#Why we play horror games Ps4
#Why we play horror games Pc
#Why we play horror games series

We all crave, on some level, to see how death and pain are dealt with by others. This is to up the stakes, to remind us we’re in danger, but also to give a show. Many horror games, such as Red Barrel Studio’s Outlast games include horrific sequences in which we are invited to observe what happens or has happened to NPC’s in the environments. But when we play horror games we are thrust into a den of insanity, depravity, and violence. We have social rules and laws that are designed to keep panic at bay. Our days are usually peaceful and our society is more orderly than not. Another major reason we play horror games is to fulfill a morbid curiosity. The Amnesia Collection is made up of Amnesia: The Dark Descent, its Amnesia: Justine expansion and the sequel, A Machine for Pigs.2.

#Why we play horror games Pc

Oh wait… there isn’t.Īlthough the original game, Amnesia: The Dark Descent, first released for PC back in 2010 - you can pick up the whole collection for current-gen consoles.

Good thing there’s plenty of light to shield you from the darkness, then. Perhaps you can barricade yourself in if you’ve got the right tools, but essentially you know that if you’re caught, you’re dead. That’s the terrifying gist of Amnesia: The Dark Descent, a game which also saps away at your player’s sanity if they’re exposed to darkness for too long. All you can do is run for your life, and at best, slam a few doors in its face to slow it down. Imagine, if you will, that you’re being chased by a monster and have no means of defending yourself.

#Why we play horror games series

Grab The Persistence from the PlayStation StoreĪmnesia is one of the best survival horror series of all time, with the first game in the series, Amnesia: The Dark Descent, proving to be one of the most terrifying games we've ever played.

#Why we play horror games Ps4

Platforms: PS4 (PSVR), Xbox One, Switch and PC (also with VR support) If you're not a VR fan, The Persistence is also available on other consoles and on PC. An innovative take on VR gaming that isn't afraid to, you know, make you afraid. To top it all off, every time you die you're transferred into a new clone of yourself – which would be handy if the other clones weren't turning into massive misshapen monsters looking to murder you. Your vessel has been pulled into the orbit of a black hole, and its interference is constantly jumbling up the layout of the ship, using procedurally generated levels to ensure you never know what's going to be around each corner. The Persistence is a smart VR horror rogue-like set in a monster-ridden spaceship.

The full-body immersion and restrictive viewing angles mean you're never quite sure what's around you, and make jump scares or surreal monsters all that more affecting. It’s also on Xbox Game Pass.įew mediums are as perfectly suited to horror as VR.

In our review we gave The Medium a solid four and a half stars, calling it “smarter than your average horror game” for the way it “does a brilliant job of slowly building an atmosphere that has you on edge throughout.” The Medium is not a long game, clocking up around 11 hours of play, but this game packs a lot of good stuff into that time and could really scratch an itch for a short, sharp thrill between long, open-world games. What follows is a story with plenty of twists and unsettling characters, bolstered by an atmospheric score which work together to form a classic and clever horror game. As Marianne you travel to an abandoned hotel, looking to find the answers behind visions of a dead girl. In The Medium you play as, funnily enough, a medium called Marianne who lives between the ‘real’ world and the spirit world. If you like your horror games to lean more into psychological scares than jump scares then The Medium could be exactly what you’re looking for. In this guide, you’ll find our choice of the best horror games that you can play on PC and consoles today, from recent AAA games to older PC classics. These elements still play an important role in the genre, but game developers now approach horror in a smarter, more nuanced way than ever before. Horror games have matured over the years, going way beyond simple gore and easy jump scares. It's a whole lot harder to laugh at on-screen characters making stupid and clichéd decisions when you're the one making them. When you're the one holding the controller and making choices that could mean life or death, every moment is tense and significant – especially thanks to the haptic feedback in your controller or gaming headset. What’s scarier than a horror movie? Feeling like you’re in one. There are many brilliant and seriously scary horror movies to make you jump out of your seats - take a look at our best horror movies guide - but games often go that extra distance by making scares feel way more immersive and interactive.