I attempted to find games across multiple platforms, meaning that I will admit to not have playing all of them. I wont get into specific story lines, just interesting tidbits about each title. (This list is also in no particular order)
1. Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem - GameCube (2002)
Eternal Darkness is one of the most notable games that came out for GameCube. Partially for the fact that Nintendo was able to support a good horror game, but also because of a certain mechanic that this game introduced: the Sanity Meter.
The Sanity Meter is used in tandem with a typical Health Meter to not only give players another way to loose health and potentially die, but add "Sanity Effects" to the experience. Seeing enemies lowers your sanity, while killing them brings it back slowly. If your Sanity is low enough, the effects will begin. They can be events anywhere from bloody walls, jump scares, or even events that seem to break the fourth wall.
Footage of all Sanity Effects possible throughout the game. (WARNING: This video does contain spoilers.)
2. Amnesia: The Dark Descent - MAC / PC / Linux (2010)
Chances are that even if you are not a horror game connoisseur, you have probably heard of this game. This first-person psychological horror has no combat system, you just have to rely on your wits to avoid enemies and gain items to help with various puzzles. Oh yeah, and we see a return of a very similar mechanic using the Sanity Meter.
In order both help in hiding from enemies and managing your sanity bar, you are fully reliant on lighting sources, including the lantern that you carry with you throughout the game. Unfortunately, aside from Let's Plays, it is challenging to find footage that shows the extent of how the lighting effects are used.
In order both help in hiding from enemies and managing your sanity bar, you are fully reliant on lighting sources, including the lantern that you carry with you throughout the game. Unfortunately, aside from Let's Plays, it is challenging to find footage that shows the extent of how the lighting effects are used.
Teaser Trailer (2010)
3. Until Dawn - PlayStation 4 (2015)
Until Dawn is a very new title (just released in August this year) that not only scares you, but makes you think about each and every single decision you make in the game. Although this is a single-player game, there are eight main characters. So if you wanted to have some fun with your friends, it would be interesting to pass the controller from person to person whenever the character changes.
Given the mechanic of making every little decision you come across, from investigating something, to choosing to run or stay hidden, there are many different endings to the game, and many way that each character can end or survive. Some decisions can possibly mean the difference between life and death for the whole cast.
4. Outlast - PC / Xbox One / PlayStation 4 (2014)Until Dawn is a very new title (just released in August this year) that not only scares you, but makes you think about each and every single decision you make in the game. Although this is a single-player game, there are eight main characters. So if you wanted to have some fun with your friends, it would be interesting to pass the controller from person to person whenever the character changes.
Given the mechanic of making every little decision you come across, from investigating something, to choosing to run or stay hidden, there are many different endings to the game, and many way that each character can end or survive. Some decisions can possibly mean the difference between life and death for the whole cast.
An example of how decisions effect your play through. (WARNING: Possible spoilers)
Going along with the trend of games where there is no combat mechanic, is Outlast. Many horror games enjoy using this mechanic because it invokes a feeling of helplessness within players. Outlast adds another level with the use of the night-vision camera.
With much of the game being in the dark, and batteries few and far between, players are forced to take risks walking in the dark. Would you rather conserve battery life for a time when you know that you are going to need it? Or be able to know what is around the next corner?
Official Full Trailer.
5. Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water - Wii U (2015)
Out of all the games on this list, this one was released most recently. The most recent in a franchise dating back to 2001, Fatal Frame is relatively unique in the mechanic of having a combat style that involves no actual combat. In these games, and especially this one, your only weapon is your camera, the Camera Obscura.
With this newest installment being a Wii U exclusive, players get to take full advantage of the Camera by using the GamePad to act as a more realistic substitute. With this new addition you are able to rotate the camera to get better shots, and even move it around you to look for ghosts that may be behind you at the time.
Announcement Trailer from E3 2015.
What games would you recommend to friends this Halloween?
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