outlast is iconic but simple. Released by Red Barrels, the game revolves around a journalist who has decided to investigate an isolated asylum deep in Colorado. While it received generally positive reviews and has a sequel and a new entry set to release this year, Outlast revolved around one concept: run. The survival mechanics are set for you to hide, crawl, climb, mantle, whatever it takes to avoid the dangers lurking around you. It makes for a tense play, but after every death (you can’t fight back) you are reset to your checkpoint. Frustration and fear.
Soma (2015)
A first-person survival horror game from Frictional Games, Soma takes on horror and many other themes with this science fiction entry that tackles mechanics, consciousness, and our future. Taking place on an underwater research facility which houses machines that have human characteristics, our protagonist awakens here and must make sense of his place, his future, and the monsters lurking on board. With two difficulty levels allowing you to explore the mountain of clues Soma leaves for you, one where monsters are merely scary and one where you can be killed, Soma allows for exploration. While it may be too slow for some, criticized as a “walking simulator” by critics, Soma opens the door to questions about machines, their capabilities and what might happen to our consciousness after we pass.
Phasmophobia (2020)
Phasmophobia, a more recent entry, is highly interactive and allows for first person play on PC or VR. You, and possibly a group of friends can play as a group of ghost hunters investigating various locations and types of spirits. At twelve different locations, you are tasked to use different equipment, and potentially get photo evidence, of Phasmophobia’s twenty-four different spirits that all draw on different types of lore. Custom difficulty was recently added to the game, making the jump scares and team work even more demanding as you try to survive the night (and get paid). This highly rated and highly interactive game was made popular mostly through streaming and, if you have the gear, is an excellent way to get spooky with your friends.
Layers of Fear (2016)
Layers of Fear, released by the Bloober Team, is a psychological horror game following a disturbed painter attempting to piece together his magnum opus and his memory. Presented in first person, you limp around a Victorian mansion, undergoing trippy hallucinations, reminders of your pasts and some terrifying experiences. While Layers of Fear left plot holes, meant to be filled by a sequel and promised to be smoothed over by what is neither the remake nor reboot Layers of Fear game set to release this summer, it stands as a disgusting and beautiful work of art alone. The game’s puzzle- and story-driven aspects that don’t rely heavily on survival make it a story-based entry I’m fond of, one where the scares aren’t delivered by stalking killers. While it may be uneven, the mystery and thrills compel the player to continue the traumatic journey for answers.
The Last of Us (2013)
By now The Last of Us has become a sensation following its HBO adaptation starring Pedro Pascal, but nearly ten years ago, this game slammed into Playstation, developed by Sony and Naughty Dog to turn the zombie genre on its head. There have been many causes of zombie outbreaks in film and TV through the years, with The Last of Us, here we are, with a more sinister and viable form of transmission: fungus. The Last of Us joins Joel, a grizzled survivor and smuggler tasked with something that usually doesn’t cross his cargo: a teenager. The game takes sprawling landscapes, gorgeous graphics and disfigured frights and stretches it across a story of loss, survival, and hope. The story of The Last of Us is so powerful that its accuracy from game to television was hailed across the board, showing that games can carry just as powerful a message as other forms of media, if you care to listen.
Little Nightmares (2017)
Little Nightmares is one of those rare games that takes you back to your childhood where things big, strange, and unknown are always scary looking. Released by Tarsier Studios, we follow a little girl, Six, who attempts to escape The Maw, a ship infested by deformed, monstrous, hungry beings. Little Nightmares explores a 2.5D world, allows no combat, but is driven by puzzles and stealth as you try to outwit and create ways around your pursuers to navigate the devilish Maw. While Little Nightmare’s story may leave you wondering, its whimsical approach to the disgusting and fearful leaves you running full speed.
Dead Space (2008)
Dead Space, developed by Visceral Games and owned by EA, is a science fiction horror franchise. Anyone that enjoyed Event Horizon (1997) can find traces of its eerie atmosphere in this game. In the original 2008 release, you are engineer Isaac Clarke, on a rescue team for another vessel, the Ishimura, which has gone radio silent. When their ship suffers damage and is forced to dock onto the damaged and seemingly abandoned Ishimura, the trouble begins. Our explorations are met with claustrophobia, betrayal, improvised weapons and monsters called the Necromorph that will stalk you through this game. With countless references to the psychologically manipulative films that inspired it, like Alien and Event Horizon, Dead Space firmly places the player in a nightmare where they must use their smarts to navigate the decaying ship to find any hopes of returning home. Dead Space returns to players’ screens this year with a remake, proving that this franchise has holding power which solidifies it with the greats as one of the scariest and most engaging games to date.