8 of the scariest horror video games on Playstation Plus right now, including Until Dawn
By Mads Lennon
![Photo: Until Dawn.. Image Courtesy Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC, Supermassive Games Photo: Until Dawn.. Image Courtesy Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC, Supermassive Games](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_1920,h_1080,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImageExchange/mmsport/304/01j318y5s6arkmn9spm6.jpg)
PlayStation Plus is the video game subscription service that allows you to play tons of great games on the console for as low as $9.99, which means it's an ideal hub for horror fans who want to try their hand at an assortment of popular games in the genre without shelling out tons of money to buy each one separately.
The catalog currently offers a wide variety of games, some of which are from huge franchises like Resident Evil and Alien.
Alien: Isolation
With Alien: Romulus releasing in theaters this August, what better time to reconnect with this horror masterpiece? A genuinely terrifying experience, players step into the shoes of Ellen Ripley's daughter 15 years after the events of the first Alien movie.
Amanda Ripley ventures to a remote trading station to investigate what happened to Ellen and her crew aboard the Nostromo. Alien: Isolation significantly amplifies the terror by making it so the alien can track you based on how much noise you make into your microphone/camera if you happen to have one set up for your console.
Bloodborne
There's been back-and-forth amongst fans as to whether Bloodborne can truly be classified as a "horror" game, but I don't see a world where it's not.
It's pretty textbook horror as a concept: a Gothic city crawling with victims of a horrific blood-borne disease that transforms them into monstrous creatures. It might not be a survival horror game, but it's definitely a horror ARPG with many elements that take inspiration from H.P. Lovecraft and other popular cosmic horror tropes.
Call of Cthulhu
Speaking of survival horror and Lovecraft, if you do want a more traditional survival horror game then Call of Cthulhu is a suitably scary choice.
Inspired by Lovecraft's iconic short story of the same name, Call of Cthulhu is a very narrative-driven game where you play as a private investigator suffering from disturbing nightmares. He sets out to investigate the fiery deaths of the Hawkins family and his journey takes him to the mysterious Darkwater Island.
Days Gone
Days Gone is a post-apocalyptic horror game perfect for people who like stuff like World War Z and The Walking Dead. It's an action roleplaying game with a big open world to explore.
Horror veterans probably won't be scared by this one but it's still a lot of fun to play, especially if you like story-driven games with great characters AND the opportunity to kill a bunch of zombies.
Dead by Daylight
For those who enjoy multiplayer games, look no further than this extremely popular horror game where players are split up into different roles, with one playing the Killer and the others taking on the Survivor roles.
Throughout the years, Dead by Daylight has featured characters and killers from many popular horror franchises such as Texas Chainsaw, Saw, Halloween, Stranger Things, Evil Dead, Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and more. The latest collaboration brings Lara Croft from Tomb Raider to the game and in August, the game is adding a Castlevania-themed chapter.
Resident Evil 2
The Resident Evil 2 remake released in 2019 was my first foray into the world of Resident Evil video games and I loved it, but it's absolutely terrifying for one specific reason: Mr. X.
Everyone's got something that gets under their skin more than anything else and for me, it's the damn stalker mechanics in these games. Hearing Mr. X's foreboding footsteps echoing throughout the halls of the police station creates a very tense and uneasy atmosphere.
The Dark Pictures Anthology
Three of the games from this series are currently available on PlayStation Plus: Man of Medan, Little Hope, and House of Ashes. There is another game in the collection titled The Devil In Me, but since that's the newest of the bunch it might be a while before it gets added.
Out of the three available, House of Ashes is my favorite, but all three are relatively quick and easy games to play when you're in the mood for an interactive horror story.
Until Dawn
With the PS5 remastered version coming out later this year and a film adaptation in the works, now is the perfect time to play Until Dawn if you haven't yet. If you already have a PlayStation Plus subscription you can check out the game and do a blind run before trying it again this fall when the PS5 version is out.
Until Dawn offers a unique cinematic experience similar to The Dark Pictures Anthology but way more in-depth as this was the first narrative horror game released by Supermassive Games and helped to spawn their anthology series.
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