In my house, Halloween isn’t seasonal. It’s a state of mind, which means that when the chance presents itself to play a horror epic that will give me the heebie-jeebies, I tend to jump at the chance.
That said, we can’t throw money at every single horror game that pops up on the digital storefront, and sometimes you need to make your PS Plus subscription stretch a little further to secure that almighty fright you’re after.
So, in a bid to terrify and delight in equal measure, we have listed some of the finest horror games on the PS Plus catalog.
10.
Crow country
Modern Meets Retro
Let’s kick things off with one of my personal favorite horror games in recent memory. Crow Country is essentially a horror game demake of sorts, offering a retro experience of old with the caveat of modern polish and ideas.
This essentially leads to a game that unabashedly implements tank controls, and uses chunky polygons. Yet, somehow, it works perfectly to offer an intentionally cumbersome and tense affair.
The horror does feel a little horror-lite at times, I’ll admit. But it definitely has its moments, and an abandoned theme park is right up there as far as eerie settings are concerned. I’ve been crowing about this game for some time, and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
9.
Until Dawn
Teen Bop Horror
I would be lying if I said that I was the biggest fan of those ‘butterfly effect’ choices matter games. However, for whatever reason, I have a soft spot of sorts for games like The Quarry, Man of Medan, and the game in question here, Until Dawn.
Much like the aforementioned Killer Frequency, there’s a certain campy teen bop horror aspect to the horror that makes it somewhat more palatable than most. However, don’t be fooled, as this game gets pretty dark and graphic depending on your actions.
The goal is obviously to try to keep all your gang alive, but it’s a lot easier said than done. Choices happen in a split second, and there are no do-overs. But, I suppose it’s great training for the next time you’re being pursued by a real-life psycho clown.
8.
Dead By Daylight
Competitive Horror
Dead By Daylight has been around for what feels like forever, and if you’ve been around from day one, you probably have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this game. But what cannot be denied, is that this franchise is a horror institution.
DBD is just about the only large scale competitive multiplayer horror game on the market, allowing you to play as killers or survivors in what proves to be a frantic and intense session every single time, as the stakes are so high.
It’s a tough game to get into as the learning curve is steep, and the meta is often pretty unbalanced. But, if you’re looking for co-op fun with a horror twist, there are few games quite like DBD.
7.
Dredge
Smooth Seas Don’t Make Good Sailors
Horror and cozy don’t tend to be two words that go together all that often. However, despite the dark, Lovecraftian themes present in Dredge, it’s a game that will ultimately make you question why there aren’t more cozy horror games like it.
By day, this game is a fishing game, where careful route planning and resource management are key to success. But, by night, the horror aspect of this game comes into play, and all the things that go bump in the night come to the surface.
It’s a game with a devilishly addictive one more day loop, and it’s also one that will make you question your sanity, as your mania rises along with your trawl intake. But, you know what they say. Smooth seas never made good sailors.
6.
Killer Frequency
Try To Avoid Dead Air
Horror comes in many forms, and not everyone vibes with the guts, gore, and gruesomeness. Which is why cheesy slasher movies exist. You get all the jump scares and tension of a classic horror, but with enough camp qualities to make sure you aren’t set to have endless nightmares.
Killer Frequency is about the closest thing to one of those classic slasher movies that you’ll find in video game form. In this one, you’re a disgraced radio DJ in a backwater town trying to make it work. But inexplicably find yourself taking calls for the local sheriff while a murderer is afoot.
This leads to a series of high stakes puzzles that are literally a matter of life and death. The whistling man is back, and even though you might feel safe in your studio, it’s only a matter of time before he comes for you.
5.
Outlast 2
Where Are Those Damn Batteries?
This is a bit of a rogue one, as Outlast fans never quite took to this sequel on release, lamenting that the game wasn’t anything like the original. But, for me at least, this experimental leap was well received.
While many weren’t keen on the oppressive nature of this sequel, I found the heavy themes and slow burn horror format to be equal parts intriguing and terrifying. Less so the story, but the first game’s story was hardly a worldbeater either.
What you get here is a game that really leans into that feeling of helplessness and outright survival by any means necessary. It’s far from perfect, but it’s a big swing that pays off more than it doesn’t.
4.
Pacific Drive
Drive To Survive
Horror is a pretty versatile medium, and fear can manifest in many ways. However, one of the most common threads is a sense of helplessness and vulnerability. Something that Pacific Drive taps into through it’s anomalous new weird setting.
As you try to make sense of the Olympic Peninsula, you’ll come to find that the only thing stopping you from becoming worm food is your trusty family sedan, and while it’s your shield from the elements, it’s a real fixer-upper, to say the least.
This means constant tinkering, adapting on the fly, and risking your neck for minuscule rewards. Horror is all about survival against all odds, and Pacific Drive really makes you work for it in an eerie, unsettling world. So, if that sounds like your thing, gas up and put that pedal to the floor.
3.
Still Wakes The Deep
Horror On-Rails
I’ve always been a huge fan of walking simulators where it feels grim and ominous just strolling around. But, unlike games like Everyone’s Gone to the Rapture, or Gone Home, there’s actual peril here, not just the vague promise of horror.
Still Wakes The Deep traps you on an oil rig where there’s no where to run or hide. Survival relies on you keeping the place functional, but doing so will force you to tangle with the occult. Leading to the realization that what you’re tangling with is far beyond your remit.
It’s a surreal, atmospheric, linear experience that allows you to drink in every moment as it’s laid out meticulously before you, and it’s a joy to behold. You know, provided you find joy via frightening moments.
2.
The Evil Within 2
A Sublime, Spooky Sequel
Shinji Mikami is one of the most important figures within the horror gaming space, having played a vital role in the creation of Resident Evil. However, he didn’t just dine out on the success of that series, and has went on to produce quite a few bangers since.
One of which is The Evil Within, and while the first game in the series was a little hit and miss, the second game is a much more fleshed out and frightening affair.
Everything feels much more fluid, the story is much better constructed and enjoyable, and there’s a much more emergent feel to progression, which puts the player in the driving seat. All in all, an underrated horror epic well worth playing.
1.
Silent Hill 2 Remake
In My Restless Dreams…
I need to admit that, when Bloober Team was handed the reins for this remake, I was a little skeptical that they could pull it off. After all, Silent Hill 2 is, in my humble opinion, the best horror game in history.
But, somehow, against all odds, they managed to produce a modern recreation that one-ups the older version while keeping all the eerie details, unsettling moments, and surreal themes in tact.
There are enough new and interesting changes to warrant a return to the foggy town for veterans, but equally, this is undoubtedly the best way to experience this all-time great for newcomers.
James Sunderland’s descent into madness has never looked so good, and by far, this is the best horror offering currently on the PS Plus catalog.
