It’s that time of year: that time to look back on the games we played and loved, and that includes the best horror games of 2025.
When it comes to video games, horror titles tend to be overlooked in favor of more commonplace genres, but that doesn’t mean that horror as a genre can’t release absolute bangers. This year in particular was a fantastic year for horror games, as horror fans are eating good in all spheres.
As we look back on the year and all the games we’ve played, it’s equally important to consider the ones that gave us a good scare (or several). As horror is once again thriving, we get to reap the benefits as players in a win-win for everyone involved.
Simply put: these horror games are not only representative of a good year, but are a significant indicator of where the genre is headed, and we love to see it. This year has some absolutely killer horror games, and now is as good a time as ever to reflect on those games.
These horror games not only reflect the best of this year, but they also represent the creativity and skill that horror offers as a whole.
10
Dying Light: The Beast
Understanding the Assignment
Dying Light has such a unique vibe when it comes to zombie games, highlighting ambience first and foremost before throwing countless creatures your direction. This year, Dying Light: The Beast continues to expand on this in wonderful ways.
Being a DLC, obviously Dying Light: The Beast is a bit shorter than the game it’s attached to (although not too much shorter, roughly an hour or so), but it doesn’t lack in substance.
Taking place in Castor Woods, you have to survive in a hostile world with zombies on your tail, but you’ve got a surprise tool that will help you for later: the ability to turn into a beast. By a beast, you’re just stronger and faster — but far deadlier; not to mention, this ability is directly tied to the game’s main character and story, but it doesn’t feel gimmicky or forced.
Sure, Kyle’s story is a bit textbook as far as revenge plots go, but in all honesty, I love a good revenge narrative.
9
Karma: The Dark World
The True Horrors of 1984
A studio’s debut game either ends in massive success or crashing failure, but in POLLARD STUDIO’s case, with Karma: The Dark World, it was a spectacular introduction that has me eagerly waiting their next title.
The game isn’t just clearly inspired by 1984, it takes place in 1984 — specifically in East Germany, when freedoms were practically nonexistent. True to 1984, the Leviathan Corporation is seeped into the very fabric of life itself, described as omnipresent from every angle.
The horror in this game is tense and surreal, with few jumpscares but an incredibly rich story that lays out commentary that rivals our lives now. It’s a psychological horror game that gets uncomfortably close, all while delivering a cinematic experience unlike anything else.
Karma: The Dark World is a severely underrated gem in terms of horror games, and it makes me all the more excited for what the team has planned next.
8
Dead Take
Star-Studded and Uniquely Terrifying
If you were a fan of Neil Newbon’s performance as Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3 or Heisenberg in Resident Evil: Village, you’ll be pleased to know that he’s taken a new role in the horror genre once again. This time, it’s for the game Dead Take.
Joining him are several other well-known voice actors (such as Laura Bailey, Matt Mercer, and Ben Starr, just to name a few), in a game that’s equal parts twisted as it is unnerving, all while being distinctly unique. Specifically: it’s a horror game about the entertainment industry, the cost of fame and terrors of losing yourself to that very fame.
The atmosphere is well-done, apart from a few (quite frankly, cheap) jump scares, but it’s such an engaging game with a unique approach that it’s not a deal-breaker. The story is where this game truly shines, but you have to make sure you’re reading all the documents you find in order to get that full story.
Not to mention, with a cast like this one, the performances are absolutely top notch and worth playing the game to experience these alone.
7
Total Chaos
It Is, In Fact, Chaotic
Total Chaos is a relatively recent addition, having only come out last month, but it set such an incredible example that it’s cemented itself in this list. This game almost slipped under the radar completely, but it takes a lot more than a delayed release date for me to overlook a horror game.
Total Chaos feels like the crossroads of Silent Hill (with its bleak atmosphere and unwavering tension) and Resident Evil (with the constant backtracking in order to actually progress), and it’s done wonderfully. Not to mention, there are several different ways to approach the game and how you play it, making any replays feel distinct in their own right.
Plus, if you’re looking for a bit of humor to make up for the anxiety you’re feeling throughout this game, you can simply turn around, get back on the boat, and leave. Not only would this actually complete the game, but you also, hilariously, receive a trophy for chickening out.
Just make sure that your vibrancy is turned up a little more than what’s default, otherwise some parts of the game might look a bit greyed out. Then again, that’s probably the point to match the bleakness we’ve been witness to the whole game.
6
Tormented Souls 2
Modernising Survival Horror Games of Yore
Tormented Souls was created in homage to the classic survival horror games of yore, but with more modern controls and graphics, making the experience for everyone much more enjoyable. It was lots of fun and genuinely interesting, which is probably why we were so excited for Tormented Souls 2 when it dropped this year.
Being a direct sequel, you play as Caroline Walker once again, in a game that far improves everything from the original title. The atmosphere, puzzles, scares, everything you could think of that’s crucial for a horror game, Tormented Souls 2 improved on while still carving its own path.
While you don’t have to play the first game to understand what’s going on in this one, it’s better if you play it just to give yourself a foundational background, especially since there are plenty of references to things in the first game. It also just makes sense to play games in chronological order or release order, but that’s just me.
Either way, I’m hoping Tormented Souls becomes a classic horror series, much in the same way that other survival horror franchises had.
5
The Midnight Walk
Actual Claymation and Stop Motion
Claymation and stop motion is something that takes a significant amount of time and effort, especially if you’re trying to do a specific style. In The Midnight Walk, the claymation was clearly inspired by Tim Burton and his style, and that darkness makes its way into the game as a whole.
This style easily makes it one of the coolest horror games of 2025, of all time, actually — and thankfully, this effort was recognized at The Game Awards when The Midnight Walk took home the award for Best VR/AR Game, and it’s well deserved. In the age of generative AI and creative bankruptcy, it’s genuinely refreshing and relieving to see quality art being used in such a unique way.
The story fits with this art style like bread and butter, with mesmerising details in every character, location, and itty bitty trinket. While it is a little buggy, it’s not distracting, plus the game is short enough to not overstay its welcome and make these bugs feel less important in the long run.
This game feels like the very spitfire you’re playing as, a light in the dark age of AI and laziness — and the fact that it was rewarded could mean very good news to my fellow AI haters.
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4
Post Trauma
Immaculate Vibes
Listen, as someone used to Silent Hill-kinds of puzzles, I thought I was prepared for whatever Post Trauma was going to throw at me. Needless to say, I was absolutely wrong.
Post Trauma, as a horror game, was pretty overlooked, and that’s because it ended up being overshadowed by the Oblivion: Remastered release on the same day — but don’t get me wrong, this was one of the most authentic horror games of 2025.
While the gameplay itself is very reminiscent of old school survival horror games, the puzzles make me feel like I had never learned anything in my life, ever. I actually had to take pictures, write notes for my own reference, and other tactics in order to keep track of these puzzles, much less solve them with minimal issue.
The vibes in this game are simply immaculate. While the story and characters are a bit convoluted, it’s still very much a love letter to the horror games we played decades ago. Everything from the monsters to the levels themselves are unique and intricate, and it was genuinely fascinating.
Not to mention, it’s not too long, so if you’re having a craving for an old fashioned survival horror experience, Post Trauma would satisfy that craving and then some.
3
Look Outside
Genuinely Horrific
RPGs are pershaps the biggest they’ve ever been, but that doesn’t mean that RPGs are exclusive to the action/adventure or fantasy genres. In fact, RPGs blend really well with horror games (just look at Parasite Eve), with 2025’s Look Outside being an excellent example of that.
Look Outside takes paranoia to a whole new level, being able to instill that very same anxiety into players while also displaying some of the most grotesque pixel sprites I’ve seen. It plays like a typical RPG Maker game, but it scares you enough to where you can easily forget the engine.
Set in a single apartment building, you have one simple objective: survive. Everyone who so much as looks out the window is turned into horrifying monsters, so it’s up to you to prevent yourself from joining their ranks while looking for any supplies you can throughout the apartment. It’s not like your neighbour-turned-abomination will have any use for these things.
While I know turn-based games aren’t for everyone, I would highly recommend this game in spite of that. The paranoia in the air is unlike anything else.
2
Cronos: The New Dawn
Toppling the Best Horror Games of 2025
Bloober Team has done it again. After the incredible successes of Layers of Fear (and the eventual Silent Hill 2 Remake), the team has stepped back into the horror sphere with a new title, in a new IP: Cronos: The New Dawn. Not only is this genuinely refreshing for the studio, but for the horror genre as a whole.
Set in a post-apocalyptic version of Poland, you’re to figure out how to save the world by literally harvesting souls from key individuals from the past. Despite being basically armed to the teeth, it’s still a struggle to survive, especially as enemies will actually merge with other corpses to make themselves faster, stronger, and more resilient. You have to burn them to prevent them from doing this.
There’s similar vibes to Dead Space, but it’s distinctly different at the same time, with a world that’s much darker and grittier and enemies that are far more hostile. At the same time, you’re being drip-fed a narrative that explains what happened to this dark and gritty world, slowly burning into being all-out horrifying.
Seriously, this is a game that will surprise you multiple times throughout your playthrough, all while being somethile wholly original and distinct.
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1
Silent Hill f
An Absolute Masterpiece
It had been over a decade since the release of a new Silent Hill game (especially after a relatively rough downfall), so, naturally, veteran fans like myself were worried with how Silent Hill f was going to continue the franchise — and it did so in the most spectactular way.
Silent Hill f not only introduced one of my favourite horror games to new players (which, new players are absolutely spoiled by these incredible modern options), but it also brought the series back by storm. I’m someone who grew up with these games since I was in single digits, so the fact that Silent Hill is no longer on hiatus, but actually thriving, does some good to my inner child.
Tackling the fears of marriage/losing yourself in a marriage, conforming to crushing societal pressures, domestic abuse and other feminine fears, Silent Hill f struck a deep, personal chord and continues to resonate with me. Fans of Silent Hill 3 found themselves absolutely dazzled by this game much in the same way.
Silent Hill f was easily the best horror game to come out of 2025, and it’s not even close. This game is a horror masterpiece, and something tells me it’s going to hold up as one of the greatest horror games of all time.
