Summary
For as many ways ashorrorcan frighten us, one of the deepest and most effective kinds of horror is psychological. A good psychological horror story can have you up in the middle of the night weeks after you’ve stopped playing, not because of what it showed you, but because of what it made youthink about.
For fans of horror that really gets under your skin, we present our picks for the most effective psychological horror games we’ve ever played, each guaranteed to haunt you for many nights to come.
The very nature of psychological horror means that most of these games feature references to self-harm and suicide, among other topics which could be deeply disturbing to some players. We’ll add an extra warning for any extreme cases, but in general, player discretion is advised.
11The Song Of Saya
The World Is Flesh
In the aftermath of a terrible car accident, Sakisaka Fuminori sees the world in a new and terrible way: everything and everyone around him is nothing but pulsating flesh. Everyone, that is, except for a mysterious girl in a white dress.
Coming from legendary writer Gen Urobuchi of Puella Magi Madoka Magica fame, The Song of Saya is a mature exploration of how our morals are tied to our perception of the world around us, and asks us how far we’re willing to go for the ones we (think) we love.
The Song Of Saya is incredibly graphic (though it has been toned down for the English release so that it can be sold on Steam), and is not for everyone. It features sexual content, graphic violence, and especially prevalent themes of self harm and suicide.
10Neverending Nightmares
A Personal And Brutal Horror Experience
Presented in a beautiful hand drawn style, Neverending Nightmares looks how nails on a chalkboard sound. No matter what you’re doing, or where you are, there is always going to be some subtle detail in the art that will make your skin crawl.
The game’s lead designer, Matt Gilgenbach, has gone on record saying that the game is based heavily on his own struggles with OCD and depression, and as a result, the game depicts these themes in a brutal and honest way, without feeling like it’s making light of them.
9Yomawari: Midnight Shadows
Don’t Let The Chibi Visuals Fool You
The Yomawari seriesis full of psychological terrors that take advantage of the fact that its main protagonists are children who have just had to experience something horrible enough to shatter their entire worldview, but the entry that leans the farthest into the psychological has to be its second entry, Yomawari: Midnight Shadows.
Switching back and forth between two kids named Haru and Yui, you’ll experience the longest night of your life as you run and hide froma plethora of disturbing monstersbased on the children’s darkest fears.
8Spec Ops: The Line
No, It’s Not Really A Shooting Game
Spec Ops: The Line might look like just another mid 2010’sthird person shooterat first, but once you get into the meat of the game, things quickly unravel and the game instead delivers a harrowing and believable nightmare about guilt, mistakes, and the horrors of war.
Unfortunately, Spec Ops: The Linewas delisted from Steam in early 2024, but the good news is it’s still possible to track down a physical copy of this psychological horror gem if you’re interested in trying it out for yourself. As disturbing as it can be, The Line is an important work of art.
Spec Ops: The Line features realistic depictions of war crimes and extensive visuals showing the aftermath of chemical weapons attacks on civilians.
7Eternal Darkness
Nintendo’s Horror Masterpiece
Eternal Darkness is pretty famous these days for beingone of the darkest Nintendo games ever made. But looking past the novelty of a horror game being a Gamecube exclusive, the way Eternal Darkness messes with you as you play feels fresh and frightening.
Oddly enough, the game has never been officially spoken of again outside of a spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but the innovative mechanicsand spooky atmospherehave helped Eternal Darkness maintain its reputation and cult status, both of which are deserved.
6Doki Doki Literature Club
The Anti-Visual Novel
Doki Doki Literature Club is one of the smartest video games I’ve ever played; using tried and true visual novel tropes to pull us in and give a false sense of security before thrashing us with some very effective psychological and meta horror.
Despite how popular DDLC has become in the years since its release, the game is still just as effective as it ever was, with smart scares that catch you off guard no matter how many times you play it. Of course, the polished visuals and soundtrack don’t hurt, either.
Please be aware that Doki Doki Literature Club features especially graphic depictions of suicide and self-harm throughout the story.
5Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2
To These Gods You Cannot Pray
The Hellblade games don’t market themselves as psychological horror games, but I’ve never been able to forget the things the first game made me feel, and in Hellblade 2, Ninja Theory has taken those aspects even further to deliver some truly haunting moments.
If you’re a psychological horror fan, and especially if you liked Eternal Darkness, you owe it to yourself to play both Hellblade games as soon as possible.But if you can only pick one of the two, I recommend the sequel.
4Devotion
The Forbidden Horror Game
Devotion draws on themes of religious trauma to unravel a haunting story of faith, trust, and some of the most unnerving mannequins ever seen in a video game. Blending memory and belief together, Devotion shows us psychological horror in what is perhaps its most honest form.
This Taiwanese horror game remains true to its cultural roots while simultaneously raising the bar for developers the world over. If you haven’t played this cult classic gem yet, seek it out ASAP.
Devotion was delisted from Steam in 2019, shortly after its release. While it is still unavailable on Steam, the game has been made available to purchase by its developers, Red Candle Games, through its online store.
3Soma
You Lost The Coin Flip
Frictional Games has always had a good grasp on what makes horror effective, but their unique approach to psychological horror in their 2015 game Soma combinesthe fear of underwater terrorswith the fear of losing yourself to create something that is truly next level.
Without spoiling anything, Soma plays with the idea of transferring one’s consciousness from body to body, and asks you how much of yourself is lost in the process. The game was ahead of its time in many ways, and is one of the most impressive psychological horror games ever made.
2Signalis
Do You Trust Your Memories?
Signalis is a wonderful surprise that nobody saw coming. An indie hit right out of the gate, Signalis tasks you with taking control of a robot and exploring a derelict ship where, in time, you’ll eventually uncover everything about both the ship and yourself.
The game is what we would describe as the logical combination between Soma and Silent Hill 2, and if that sounds good to you, trust us when we say it’s somehow even better than it sounds. The way the game’s story unfolds is truly engaging.
