Summary
There are many ways that a game can end up being creepy to play, even if it’s not inherently rooted inthe horror genre. Whether it’s the oddball enemy designs, spooky ambient soundtracks, or even just the general tone of the experience, there have been many fantastic titles that, for their own unique reasons, end up being slightly unnerving and weird, despite this not being the intention of the developers themselves.
This isn’t exactly a bad thing, though, as while it can catch a player by surprise, it will also usually end up making the game more memorable, since it’s much harder to forget a scary moment when it comes out of nowhere, and is completely unexpected. With all that being said, these are among some of the very best games that can end up feeling quite scary every now and again, despite this seemingly not being the goal of the developers when they were working on it.
Despite being released in 2003 and seemingly forgotten about not long after,Piglet’s Big Gamewas brought back to popular attention in 2024 when players started to realize just how terrifying this “kids' game” truly is. Players assume control of Piglet, who, throughout the game, must avoid and hide from several dangerous enemies, considering he has no way to fight back.
When a giant stalker starts getting close, the music ramps up, filling players with dread as they desperately try to find somewhere to hunker down. Tracks like Foreboding 1 literally sound like they were originally designed to be featured in aSilent Hillgame, but were dropped into piglet’s nightmarish adventure by mistake. If the enemies do manage to get close enough to Piglet, players will have a chance to throw out a funny face to fend them off, though since this isPiglet’s only form of defense, it makes the game feel intense from beginning to end, despite it being promoted as a child-friendly Winnie the Pooh spin-off.
The very firstSimsgame was seen as a hugely innovative title in terms of itsAI technology, which was very advanced for the time, but while the game plays like a casual life simulator, there are quite a few rather creepy features thrown in, which can be pretty terrifying to experience. For example, prank calls are a pretty common occurrence inThe Sims, and while these are easy to deal with, hearing the phone go off in the middle of the night is still quite unsettling.
Then there’s the burglar, which many fans agree is the scariest part of not just this game, but the entire series as a whole. While a Sim is sleeping, the camera can suddenly switch to a man making his way to the house, before an alarming noise rings off, breaking through the silence to let players know that their property is being trespassed on. It’s highly unlikely that developers Maxis intended for the classic firstSimsgame to give people nightmares, but that’s exactly what it did for those who played it upon release.
WhileSonic Heroesis one of the most beloved entries in the series, which many fans have been begging Sonic Team to one day remake, there’s definitely something that feels a little off and creepy about the game, primarily in certain areas of the game. For example, while the Lost Jungle may look colorful and vibrant on the surface, very soon players will find themselves being hunted down by giant alligators who will be more than happy to snack on anyone they manage to catch.
There’s also Hang Castle, a building crawling with ghouls and monsters, including a giant shady figure who will appear at the very end of Team Shadow’s time in the castle to stalk them until they reach the finish line. BecauseSonic Heroescame out whenSonicwas slowly moving intothe 3D era, some of the character models in the cutscenes can also look a bit too unusual at times, giving off real uncanny valley vibes. With that being said, though,Sonic Heroesis still a standout game in the series thanks to its replay value, level variety, and a truly epic final boss fight.
TheclassicTomb Raidergamesare often credited with ushering the action-adventure genre into the mainstream. However, anyone who played these classics back in the day, or has jumped back into Lara’s adventures with the remaster, will now be familiar with the spine-chilling tone that comes as a result of the ambient soundtrack and ferocious enemies, who are all more than happy to jump out from a nearby bush to catch Lara off guard.
In a way, this can make it feel like more of a survival horror game at times, with Lara scavenging supplies and trying to navigate her way through a plethora of mysterious locations, which all hold their own set of mysteries to uncover. It may be creepier than some may remember, butTomb Raideris still a fantastic game which really stands out for its brain-teaser puzzles and memorable characters, but the scare factor also can’t go unnoticed.
Considering Valve already had theirLeft 4 DeadandHalf Lifeseries of horror games,Portalseemed as though it was going to simply be a puzzle game with no sudden jump scares or terrifying monsters, in order to provide something fresh and new. While the game’s unique Portal Gun gives players tons of creative freedom to navigate the levels in any way they can imagine, there’s always this feeling of isolation and mystery, which ensures they never feel fully comfortable.
Since the protagonist, Chell, doesn’t speak, it means players can only wonder where exactly they are, how they ended up in this strange “trail”, and who the strange robot known as GLaDOS truly is.Portalis a game that can easily invoke a sense of suspense and even dread in the player, without even needing to feature a single enemy; keeping its focus on the core puzzle gameplay, while also adding in some spooky symbolism and story references to make things a little more interesting.
There have been many cases of franchises that ended up looking a little scary from a visual perspective after making the move to 3D, but perhaps the most well-known example of this isOcarina of Time. While the game itself still looks incredible for its time, Nintendo may not have realized just how far they went with the enemy designs, which often feel more reminiscent of horror games than theZeldaseries. For example, whilethe Stalchild skeletonsmay have appeared as average grunts in a 2D format, when fully rendered, they’re pretty freaky to look at, and they are only the tip of the iceberg in terms of how far these designs can go.
The dungeons inOcarina of Time, which have always been a central part of theZeldagameplay loop, also feel a lot more gloomy and oppressive in this game. Many fans will look toMajora’s Maskas the scariestZeldagame, but while it felt like Nintendo were purposefully trying to invoke a sense of horror from that title,Ocarinafeels like more of a traditionalZeldagame, but with some terrifying elements inserted for good measure to make the already incredible adventure even more exciting and memorable.
It’s hard to find many longtimeGTAfans who haven’t spent countless hours enjoying the vast open world featured inSan Andreas. The game’s enjoyable cast of characters and over-the-top missions have made it a classic in the eyes of many, but it’s a game that can also get the skin crawling, most of the time, without intending to. If players travel off the beaten path and entire the big stretches of road or land, for example, they’ll find themselves completely alone with no NPCs and no music to accompany them, making it feel like the beginning of some kind ofzombie outbreak.
Of course, it’s hard to talk aboutSan Andreasand not also mention the countless myths and rumors that were always so terrifying to learn about when the game first released. The biggest example of this is Bigfoot, who is said to roam the mountains surrounding the city, which is why players constantly find themselves looking back over their shoulder when navigating this part of the map.San Andreasis still well worth jumping into for those who haven’t tried it, but it’s not exactly a game for the faint of heart, considering how weird and unsettling it can get at times.
TheMariogames are often seen as very upbeat and joyful titles that are primarily designed with children in mind as the target audience, but it’s clear Nintendo wanted to get a bit more ambitious withGalaxy. Whilethe first few galaxiesin the game are fairly straightforward, players will soon be free to explore some of the creepier areas, such as the infamous Bonefin Galaxy or the Ghostly Galaxy, which is packed full of ghouls to keep players on their guard at all times.
A lot ofGalaxy’screepiness also comes from the soundtrack, which is a lot more subtle and experimental than what many fans are used to with previous entries. Nintendo also went all-out with the enemy designs in this game, with the likes of Megaleg and even Bowser becoming pure nightmare fuel because of how easily they are able to tower over the plucky protagonist, resulting in plenty of intense boss fights to complement the addictive galaxy-hopping gameplay loop.
