Goon Gaming

Halloween is around the corner, literally, and I felt it would be a great time to share some of the scariest games I have ever played. People may think that the best way to catch the thrill of fear is to get it by skydiving, bungee jumping, or watching a horror movie with all of the lights turned off. What if I told you some of the best scares the world only require you to play a game? In this list there will be some oldies in the mix, but don’t let their age fool you, they have the potential to be just as scary as the rest. Here are the spookiest games to date!

5. Little Nightmares (2017)

In this nightmare of a title, you are a miniscule child in a world full of monstrosities that are seemingly trying to eat you. Why they would spend so much energy on a tiny snack you would make is unknown to me. The gameplay offers a continuous eeriness that leaves you shaken for hours after each session of gaming. Jump scares in this title are very few and far in between, whereas most of the fear generated from the game comes from the environment and the overwhelming feeling of being unsafe. Some of the near miss escapes in this game had me tightening every muscle in my body as if it would give me a boost of speed I so desperately needed. If you’re looking to have weeks of nightmares, this game is for you.

4. Alan Wake (2010)

This older title was originally offered on the Xbox 360, but was made backwards compatible when the Xbox One was released. And the reason lies in its ability to make players shiver with fear to this day. You are a horror writer who is seemingly going crazy as he tries to tie up the ending to one of his best novels yet. The catch? Your book seems to be coming alive and wrecking havoc on the small town you reside in. Equipped with your trusty flashlight, it’s up to you to put an end to the shadowy chaos before you.

3. Resident Evil 7 (2017)

If you can’t tell by my other blogs, I’m a huge Resident Evil fan. But in this case, I genuinely feel that this title deserves its spot on this list (not that I didn’t on other lists). This game throws you into a world completely unlike the previous title, where action reigned supreme. Trading horror for action, Resident Evil 7 offers one of the most sinister stories in video game history. You are a near defenseless man looking for his wife in an undeclared swamp where you come across a seemingly normal family, despite them being a bunch of weirdos. Weird turns into bat-shit crazy and soon you find yourself captured by the family and their tortuous intentions. You must find a way out, by any means necessary; oh, and alive. Think you can do that?

2. Outlast (2013)

This is one of the few games where I had to make sure I used the bathroom before playing. And I’m known for being able to, well, you know, “hold it”. TMI? Most likely. Back to the game known for making people piss themselves. In Outlast, you are a videographer who has been tasked to document footage in an apparently abandoned insane asylum. You aren’t supposed to be there, obviously, but that doesn’t stop you, now does it? No, you decide to continue documenting even after you’re thrown down the stairs by a behemoth and have your finger cut off by some mad doctor. The game is known for its jump scares for a reason, as I feel it is one of the best titles at implementing this feature. If you plan on playing this game, please, PLEASE empty your bladder first.

1. Until Dawn (2015)

If I had to describe this game in one word, it would be “masterpiece”. This choice based game allows the player to literally decide who lives and dies in a blizzard ridden nightmare. There is a killer on the loose, which are the least of your worries. Wendigos are the true danger in this title, as you and your friends try to survive the night. It’s hard to tell you what makes this game so immersive, as giving too much detail would ruin the near-flawless story that the game offers. The super realistic, ever gruesome, and truly detailed death scenes are enough for any horror fan and then some. If there is one game in the world that I’d recommend playing, it’s this one right here. Hopefully you have a PlayStation 4 though, as it is an exclusive title for the system.

Was there a game that you had in mind that you didn’t see on the list? Maybe you found one of these games to be laughable excuses in the scare genre (probably not). Whatever the case may be, let me know what your favorite scary game is in the comments and whatever else you think about the post.

***No references were used to create this post. GIF images were found via google search. Remaining content exists from pre-existing knowledge of the titles mentioned***