However, horror gaming hasnt gone away; its simply changed.
So which horror games from that time are the absolute best?
Thats the question were looking to answer today.
Oh, and the place is haunted.
Despite the occasional jumpscare, the adventure never loses its kid-friendly demeanor.
Easier said than done since many ghosts can teleport, phase through walls, and turn invisible.
A game is not a painting, a book, a movie, or a TV series.
It is all of those things and none of them.
More importantly, it should more often than not be judged on what it is uniquely capable of achieving.
In its own ways,Silent Hill 2has long represented that idea better than any other game.
The game is shaped by not only how you interpret what is happening but how you interact with it.
As such, your trip throughSilent Hillwill inevitably vary in terms of the specifics.
What wont change is the sheer horror of it all.
What could be better than that?
How about a horror game that makes players feel like theyre going insane alongside the protagonists?
At first glance,Eternal Darkness: Sanitys Requiemreads like a boilerplate, if polished, survival horror title.
However,Eternal Darknesssets itself apart with its multiple characters and a unique sanity system.
The games story unfolds over millennia, and several characters revisit locations that prior protagonists explored.
This chronological progression lets you feel like they are facing a timeless enemy that no one person can defeat.
But more importantly,Eternal Darknessis primarily remembered for its sanity meter.
Each time a character sees an enemy, this meter depletes, which produces in-game hallucinations.
You dont know true survival horror terror until a game tricks you into thinking youve deleted your save file.
Though often entertaining on some level, those titles too often favored action over horror.
Yet, it executes that specific brand of horror to near perfection.
BioShockstarts with the main character in a plane that crashes into the middle of the ocean.
What follows is nothing short of a peak horror gaming experience.
Grimy corridors with atmospheric lighting and audio?
Little in the way of ammunition?
Disturbing imagery, audio logs, and oddly effective jump scares?
Check, check, and check.
AG
Dead Space (2008)
There are so many things aboutDead Spacethat justwork.
Yet, the thing that really elevatesDead Spaceis its action.
It was that kind of game changer that was often imitated, seldom duplicated.
Those who had grown accustomed to that era of gaming were not ready for whatAmnesiadelivered.
There are few traditional gaming joys to be found in this first-person excursion through a demonic labyrinth.
Staying alive is both the goal and the reward.
Its an inherently challenging form of game design that the game doesnt even attempt to make easier.
After those crime dramas, Remedy tried a stab at horrorwithAlan Wake.
Alan Wakerevolves around, predictably, a man named Alan Wake.
WhileAlan Wakefeatures plenty of action segments, expert pacing ensures players never get used to the scares.
Thankfully, all of those moments are indeed properly handled inDead Space 2.
Ultimately, I think thats a testament to the games brilliance.
When viewed through that historic lens, its easy to see why some were ultimately disappointed by this game.
The Evil Withinis that kind of classic horror game that is designed to make you panic.
However,Alien: Isolations scares work because they dont fall into that trap.
As players wander through the games station, the alien does the same.
AG
P.T.
Diving deeper into Hideo Kojimas horror mystery box requires you to ignore every instinct that screams Just run away.
This is just a masterpiece of genre design.
MB
Bloodborne (2015)
All Soulsborne titles carry an air of terror.
Thats to say nothing of all the mutated wildlife.Bloodbornetakes horror in the Soulsborne genre to a different level.
The further players progress and the more they witness, the more enemies push the limits of body horror.
Sound design sets off imaginations since the grunts and roars of terrifying beasts are occasionally heard in the distance.
The lore, in true FromSoftware fashion, provides enough breadcrumbs to terrify players without providing all the answers.
Until Dawnis essentially the ultimate test of your ability to survive a horror movie.
Have you always laughed at those teenagers in slasher films that always seem to make the wrong decisions?
If anything, it looks like your typical, run-of-the-mill anime visual novel.
But like an anglerfish, that design is intentionally deceptive.
By the time players realize the games true nature, its too late.
It also helps that some ofDoki Doki Literature Clubs best moments take place outside the game proper.
The deeper players delve, the creepier things become.
If nothing else, those sequences are rightfully known as the games marquee attraction.
Thats what makes it one of the absolute best examples of the entire survival horror concept.
More locations, more guns, more scares…basically, everything youd want from a sequel.
When Capcom remadeResident Evilin 2002, gamers expected the company to do the same withRE2.
However, that dream game never materialized until 2019.
The result was worth the wait.
TheResident Evil 2remake dials all of what made the firstRE2game scary up to 11.
Dark corridors keep players on edge, while resources are kept intentionally limited.
Your constant inability to answer that question is enough to keep you in a cold sweat.
In some ways, this game wasnt quite able to live up tothose lofty expectations.
Well, except for the House Benevidido level.
However,World of Horrorisnt scary merely due to its visuals.
Even the recentResident Evilremakes use this control scheme.
Its gameplay is much smoother, but perhaps more importantly, much scarier.
And just like the original, theResident Evil 4remake includes DLC that lets you control Ada Wong.
