The horror genre is as old as time. Sharing stories about ghosts, ghouls, and the grotesque has been a pastime since the prehistoric world. Today, the horror genre endures as one of the most popular literary, film, and television genres.
Of course, the genre has been pretty popular in the video game world as well. There are a ton of excellent horror games that manage to capture, and terrorize an audience. In this article, we are taking a look at some excellent horror games that many fans have enjoyed.
Buckshot Roulette
Indie horror games are thriving, so, the first game we are looking at in this article is just a year old, but has already made the rounds. Buckshot Roulette is a horror-infused adaptation of Russian roulette. For context, this isn’t the classic roulette game you might find at new gambling sites, rather, it is the lethal version of roulette, we often see in gangster films or thrillers.
In this game, the player takes up a pump action shotgun, and plays a game of Russian roulette against a monstrous entity, known simply as “The Dealer.” At the start of each round, this entity loads the shotgun with a random number of live and blank bullets. The player can then choose to open fire on either themselves or the Dealer.
The gritty, almost western-style aesthetics fit perfectly with this game’s dark tone. The monstrous dealer is just the right amount of creepy, without being too over the top. The gameplay is simple, yet very effective. Try Buckshot Roulette if you are looking for a good time.
Resident Evil
The Resident Evil franchise is, perhaps, one of the best-known game series in the horror genre. Created by Capcom, and published as Biohazard in Japan, the series takes place in a world that has been overrun by a slew of demonic, bio-mutants, that can best be described as zombies.
Blending aspects of survival horror, action, adventure, and first-person shooting, the Resident Evil franchise has managed to climb to the top of the horror game mountain. The best part is, that with so many games in the series, players will never get bored playing through them all.
Even when you are done playing the games, there are still books, comics, audio dramas, and even a film franchise which, while not exactly faithful, does its own thing with the story, that many have said that they enjoy. It seems that Resident Evil is at the top of a reason.
Slender: The Eight Pages
While it may be dated, Slender remains a staple of the horror genre, at least in games. Based on the popular meme of “The Slender Man,” a stoic, well-dressed figure without a face who haunts people moments before death, the game places the player in an abandoned house, hours from civilization, with no defense.
The goal of the game is to collect the eight pages, and vanquish the Slender Man before he shows up. After all, once he is in sight, the story is over. Though the game may lack in some departments, it more than makes up for it with its atmospheric visuals, creepy music, and low price. That is right, the game is entirely free to play, which is certainly a massive bonus.
Alan Wake 2
In many of the popular horror games, the action and adventure is front and center. After all, most people love a game with an adventure narrative, so when the first Alan Wake dropped, we got exactly what we wanted. However, for Alan Wake 2 the studio decided to push the boundaries, and explore the atmospheric, Lovecraftian horror, more kin to the Cthulhu Mythos than to Friday 13th.
The story follows Alan Wake, a best-selling novelist who is trapped in a different dimension. In his attempt to escape, he writes a horror story starring an FBI agent named Saga Anderson. The novel manages to blend the two worlds, and Wake is brought to safety, after which he recounts the horrific story of the other place.
Alan Wake 2 has been called “one of the most expensive games to develop.” However, every penny was worth it, as the final product is visually, tonally, and mechanically impressive. Certainly, one of the best games to release in 2023, and quite possibly one of the best horror games of all time, Alan Wake 2 will be remembered as a genre staple.
