Summary
Horror games exploded onto the scene with the originalResident Evilback in the ’90s, a game that gave players so much freedom of movement for its time that it almost counted as an open-world game. Things have evolved, though, and a lot of games - even those made by indie or solo devs - have come up with game worlds players can navigate with stupendous freedom that would’ve felt ludicrous just a little over a decade ago.
For fans of open-world titles in particular, here’s a look at the best and most spine-tingling horror games made on a shoestring budget by indie developers.
Darkwoodisn’t just a horror game that decided to use the originalGTAgames' POV for fun. It’s an incrediblysuccessful combination of roguelike, RPG, and action elementsthat puts players in the most vicious procedurally generated forest in all of gaming. Though everything is seen from afar,Darkwood’s horror will feel like all distant danger is right next to the player.
On top of being a great game,Darkwoodis made by genuinely great people. Acid Wizard Studio, the now on-hiatus studio behindDarkwood,released their own game on Piratebay just so people who couldn’t afford it could still enjoy it.
There are few activities more relaxing than going on a fishing trip, so making a horror game out of that basic premise should be a challenge. This wasn’t the case for Black Salt Games, the developers ofDredge, who made it half a game about doing cool stuff like fishing and finding cool stuff at sea and half about surviving never-ending Lovecraftian horrors.
Dredgestrikes the perfect balance between spooky and cozy, and that’s because it allows players who’ve learned the ropes to pick between encountering more horrors or more fun activities. Either way, these seas are vast and extremely fun to explore.
If gamers are looking for a totally horrifying game about open-world seafaring, they should look no further thanSunless Sea. Instead of fishing for fun, players will set sail just to encounter a wide variety of horrors that will defy their beliefs.
Though it features some incredibly grim imagery, the art in this game is also a thing of beauty, so players might find themselves missing the call of the dark ocean once they’ve stopped playing this game.SunlessSeatruly is a very unique triumph in the realm of indie gaming.
Who doesn’t love a good camping trip? Well, possibly the people who go intoThe Forestunaware of what lies beneath the trees. What at first seems like a regular open-world survival game about all sorts of stuff wildlife adventurers like to do quickly devolves into everything nobody wants to do.
The days are tough, and the nights are, well, just exactly what players would expect a night for a horrorgame with a day and night cycleto be like.The Forestis pretty straightforward in what it proposes and in what it offers, but there is some very interesting lore to uncover for those brave enough to dive in.
Pacific Driveis yet another title that successfully turns what should be a pretty good time into a scary good time. It originally tasks players with driving around a wide area to scavenge the place, but things are never as simple as they seem.
Slowly, the fun trip begins to turn into an odd nightmare where the player will have to begin contending withall sorts of abominations and dangerous weather effectsthat feel more like terrifying glitches in the Matrix. For fans of the racing genre looking for something new, this is a great title to check out.
Ever felt nostalgic for a kind of old-school horror that never really existed?Mundaunwill bring out that feeling in those who decide to give it a try. Its beautiful, colorless landscapes transport players to a time ofoldie black-and-white horror moviesthat didn’t really exist (but probably should have).
Though mostly colorless,Mundaunshines in a lot of different ways, one of them being its deliberately slow approach to plot development.Mundaunis completely unique, so it might not be for everyone, but it’s definitely a title that those curious should give a shot.
Outer Wilds' greatest trick is promoting itself as a chill game where one solo astronaut goes onaGroundhog Day-style adventureattempting to save their solar system from an exploding star. It’s all that, sure, but it also hides nightmarish dangers inside its otherwise beautiful planets.
It’s quite aspoiler, but the first encounter players will have with the anglerfish inOuter Wildswill for sure remain in their memories as one of the scariest moments ever seen in a game. Still, for those brave enough to pursue the game’s mysteries, there is a great deal of enjoyment to be had.
It’s been a while since the originalAmnesia: The Dark Descentcame out and seriously influenced the world of horror games.Amnesia: The Bunkershowcases that the series is not slowing down.
Instead, it’s opening up in a way thatgives players more space to exploreand find different perils. While it’s not exactly an open-world game (because players barely even see the outside), it sure is an open deathtrap dungeon game, and it’s actually a great one at that.
