Spooky season is upon us, and what better way to mark the occasion than by scaring yourself silly with some of the best horror titles around? Whether you’re looking to get stuck into a classic remake or want something new to sink your teeth into, there are plenty of scares to be had this Halloween.
1 Silent Hill 2 Remake
Bloober Team’s long-awaited remake of Silent Hill 2 is finally here. You play as widower James Sunderland, who heads to the eerie town of Silent Hill to search for traces of his late wife, after receiving a letter (supposedly from her) informing him that she is waiting for him there.
What follows is a descent into the very depths of physical and psychological horror, as James trawls his way through this fog-ridden ghost town, dredging up long-forgotten memories and confronting the monsters that reside there.
2 Still Wakes the Deep
Set aboard an ill-fated oil rig off the coast of Scotland in 1975, Still Wakes The Deep is a psychological horror story, told from the perspective of Glaswegian electrician Caz McLeary. Playing as Caz, you must negotiate your way through the collapsing oil rig, avoiding environmental hazards and the pursuit of a monstrous enemy.
With no combat in the game, players must rely on stealth and cunning to progress, solving puzzles and overcoming obstacles in their path. Dripping with atmosphere, this is an immersive first-person adventure delivers chills by the bucket load (and not just because of the North Sea winds).
3 Alan Wake 2
Alan Wake 2 continues the story of novelist Alan Wake, who has been trapped inside an alternate dimension for the last 13 years. The plot follows his attempts to escape this reality by writing a horror story involving an FBI agent named Saga Anderson.
Serving up twists and turns at every corner, this dark tale has all the trappings of a classic survival horror adventure, with a healthy dose of bonkers sprinkled on top.
4 Until Dawn Remake
Like the very best ‘bad’ teen slasher flicks, Until Dawn offers up a bunch of hapless yet ridiculously good-looking guys and gals for the slaughter, depositing them into a standard “cabin in the woods” style setup. Through a series of unfortunate events, they find themselves isolated from the outside world and pursued by a menacing foe, who seems bent on picking them off one by one.
Playing out like an interactive movie, you (or you and some friends) will face moral dilemmas, as each of the eight main characters is forced to make tough choices that can result in death. Rebuilt from the ground up for PS5 and PC, a new generation of gamers can experience the thrills and spills of this highly replayable classic.
5 The Outlast Trials
The Outlast Trials is a first-person horror experience set during the height of the Cold War. The nefarious Murkoff Corporation has been conducting an experimental recruitment program where volunteers are kidnapped and forced to complete a series of high-stakes trials while avoiding the clutches of monstrous enemies.
Using a pair of night vision goggles (which have been surgically attached to your head), you must tread carefully and avoid being seen, in order to successfully complete each more dastardly trial. The game is playable both solo or as a cooperative multiplayer experience.
6 Alone in the Dark
Alone in the Dark is a reimagining of the classic 90s horror game of the same name. Set in the 1920s, players must choose to play as private investigators Edward Carnby or Emily Hartwood while they investigate the disappearance of Emily’s Uncle, Jeremy Hartwood, at the mysterious Derceto Manor.
The gameplay takes place from a third-person perspective (similar to the Resident Evil 2 remake) and has you fighting for survival against the mansion’s hideous inhabitants in an action-packed mix of firearms, melee weapons, and throwable objects.
7 Slitterhead
Upcoming gore-fest Slitterhead is a battle-based horror game, set in the neon-soaked streets of Kowlong. You play as the “Hyoki” an entity who is plagued by “Slitterheads,” which are demons who mimic humans. The Hyoki is without physical form, and can only fight the Slitterheads by inhabiting the humans who live in Kowlong.
Cue deranged and flamboyant action, as you take on the fiendish Slitterheads by opening up various cans of magical whoop-ass on them. Think Devil May Cry meets Prototype and you might not be too far off.
8 Fear the Spotlight
Fear the Spotlight is a third-person horror adventure that sees you sneaking back into school after hours to take part in a seance. Predictably, the seance goes wrong, your friend disappears, and you have to search the deserted school for her while avoiding the monster that now prowls its hallways.
A love letter to the old-school, puzzle-heavy survival horror titles of the 90s, Fear the Spotlight is brilliantly tense and creepy, despite its 90s graphical style.
9 Resident Evil Village
As the old saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child. Thankfully, they weren’t talking about the one in Resident Evil Village, as this is quite frankly no place for child-rearing.
Players take on the role of Ethan Winters as he battles his way through werewolves, vampires, and a host of other adversaries to rescue his daughter Rosemary from the village stronghold. Like Resident Evil VII, Village takes place from a first-person viewpoint.
10 Alien: Isolation
It was arguably Alien: Isolation that first bucked the trend of lackluster ‘sequels’ in the Alien franchise. This first-person action stealth-em-up was a textbook example of how to deliver cold, hard terror into the sweaty palms of gamers everywhere.
You play as Amanda Ripley (daughter of sci-fi’s most kick-ass heroine, Ellen Ripley) who, in searching for answers about her mother’s disappearance, arrives at the remote trading station of Sevastopol. Soon after her arrival, the proverbial hits the fan, and she is forced to improvise to survive as she is stalked by the most terrifying creation in all of cinema history. Unbearably tense, this is heart-pounding horror at its very best.
11 Dead Space
In what must be one of the worst days at work ever, Dead Space puts you in the shoes of engineer Isaac Clarke, who arrives on board the space freighter USG Ishimura to conduct essential repairs. What he discovers on his arrival is enough to put even the sturdiest of stomachs to the test.
This ultra-tense survival horror sees you treading the vast and terrifying hallways of the Ishimura, as you find yourself trapped on board with deadly Necromorphs, who are intent on turning you into soup. If you manage to make it through this day alive, maybe you should consider calling in sick tomorrow.
12 Amnesia: The Bunker
As far as horror story premises go, Amnesia: The Bunker is frighteningly simple. You play as Henri Clement, a French soldier, and you are trapped inside an underground WW1 bunker with a monster. And if that sounds unbearably claustrophobic to you, you’d be right.
The monster is sensitive to light, so you must maintain the fuel supply to the bunker’s generator while you scavenge for items to help you survive. But if the power goes off, you will be plunged into darkness, and the monster will begin hunting you down.
With only a finite amount of fuel in the bunker, you may end up exhausting the supply, leaving you to (gulp) complete the rest of your playthrough in the dark.
13 Visage: Enhanced Edition
First released on PC in 2020, Visage is a first-person psychological horror reminiscent of PT, the creepiest horror game that never was. Visage is set in a similar environment (a suburban home) and its gameplay centers around your character trying to escape from the house while being tormented by paranormal entities.
Players must manage the sanity level of protagonist Dwayne Anderson by attempting to steer him away from paranormal occurrences inside the house. The more paranormal events he witnesses, the lower his sanity falls. Should it fall below a certain level, all paranormal hell will break loose and come for him.
14 S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl
You’ll have to wait until after Halloween for this one, as it’s tipped for release on November 20th, but S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2 Heart of Chornobyl is looking like it will be worth the wait.
Set in the post-apocalyptic Chornobyl exclusion zone, this first-person survival horror with sci-fi elements is the next-gen sequel to the award-winning PC franchise and will see you battling horrific mutants and deadly anomalies as you fight your way through this savage landscape.
15 Resident Evil 4 Remake
Resident Evil 4 is a current-gen remake of the 2005 classic that saw the first major gameplay shift for the franchise. You play Agent Leon S Kennedy, who has been deployed to an isolated European village to rescue the president’s daughter. The problem is, there’s something very wrong with the locals.
In one of the very best examples of survival horror, you must shoot, stab, and kick your way through the infected hordes as you attempt this daring (and unlikely) rescue mission.
With plenty of horror remasters and remakes doing the rounds (including some PS4 games you should play again on PS5), and a treasure trove of disgustingly brilliant original titles too, horror fans should be spoiled for choice this Halloween.
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