October is the perfect time to relax and play some spooky video games. I have compiled a list of games that have either come out in the last couple of years or are being released this October. They are ranked from newest to oldest and not by popularity, but all of them are on several different “top horror games” lists. Here are five of the spookiest horror games that have come out recently:
1. Call of Cthulhu: The Official Video Gameby Cyanide SA
Release Date Oct 30th, 2018
For Playstation, Xbox One, and PC
Everyone loves a little bit of H. P. Lovecraft near Halloween and Call of Cthulhu: The Official Video Gamehas everything we have been asking for. This to-be-released survival RPG is taking psychological horror to a new level by adding our favorite Lovecraftian creature, Cthulhu, a cosmic entity worshipped by cultists and described as an octopus-dragon-man.
Playing as Detective Pierce investigating the death of the Hawkins family, you must explore an island off the coast of Boston and uncover the cultish horrors that await you. If you love RPGs, mysteries, and the occult, this is a game you need to check out this October. You can pre-order it here.I personally can’t wait for its release!
2. Bendy and the Ink Machine by Joey Drew Studios Inc.
Chapter 5 Releases Date Oct 26, 2018
For PC
(Will be available for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One later this year)
Bendy and the Ink Machine is a first-person survival-based horror game that plays with the 1930s animation style. If you like the platformer Cuphead, then you may want to check this game out.
In this game, you are playing as an ex-animator who is trapped in the old animation studio. The owner, Joey Drew, has created an ink machine and something has obviously gone wrong. Your task is to defend yourself from the ink creatures while solving puzzles and listening to tapes from the other employees in order to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it before Bendy or Angel gets you.
This game is in five parts and Chapter 5 is to be released late this October. So, if you get Chapters 1-4 now, you will be all caught up for the release of the final chapter! If you’d like, you can purchase it here.
3. We Happy Few by Compulsion Games
2018
For Playstation, Xbox One, and PC
We Happy Few has been out as early access since 2015, but earlier this year the full game was released. Set in a futuristic 1960s England, you must try to blend into a society that runs on drug-induced happiness. Your goal is to escape and remember everything the Joy pills made you forget. If oppression, censorship, and deception freak you out, then this psychological survival game was made just for you. You can order it here.
4. Little Nightmaresby Tarsier Studios and Bandai Namco
2017
For Playstation, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC
Photo by: Adreana Salazar
Little Nightmares is a dark and whimsical game that will bring forth your childhood fears. Nothing is scarier than being small in a big world, and that is exactly what the main character, Six, has to deal with. Playing as Six, you are tuck on a massive ship called the Maw, where you must attempt to escape before you starve to death. Not only do you have to work your way through this dark and skewed ship solving puzzles, but the added fear of grotesque giants that also want to eat you make it even more spooky. I highly suggest this game if you like third person platformers or puzzle solving. Tarsier Studios created an intriguing world that will leave you wanting to scour the internet for lore. Here is a link if you want to check it out.
5. Layers of Fear by Bloober Team SA and Aspyr
2016
For Playstation, Xbox One, and PC
Many of us couldn’t get enough when Amnesia: The Dark Descent came out in 2010. Layers of Fear takes everything we loved about Amnesia and makes it their own. This first-person psychedelic horror game puts you into the mind of an insane painter stuck in his own house. Haunted by distorted memories and guilt, you must unlock the secrets to the past and find the way out of a constantly changing environment. What has driven this man so far over the edge? Is his work that important? If you want to find out, you can get the game here: https://www.layersoffear.com/main.html
I limited this list to a few games that came out in the last couple years. If you would like to check out more awesome horror games, this is a good starting point that I recommend highly. Don’t forget to check out more Her Campus articles and stay tuned for more video game reviews. I hope your October is filled with all things spooky – including game play!