What could be more thrilling than an axe wielding clown getting in the back of the car instead of the hot date you thought you were picking up? Well, probably nothing. Nope, cannot think of anything that would compare to that cocktail of emotions… but the thrill of everyday situations like that can be simulated with some top tier gaming!
It has been a blood-first-y year with developers producing firsts for the industry left right and centre: prepare for nightmares at a trendy coffee shop, an actual world of flesh, a merging of business tycoon game play with cannibalism and the anticipated debut from Vietnamese indie studio DUT.
So… Which titles are bound to rouse goosebumps and cause you to look away from the pirated download of Scream 6?
Scorn
Yeah, this one doesn’t so much take guts, as it gives them in excess. Oh God, so much gore. In a world much like the inside of Ridley Scott’s brain when he adapted Giger’s vision into Alien, the player must survive by solving the creepy mystery of what happened to their civilization. A mix of first-person shooter and puzzle solving, this game will weed out any closet squeamish folk in your horror squad.
Helloween
As in, the German power metal band Helloween!? No, I do not mean the German power metal band Helloween. Stay away from them. Helloween is a spookily themed slot game that challenges the rush of horror with the rush of wager. Developed by Play‘n GO who took their inspiration from said German power metal band – oh fine give them a damn listen, I can only vouch for the thrill of spinning a five-reel slot machine, not the tunes! If you get a kick out of placing bets like you get a kick out of horror then there is a lot more where that came from: here are the best online slots according to the experts.
The Death, Thần Trùng
Welcome to the world of Hanoi, Vietnam where the player is a potentially psychotic pedestrian trying to tell the difference between reality and chilling delusion. Drawing from Vietnamese folklore, the game has some novel but nonetheless devilish ghouls coming after you. Expect mystery, culture, a pounding heart and an unhappy ending.
Ravenous Devils
Did the aforementioned cannibalism food business pique your pumpkin? Well Ravenous Devils is worth a go. With a fast pace and retro feel, the player runs a tavern with a Sweeney Todd style set up. The story of feeding customers to themselves isn’t new but it sure isn’t old either with this business tycoon set up. If you’ve been secretly playing Good Pizza, Great Pizza and Cooking Mama then fear not: Ravenous Devils is here to save your face while you ace running a restaurant.
The Closing Shift
Tired of trendy coffee shops that are ‘too cool’ for you and your Dracula cape? Well consider this Japanese developed game a satisfying subversion of the dismally utopian setting by turning day to night and hipster customers to stalkers. This is an eerie one where the player is a young woman who gradually realises that one of the customers ain’t there for a chai latte made from hand plucked arabica beans. He is there for her. Jeepers, Japan.
The Complex: Found Footage
If you are a mind over splatter gamer who prefers psychological horror, then this is for you. Also capitalising on the horror of realism is this free found footage game from Backrooms. The player holds a video camera and explores a complex whilst trying to escape… No? Whilst trying to find the… No? But there must be someth-? No? This is a more niche type of horror: eerie corridors and liminal suspense of doorways with the absence of antagonism. Do not let that last detail put you off though, the creator worked alone to develop an extremely artful world of found footage that evokes a rare kind of fear. Bravo.
The Mortuary Assistant
Unless you share an affinity with Jeffrey Dahmer, this night shift at a morgue will leave you stiff as a board. On second thoughts I suppose it would have left Jeff st- actually, never mind never mind. DarkStone Digital (creator of Kohate) has made every effort to impress this year by taking the concept of the board game operation and making it as horrendous as possible. Firstly, the person on whom you are solving surgical puzzles is dead, and instead of a buzzer keeping you in check there is a demon worthy of Hollywood.
Okay folks, keep the Autumn vibes alive (or… dead?), and give some of these nightmares a playthrough.
