Scariest Games

Hey guys I'm new to Giant Bomb and was hoping some of you could recommend some Scary games for me to review ? Preferably on PC or older consoles that I can use emulators for.

I'd also love to hear your thoughts on them :)

System Shock, maybe? It's mostly atmosphere from my understanding (I've never actually played it), and I'm not sure how well it's aged, but it's the first thing that came to mind, for some reason.

Personally, I'm terrified of Fatal Frame, but I dunno if that can be emulated?

Lastly, I've watched Patrick play the Outlast DLC and it was pretty disturbing...

Oh, also welcome to Giant Bomb n' stuff!

Nothing in recent memory has actually frightened me.

Last series I could remember that scared me to the point of never finishing the games, is Fatal Frame. Fuck that series...



I love it...

SCP: Containment Breach its free (last I checked) only available on PC though.

There are some bugs in it since its still being worked on, so beware of that.

Try Cry of Fear.

It's a free game that you can download on steam. You'll be battling some creepy weird monsters, explore dark creepy places, making sure to use your resources wisely. It's reminiscent of Silent Hill in someways, and it runs on the half-life 2 engine. Some of the bad things will be the voice acting and story (you'll guess what will happen).

@deadpancakes: Thank you :D Yeah atmosphere games are so much more terrifying than a lot of gore. Amnesia is very good at it.

Watching my friend play Screecher (a don't starve mod) had my palms sweating ! His recording is here :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4_mwgDYe1M

Fatal Frame aye? I have a PS2 so I'll have a look in the retro game shop tomorrow, they tend to have a lot of old games for pretty cheap. And any chance you could link me Patrick on Outlast ? i wouldn't mind having a gander myself.

@falserelic: Ah thankyou, I'm always looking for more games for steam especially free ones :) I'm such a big fan of silent hill. I think I can put up with bad voice acting for a free game, thank you !

@gtcknight SCP containment breach had me screaming out loud. Absolutely nerve wrecking! I'm working on a recoded review of it at the moment.

You should points us to some things you already played and gave you the kicks, this way is just too vague. There's the obvious choices like Dead Space, Amnesia, Outlast, Slender and such.

My recommendation goes to Silent Hill 2, not reeeally scary, but damn that's a disturbing game, gets even worse when you realize what really happened there.

@ftrevelin: Yeah I defiantly prefer physiological horror to gore. Games that have messed up or twisted plot lines and a lot of suspense really get my heart going.
Like I mentioned in a comment above SCP containment breach was petrifying, it lacks any real story but it is designed to give you fast paced scares and paranoia. It's in the same kind of category as slender really. Deadspace and Amnesia are ones I've played recently that I loved. I'll have to look into getting Outlast.
I haven't played too many yet which is why I was asking about, I've only recently discovered I'm a massive adrenaline junkie when it comes to horror games :D

I would have to say Silent hill 2, 3 and 4. Not really jump out of you'r seat scary but they are disturbing as hell (SH4 especially).

Here it is, but I think it might be a subscriber only video?

But yeah, Fatal Frame. I've only played the second, so I can only speak for that one, but that game gets to me. Also, as falserelic mentioned, Cry of Fear is pretty great (and free). If the above video doesn't work out, then the Cry of Fear video is definitely worth watching (and also doesn't really spoil much, because they play the multiplayer). Doesn't really do a good job selling the scary, but it's kinda hilarious.

Amnesia is the only thing that's ever messed with me. Although Cryostasis is pretty great in the atmosphere department.

Cry of Fear isn't really scary, but it is hilarious. Dead Space is neither scary nor fun, so I wouldn't recommend that. It's just jump scares and clunky combat.

White Day: A Labyrinth Named School. It was Amnesia years before Amnesia, and I would say it was even scarier. (I really should have this suggestion copypasted into Notepad to save time, haha)

I know this doesn't fit into your emulator/PC criteria, but Siren: Blood Curse for PS3 is still one of the scarier games I've ever played. I don't scare really, but it's come the closest to getting me. It at least made me severely uncomfortable and tense at times.

@falserelic: I've always found Cry of Fear hilarious. Not quite sure why.

I mostly found it hilarious too. It's got problems beyond just the story and voice acting. The puzzle designs and some of the monsters are ridiculous too.

Outlast and the first Dead space for me. Both literally made me tremble.

I think Silent Hill 2 is the scariest game I've ever played. It's disturbing, sad, depressing, and deep all at the same time. Which makes for an all around terrifying, engrossing experience.

Some good suggestions here, though I'm shocked to see that nobody has mentioned the following: "Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth".

Absolutely damn terrifying, tells a fantastic story and is incredibly atmospheric. It shares a lot of traits with Amnesia, in that there's a psyche meter that you need to consider as you go through the game. Looking at disturbing imagery, or staring down from the edge of a height will make your character breathe heavier, mutter to himself (which the enemy can hear), and blur his vision. Finally he'll lose his mind.

You can also just die, but in comparison, that doesn't seem nearly as bad.

The "Penumbra" series is pretty great, it's from the folks who'd later go on to make Amnesia. A bit heavier on the puzzles, but the atmosphere is all there.

Additionally, the horror darling of last year, "Outlast", very atmospheric but at the same time very reliant on jump scares. Now, they actually work. Far, far too well. The recently released DLC for the game is superb, and I'd genuinely recommend you check it out if you haven't yet.

Finally, check the mod scene for Amnesia: The Dark Descent. There's a lot of really, really good content there, arguably scarier than the main game.

Welcome to Giant Bomb, man, always fun to meet another horror enthusiast. You should check out Patricks "Spookin' With Scoops" streams, in which he plays nothing but horror games. There's a lot of great episodes in there (when he isn't playing the blair-witch project), so check that out if you got access.

Oh, and also, Dead Space 1. Dead Space 1, Dead Space 1. Not Dead Space 2 (though it's a great action game), ABSOLUTELY not Dead Space 3, Dead Space 1. I'll keep saying it, Dead Space 1. DEAD SPACE 1!

And if you're a male, then "Catherine".

Edit:

@shagge: They actually remade White Day as a mod for Amnesia, it is TERRIFIC. You should check it out if you feel like replaying it.

Check out Silent Hill or classic Resident Evils (1-4), Amnesia(If you like Indies) and Dead Space

You can easily have SH and RE via emulators and also can find Amnesia and Dead Space in Steam

@larka: Only other one I can think off the top of my head right now is I'am Scared. A free pixelated horror game.

I should point out that it might be best to look at anything I bring up with a grain of salt in that I typically don't feel fear from any kind game or film. I also really hate Slender, its always looked and felt like the lowest bottom tier attempt at making someone afraid. Then again I have had my fair share of issues with the way people try and do horror nowadays so whatever.

SCP might just be the only horror game I have ever seen/played that actually made me feel a sense of dread, or whatever you wanna call it. I'm tried right now.

I get all my horror games through Markiplier and sometimes Scoops, so I personally don't know how scary they actually are.. I'm a wimp, so I experience these games second-hand.

Vanish seems to be terrifying.. with everything changing behind you. Everyone else already mentioned the games I've seen that I would mention. Here's a link to Markiplier's "Short Scary Games" playlist, only to give you a list of games that are usually free, and a majority legitimately look scary. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3tRBEVW0hiBSFOFhTC5wt75P2BES0rAo

You're a braver duder than I. =D Also: Welcome!

The first Clock Tower. It gave me nightmares...

Silent Hill Downpour is an interesting choice as its similar to Silent Hill 2 in terms of story and mood.

Alan Wake isn't scary, but it's a great horror game with a fantastic story and great characters.

The Last of Us is a awesome video game take on a realistic zombie apocalypse, inspired by movies like I am Legend and The Road, and really tense moments and scary moments at first at least.

Deadly Premonition is also a good horror title, with a great story, a cast full of quirky characters, and a amazing story.

Patrick playing those Oculus Rift Horror games last October made me turn the lights on as it was starting to get to me. I know there is no way I could play a horror game on the rift, and that sucks.

I would really recommend Condemned : Criminal Origins. Although a lot of people find the slow movement tedious I think it really paces the game well. Condemned 2 was an entertaining game but certainly not scary. The original kept a consistent atmosphere and didn't jump the shark in a ridiculous way.

The Resident Evil remake on the Gamecube is probably may favourite classic Resident Evil. It still looks pretty good and the addition of crimson heads (zombies that are killed turn into crimson heads after a fixed period of game time, which are faster and more powerful zombies) really makes backtracking a more fearful experience.

I am also with most people that Fatal Frame (or Project Zero in my country) should be played, or to a lesser experience Kuon. Maybe that's just because I think rural Japanese settings are just terrifying but Fatal Frame is also a pretty well designed horror game, which is uncommon.

A+/10 very fright.

Oh, and welcome to Giant Bomb! ^o^

Silent Hill 2 is such an unsettling game. I agree that it may not be scary in the traditional monsters popping out of closets view, but man it is foreboding and dark. I agree that once you start to understand what happened and is happening, it becomes even more terrifying.

I also agree with Outlast, Amnesia: The Dark Descent, and I think certain sections of The Last of Us are terrifying.

Fatal Frame, Siren, Silent Hill (especially Silent Hill 2), The Suffering had some pretty fucked up stuff if you really paid attention to what was going on.

The original Alone in the Dark is super cool but it can be kind of shitty to play these days, the controls aren't great. The Good Old Games version is fantastic.

Outlast and the first Dead space were terrifying in my experience.

Playing through Outlast for the first time and it may very well be on the top of my list. They are very good at setting up expectations and messing with them. Like when you are running from a badguy and get to a point where you think it's safe and can take a breather... and, of course, that ends up not being the case. And then the subtle creepy moments like climbing up a ladder out of a dark sewer and seeing a little head at the top of the ladder pop out and peak at you real quick. Has a lot of nice touches like that that give it a good atmosphere.

I always enjoyed Silent Hill 2 and 4 (The Room). In my opinion, those are the two best SH games because of the atmosphere. I dare say 4 is still my favorite in spite of it seeming like no one else gives it credit.

If you don't know what games are in the horror genre you probably shouldn't be reviewing games.

People have probably already said these but:

Fatal Frame (PS2)

Silent Hill (PS1)

Amnesia

P.T

Resident Evil Remake

These are the best games the genre has to offer

dat OG Slender Man game was solid

My favourite horror game that isn't Resident Evil 4 is Cry of Fear, which apparently i last played in August 2014, which is also how old this thread is :P.

Haven't seen my favorites Alien Isolation and Soma mentioned yet.

Yea this was an old necro bumped thread but it needs some updating.

Of the more recent stuff, I liked Soma and Layers of Fear too.