The 13 best horror games to play right now

By Joe Julians

Published: Friday, 23 December 2022 at 12:00 am

It takes a certain type of gamer to be able to sit through some of the scarier games out there, and there are some that even we find a little too tense for our liking.

But the horror genre keeps on growing and naturally so do the scares, and there are countless titles about now that are designed to make us feel uneasy while we play.

But what are some of the best, and scariest out there? Well here are 13 games that we think are worth your time if you are in the mood to be scared out of your mind!

The best horror games

Resident Evil 2 remake

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch

Raccoon City has fallen in the second game in the franchise, and the mission is to get out of there in one piece, while also learning more about what started the whole mess – and who is helping to cover it up. The remake of this makes it an even better game, and it is a great place to start for newbies to the long-running series.

Resident Evil Village

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Capcom

Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch, Stadia

The latest in the Resident Evil series is Village and it is one that oozes tension from start to finish. Ethan returns after the seventh game and finds himself in yet another terrifying situation, but at least this time it features some of the coolest monster designs in the series to date.

Outlast 2

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch

Full disclosure here when we tell you that we struggled to even make it through the demo of this which featured a terrifying jump scare that is perfectly placed – and one that we had no reason to see coming. That’s the sort of game that you get with Outlast 2. Good luck if you are planning to try it out.

Dead Space

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC

You are “alone” on a ship and you are battling to survive and to work out the secrets of a big mystery in Dead Space, and this is a game that is terrifying right from the off – the first thing you do is filled with tension and things rarely let up from there. Plus, there is a Dead Space remake on the way which looks set to terrify us all over again!

Left 4 Dead 

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Platforms: Xbox, PC

A large portion of the time spent playing Left 4 Dead and it’s stellar sequel is more tense than anything else; that is until you get close to a witch and the tension gives away to mind-numbing fear. The music, the crying, the shrill of the witch upon being startled and the almost certain death that will follow – this game still keeps us up at night when we think of her.

Bioshock

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch

Bioshock making the list of scary games comes largely down to its atmosphere. Set in an underwater world, there is a big mystery that you need to solve, while also doing your best not to get taken out by the deranged citizens left behind. A stellar gaming series that we hope makes a return one day.

FEAR

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC

We enjoy all the games in the FEAR series to a degree, but there is no denying that the fear factor has continued to get lower with each subsequent release. The first remains the best of the bunch in our minds, and judging by the review scores, that is the popular opinion too.

Alan Wake

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch

Alan Wake is a best-selling thriller novelist who finds himself in a thriller far scarier than he imagined when his wife goes missing while they are on holiday in the mysterious Bright Falls. The remaster is the best way to play this, and you are in for a tension-filled treat if you do.

PT

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Platforms: PlayStation

PT is somewhat infamous among fans of the horror genre, and it deserves to be. The psychological horror game feels very close quarters, and when it comes to building tension and making players feel uneasy, there are few out there that come close to matching it. We really hope that there is a way to play this again one day. For now, though, it’s been delisted everywhere official.

Five Nights at Freddy’s

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch, Stadia

There are jump scares aplenty in Five Nights at Freddy’s, and while some may think they are a cheap way to elicit frights, they are used so well in this bonkers horror series that has you pitted against as swathe of animatronics that want you dead. There’s a whole franchise of these games now, and a movie on the way. We’d recommend jumping in with the latest instalment, linked below.

Until Dawn

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Platforms: PlayStation

Be afraid of the jump scares, be very afraid! You are one of eight friends trying to stay alive in an isolated mountain lodge, but things are not quite as they seem there – and to make things worse, there is a killer on the loose. If the above picture doesn’t alert you to this being a terrifying game then we don’t know what to tell you.

Prey

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC

The space race went a little differently in this first-person shooter. You control Morgan Yu who is exploring the space station Talos I, in orbit around Earth–Moon L2. But things go wrong from there when you realise you have company, and the mission changes to being one where you simply have to survive and escape.

Alien Isolation

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Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, PC, Nintendo Switch

The Alien franchise has been a bit hit and miss in terms of games, and movies for that matter, but one of the best on the gaming side is without a doubt Alien Isolation. It evokes the feel of the first movie while essentially putting you in a cat and mouse hunt where you are the mouse. More games like this from the world of Alien, please.

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