It’s spooky season and Halloween is on the way. Put down that pumpkin-spiced latte and grab your Xbox controller. If you want to revel in the blood-curdling theme of the month, you’re going to want this list of Game Pass horror highlights. There are a bunch of free games you can play right now to get into the mood for murder and monsters.
Amnesia Rebirth
This one is likely to be much scarier for mums as it involves changes to a pregnant body. Amnesia Rebirth revolves around a pregnant woman attempting to discover her past while exploring the Algerian desert. As time passes her pregnancy begins to change, her perceptions morph into something darker and scary. Puzzles get solved, monsters are avoided, yet the world keeps spiralling into a macabre state. The sense that you never know what is real and what comes from the mind of a woman going mad in the claustrophobia of desert ruins, is incredibly unsettling.
The Walking Dead: Season One
This wasn’t Telltale’s first foray into narrative games, but it was probably the one that captured lightning in a bottle and made everyone pay attention. Pairing with The Walking Dead comic book series, this ‘choose-your-own-adventure’ game puts vital decisions into the player's hands and lets the narrative run its course. It’s tense, scary and heartbreaking. Mention this game to pretty much any player and they’ll tell you it made them cry. Enjoy!
Dead By Daylight
It’s time to message the squad and get everyone online. Dead by Daylight is a multiplayer title that pits four people, playing as survivors, against one person who plays as a killer. It’s up to the killer to find and eliminate the survivors, while they try to escape the area. Over the years, Dead by Daylight has spread its wings and grown wildly. Nowadays there are killers from all kinds of horror franchises that make each match feel more cinematic. There’s so much to experience here that you’ll be playing way beyond spooky season.
Limbo
If you are scared of spiders, do not play Limbo. If you are scared of the dark, do not play Limbo. If you are scared of being alone, do not play Limbo. Otherwise, there is a reason so many consider this brooding adventure game to be a masterpiece. It’s a must-play that comes into its own around Halloween. Limbo isn’t outrightly terrifying, but it’s unsettling and often creepy. As you guide this unnamed boy through a world of dangers, you get a sense that everything is out to kill you.
Signalis
A more recent indie game here and one that manages to capture the fear that Alien once inspired for audiences back in 1979. Aliens aren’t really the problem here, instead, it’s androids. What makes Signalis a spooky experience is the music and the glitchy effects that pixelated visuals can bring. The sound design throughout is harnessed to make you squirm and feel uncomfortable - there’s a sense that you should always be looking over your shoulder. The graphics balance this perfectly, creating scenes that show just enough horror, but hiding some of it with the sparing use of pixels. “Did I see/hear that?” becomes a running reaction here.
DOOM (2016)
Some may not consider the DOOM 2016 reboot to be a horror game, but given that the literal minions of hell are swarming you, attempting to chew off your face, then it’s likely we could file this one under ‘horrific’’. Of course, this a first-class first-person shooter so it’s worth playing, but when we throw in snarling monsters, oozing blood, and sprouting teeth, then it makes for an ideal Halloween game. Get out there, journey to hell and back, and explode every gruesome beast you find.
SOMA
Ask any horror game fan and they will put SOMA near the top of their list of brilliance. SOMA takes us underwater, a pretty terrifying place at the best of times, and bundles in intrigue, suspense, and some great monsters. Stealth plays a big part and nothing builds tension more than a stealth section where your character’s life is on the line. The world-building of audio files, written notes, and scenic design go a long way toward creating a sense of despair and hopelessness. Best played with the lights off and your phone on silent.
Dante’s Inferno
A bit of an underrated retro gem here. Dante’s Inferno is an action-adventure game filled with gruesome beasts and hideous monsters. The game is loosely based on the first canticle of Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy. Much like the central character in the epic poem, we’re being guided through the circles of hell by the poet Virgil. Of course, this being a video game, there’s more blood, general gore, and epic boss fights. Nothing says scary more than a trip into hell to rescue your lover from the clutches of Lucifer.
Dead Space
Much like Signalis, Dead Space was heavily inspired by the Alien franchise, bringing a sense of dread and isolation. Fear derived from being stuck somewhere, not knowing what’s around the next corner, is palpable. Every moment of Dead Space feels like standing on the edge of a cliff, never knowing if a breeze is going to tip you over. It’s not just the situation you’re in that instils fear, but the monsters themselves are slobbering, rampaging beasts with gangly limbs and gnashing teeth. Thankfully you’re given a set of weapons that will tear them to shreds. If you nerves aren’t, that is.
The Evil Within 1 & 2
From the mind of Resident Evil creator, Shinji Mikami, The Evil Within is a one-two punch of brilliant survival horror. I’m cheating by giving you two choices, but honestly, while the sequel is better, the complete package of both is a great experience. For a horror game, the environments are honestly gorgeous. This is, of course, balanced by gruesome monsters and a truly bonkers storyline. Get your teeth into these and then join us as we wait for a third installment in the series.
Featured Image Credit: MicrosoftTopics: Xbox, Xbox Game Pass