Survival horror games are an excellent way forhorrorfans to get their fear-fixes, but at the same time not feel completely helpless while being afraid.
There is a distinct difference between average horror games and survival horror games, though, and that’s important to note.Survival horror games, specifically, give you the ability to fight back, to fight off your attacker in some way, requiring an element of resource management in order to do this.
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Unlike other horror games where you’re required to simply run and hide, survival horror games give you a weapon. They give you healing supplies, tools, ammunition, and other items at your disposal so you can fight and get out alive.
However, when you enter a room filled to the brim with these supplies, accompanied by a save station, survival horror law dictates that you’re about to be in for a bad time.
For those who are starting todip their toe into the horror gaming waters, survival horror games are a great start – and thankfully, these games are excellent for beginners to the genre.
A Walkthrough of Survival Horror
It’s important to note that right off the bat,SOMAisn’t your typical survival horror game, even though it’s classified as one. you may’t fight back, nor is there much inventory management – however, with the inclusion ofSafe Mode, players are able to experience the game’s story first and gameplay second.
SOMAis an incrediblyunderrated AA horror game, one that tackles existential dread in a raw, unimaginable twist on the state of humanity. The mind and consciousness aren’t as reliable as we desperately want to believe, and that’s a fearSOMAdoes an excellent job exploiting.
Safe Mode, specifically, makes it so the enemies don’t attack the player. They’ll still appear and give chase, but they’re easily avoidable and allow players to continue on their pathway without having to wait for the monsters to leave. It saves a lot of unnecessary frustration, while still providing the scares and tension in the best possible way.
For players that are wanting a narrative-driven survival horror game while still managing to feel the stakes and tension,SOMAis a great introduction for that. It’s a game that will linger in your mind for years after it’s over, and potentially change your outlook on humanity overall.
9Crow Country
A Classic Love Letter with Modern Controls
Crow Country
Upon first glance atCrow Country,it’s hard to imagine that the game came out last year, especially considering thePS1-style graphicsthat the game emulates. In reality, it ended up being one of thebest horror games of 2024, all while being a love letter to classic survival horror games.
In this game, you explore an abandoned amusement park (aptly calledCrow Country) asMara, trying to uncover the truth aboutEdward Crow, the park’s founder. As you make your way around, the secrets begin to surface, leading to more questions than answers and some of the most unique experiences in all of gaming.
Theammunition systemin particular comes to mind, as it brings a new angle to the concept of resource management – giving the players what they need rather than what they want. As they backtrack, the trash cans that they dug through are surprisingly renewed, offering more ammo or whatever else the player may be lacking.
It’s a great way to get into the survival horror genre, admiring the classics without dealing with janky controls, and it’s something that beginner players would definitely appreciate. Plus, when the game isn’t being freaky, it lets itself be silly, which is a nice moment of relief in these kinds of games.
Not-Horror Horror to Get Started
Before anyone starts yelling in the comments about howBioshockisn’t horror, get in line; this has been a debate for years.I, personally, wouldn’t consider it traditional survival horror, but I think it overlaps into the genre enough to where it genuinely counts.
In the derelict underwater city ofRapture, you navigate asteampunk-esque worldof tension and suspense, shooting down anything that stands in your way. The monsters and scares are mild at best, so it’s a great start for new survival horror gamers.
10 Scariest Moments in Non-Horror Games
Even though a video game’s genre isn’t horror, that doesn’t mean it can’t scare you. These are some of the scariest moments in non-horror games.
Bioshockends up being home to several other horror staples (such asan abandoned hospital, called theMedical Pavilion), memorable atmospheres, and a gripping story, complete with adevastating plot twistat the end.
Whether or not other players believe thatBioshockis a survival horror game or not is honestly irrelevant at this point since it works so well as an introductory game.
Best Enjoyed with Friends
Left 4 Dead 2
Sometimes, the best way to be introduced into a game or genre is to enjoy it with a friend, and that’s exactly whatLeft 4 Dead 2allows you to do. you’re able to play with three other friends (up to four people total) in order tosurvive a zombie apocalypse.
This game can be outright hilarious at times, especially if your friends tend to be lacking in self-preservation. Thisfirst-person shooteroffers a wide variety of enemy types in order to keep things interesting, and resources don’t just grow on trees – meaning that players have to plan their arsenal very carefully.
Despite the hilarity, this game is still effective in handling horror, most especially with its sound design. Specifically,your hearing is used against you, indicating various enemies and creating a tension so thick that you could cut it with a butter knife.
The game is also fairly adaptable with the sheer amount of mods that are available to download, and somehow, Elmo diving at you in place of aHunteris just as terrifying (and hysterical) as playing the game on your own.
6The Last of Us
A Gut-Wrenching Apocalyptic Story
The Last of Us
By now, you’ve likely heard aboutThe Last of Us,either as a game or through theHBO Max show– and everyone can agree on something: It’s absolutely heart-wrenching.
Playing asJoel Millerin apost-apocalyptichellscape, a character who was quite literallydoomed by the narrativeand the world around him, you end up taking an immune 14-year-old girl (namedEllie) across the country to try and provide a cure.
At first,escort missionsmay seem like a chore, but this game actually makes it an enjoyable story, as Ellie is able to handle herself. By the end, when Joel is faced withan impossible decisionto make, he doesn’t save the world – just his own.
The horror inThe Last of Usis a lot more low-key, as jump scares aren’t at the forefront, but it’s definitely suspenseful, especially if you’re trying to not be caught by enemies. This makes it a great introduction for survival horror beginners, especially for those who are looking for a good story to accompany their gameplay.
5Alan Wake
Or the Sequel, Both Work Excellently
TheAlan Wakegames are an excellent introduction to survival horror, with players feeling like they’re playing an adaptation of aStephen Kingnovel.Alan Wake 2is widely favored by fans when compared to the first game, but either entry works great for beginners.
It’s aMicrosoft-exclusivehorror game that does an excellent job setting a dark and eerie tone. Setting the game in thePacific Northwestonly added to this atmosphere, as this area has a distinctly woodsy,dark Americanafeeling, the cherry on top for the overall tone.
10 Underrated Indie Horror Gems
As Halloween draws closer, it’s a great time to explore underrated horror gems, including games. Here are some indie games that could use more love.
These games also have a new take on the survival horror genre, as you don’t just have to manage your inventory, but you’re able to’t immediately use your weapons either. Ina unique mechanic, you have to shine your flashlight on enemies to dispel the darkness that shrouds them before you’re able to fight back.
Since the entire theme of the game is Darkness Vs. Light, it’s simple and easy to understand. Just don’t try to waste your time with trying to find all theCoffee Thermoses, you’ll end upbecoming more annoyedthan anything else.
Nobody Can Hear You Scream
Dead Space (2023)
The great thing aboutDead Spaceis that the original is just as accessible to play as theDead Space Remake,so players have options for how they want to experience the iconicspace horror.
Playing asIsaac Clarkeaboard the doomedUSG Ishimura, you have to survive a Necromorph invasion,a race of undead aliensthat can actually sneak up on you. Seriously, I did not know they could move quietly, so my neighbors definitely heard me scream my head off when one crept up into frame.
If the original was far too terrifying for you, try the remake – itmanages to suck players right back in, making the fear a bit more palatable to newcomers. Plus, you have such a variety of resources that you can genuinely just pick one weapon and stick with it the entire game, making replays all the more enjoyable.
Either way, you’re in for a good scare; just make sure that your room is as soundproof as the vacuum of space.
3Resident Evil 4 Remake
The Most Iconic Game in the Genre
Resident Evil 4
If you were to go around and ask survival horror fans what immediately comes to mind when you bring up the genre: most likely,Resident Evil 4is going to be a repeated answer. For many, it was their introduction to survival horror, with theResident Evil 4 Remakegoingabove and beyond with its adaptation.
Resident Evil 4leans more into action than other games in the series had, but that makes it easier to digest for new horror gamers – and, with the incorporation of CQC and asatisfying parry system, the remake is an even better introduction. There’s a reason it’spast 9 million units soldand still counting.
It’s got a healthy blend of traditional horror (such as in the village, withRegenerators, etc), action, and a solid story, and players don’t need to know anything about the previous games in order to understand what’s happening here. The remake even goes into more detail, fully fleshing out the game, its characters, and everything within it.
Just keep one thing in mind if you choose to play the original rather than the remake: theWater Roomwill be your worst nightmare.
2Silent Hill 2 Remake
Pure, Linear Survival Horror
Silent Hill 2
Some survival horror games will offer a healthy dosage of psychological horror along with the in-game weapons, and that’s exactly the kind of horror that theSilent Hillseries thrives on.
Many point toSilent Hill 2as being the greatest psychological horror game of all time, but good luck getting your hands on a copy without paying an arm and a leg.
Thankfully, theSilent Hill 2 Remakeis significantly better than the original (I said what I said), and available on thePlayStation 5right now. For players who want to be genuinely terrified when starting survival horror,Silent Hill 2 Remakewill more than cover it.
10 Best Games Like Silent Hill
Fans of Silent Hill tend to be hungry for more horrifying games similar in style — maybe with the fog not included.
Since the story is also stand-alone, players won’t have to know anything about theSilent Hillfranchise before they play. That being said, it might be a good idea to have at least watched a summary, because the insane amount of details the games hide open up aplethora of theoriesin the fandom. Even for the fandom’s walking encyclopedias, a lot remains unanswered.
That said, playing the game normally/onStandard Modeis surprisingly challenging, but thankfully you can change the combat difficulty at any time. As far as thecool and complex puzzlesthe game offers, you can only set it once, so just keep in mind that these riddles will really make you stop and think.
1Resident Evil: Director’s Cut
Where Survival Horror Literally Began
Resident Evil: Director’s Cut
The first survival horror game I ever played wasResident Evil: Director’s Cutwhen I was seven years old, and honestly, it can’t get better than that. For many gamers,Resident Evilwasthescary game in their catalog, until the genre began to grow in popularity andsell better than ever.
Capcom’s1996 classic is unmatched and the best possible introduction to survival horror as a whole. It’s got the whole package: genuinely startling jump scares, an uncannily uncomfortable atmosphere, bizarre puzzles, and evenfixed camera angles.
You can play asone of two characters, eitherChris RedfieldorJill Valentine, and that also determines your difficulty level – Jill, being armed with additional inventory slots and even a lockpick, is the easier difficulty.
Being trapped in a zombie-infested mansion, your only hope for survival is to literally fight your way out, all while discoveringUmbrella’ssecrets along the way.
The game is campy, there’s no lie there, but that camp nature actually outweighs the fear factor, making the game the perfect starting point. Just saying that if a seven-year-old could replay this game countless times, memorising the mansion for no-save runs without flinching, a survival horror beginner will be just fine.
There is no better series to start with than theResident Evilgames, but the first entry in particular is just perfect – and a gateway to survival horror addiction.
We Need More Horror Games That Embrace The Ordinary
As we enter a horror gaming Renaissance, more developers should incorporate the mundane.
