Horror games are no longer the genre they used to be, with terrors as well as frights now a very popular medium for both movies and games.
Fortunately, a veritable gold mine of horror games is available on the Xbox Game Pass library for fans of terror and Xbox Game Pass subscribers.
This collection offers gamers a respectable selection, ranging from grim survival adventures to jump-scare-filled co-op excursions. The only prerequisites other than the Game Pass membership are steeled nerves and to be terrified.
Best Horror Games On Xbox Game Pass
Darkest Dungeon
The foundation of Darkest Dungeon is a roguelike RPG. Still, it wears its Lovecraftian dark fantasy trappings so brilliantly that it is sure to quench the desire of any horror hound for physical and psychological thrills. The player’s role as the unfortunate heir to a cursed estate is to recruit, manage, and lead a group of brave adventurers as they rid the recently acquired territories of an ancient evil their ancestor accidentally aroused.
Although Darkest Dungeon’s visual design deserves praise in and of itself, the game’s roguelike format and the narrator’s voice acting help bring the horror elements home in a particularly effective manner. But fighting against unnameable cosmic evils has a physical and psychological cost. The strains of battle can cause the heroes to become unbalanced, causing them to lose their minds just as frequently as they do to blades, teeth, and tentacles.
Amnesia: Rebirth
The Xbox Game Pass’s selection of Amnesia games is neatly bookended with Amnesia: Rebirth. The natural next stop after finishing The Dark Descent, Justine, and A Machine for Pigs is Rebirth. This book’s emotional weight to its terrible subject is one of its best qualities. Amnesia: Rebirth goes above and beyond when it comes to its story. Adding a few more jumpscares and relying on the your-light-source-is-a-quivering-matchstick gimmick would have been simple.
Although the protagonist Tasi Trianon is going through terrible things, the emotional center of the entire narrative is driven by her unwavering desire to see her unborn child live a fulfilling life. Fans of the first game will learn a lot about the series’ backstory, such as how vitae functions and what that ever-present orb can do, in addition to being able to follow this theme of hope through to its conclusion.
Soma
Another classic by Frictional Games is Soma. You are presented with philosophical issues regarding the precise nature of consciousness through a tale that centers on humanity’s attempt to survive an extinction event. The gameplay is extremely similar to Amnesia: The Dark Descent, but the story clearly turns around.
Despite these lofty tendencies, Soma does not entirely stray from its horror roots. Soma is a game that takes place in a run-down deep-sea research facility and involves malformed animals kept alive by the general AI of the region and shamble after your character. Soma is ideal for you if you enjoy thinking about the meaning of life while immersing yourself in a superb horror experience.
Moonscars
Nowadays, it’s a bit cliché to compare a challenging game to Dark Souls. Still, Moonscars’ merciless combat actually makes some of the most annoying elements of a normal FromSoftware game come to mind. Moonscars leans into the complexity of its combat the way a Souls-like game would, even though you might believe it is more like a Metroidvania (although there are similar components).
Although it is more action-oriented than the typical horror game, one of its main appeals is the gloomy, pixelated visuals. Moonscars may become your new favourite game if you enjoy beating challenging bosses and figuring out complicated battle systems in video games.
7 Days To Die
7 Days to Die, which categorically describes itself as a “survival horde crafting game,” clearly leans heavily on the “survival” component of survival horror, but that goes a long way toward amplifying the tension of the horror aspect. The idea is straightforward: the struggle to survive as you deal with the elements, your needs, and swarms of shambling zombies.
While the zombies are rather simple to avoid during the day, things change drastically at night since these brain-hungry ghouls don’t just shuffle towards you; they run after you and are never weary.
The best way is to remain behind closed doors and maintain silence, but this is much easier said than done, mainly when they can be heard pacing and groaning only a few steps from your selected hiding place. Nothing screams fear like waiting in the dark, knowing that one careless sound or movement could mean the difference between seeing the sunrise one more time or meeting a horrible end.
Dead Space 2
Visceral Games chose to surpass themselves with the sequel to Dead Space, even if the first game was spooky enough. Players re-enter Isaac Clarke’s engineering role as he battles terrifying visions of his deceased girlfriend and the emergence of the horrible Necromorphs. Also, the horrors that await him, from an abandoned, and the bloody elementary school to a Unitologist church, are nevertheless horrifying even if Clarke can now defeat these demons.
And your return to the Ishimura is just as terrifying as you recall. The Xbox Game Pass library’s inclusion of it is a horror fan’s fantasy come true. Everything you enjoyed about the first film is expanded upon in the sequel. Everything from new Necromorph species to weaponry to Isaac’s new armor is available. The best thing, though? The zero-G controls in Dead Space 2 were enhanced from the first game.
Back 4 Blood
A cooperative zombie survival game that, at the very least, can compete with Left 4 Dead’s distinct style of horde-slaying, run-and-gun mayhem has been long overdue (more than eleven years).
The aptly called Back 4 Blood has just been made available. Additionally, Xbox Game Pass offers a full day-one release of it. Play the role of a “Cleaner” whose main duty is to get rid of the countless swarms of “Ridden” that almost jump up and down to swipe at you.
Back 4 Blood’s campaign may be easily finished on the easiest difficulty setting with three strong allies at your side. However, the game’s harder levels and distinctive card system ensure that each playthrough will be distinct.
Doom 3
A survival-horror twist on the genre-defining FPS franchise gives Doom 3 a radically distinct feel after a ten-year break from mainstream releases. Even though it can be debatable, it was undoubtedly spectacular.
Also it’s up to the player to stop the demonic invasion by traveling into Hell, as well as hopefully back again — after the overly ambitious scientists of the UAC blast open a portal to hell, casting them into the familiar role of a lone space marine left on Mars.
Even if Doom 2016’s rapid, adrenaline-fueled extravagance is far from the game’s measured, tense pacing and dramatic horror setpieces, it’s still a worthwhile experience that finds an intriguing balance between first-person action and horror thrills.
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead, which adapts the hugely popular world created by Robert Kirkman’s comic book series of the same name, follows the growth of its young protagonist Clementine as she changes from an impressionable and fearful child into a steadfast and experienced survivor well-suited to the fears of the zombie-infested post-apocalypse.
Telltale’s The Walking Dead is more than simply a scary game; it also exemplifies the studio’s enduring influence on the gaming industry.
Players must be careful while selecting their dialogue options and keep in mind how they may impact the other characters in a Telltale-typical fashion. If ever there was a game that best exemplified Telltale’s design philosophy, it is this one. There are zombies as well.
Dead By Daylight
Ironically, some asymmetric multiplayer games turn out to be unfair situations, but Dead By Daylight‘s take on the genre, which focuses on horror, works.
Pitting on one killer against as many as four survivors masterfully creates the tense atmosphere of a typical horror story scenario as the monster punishes irresponsible individual behaviors.
On the other hand, a well-run team can suffocate the murderer. Dead By Daylight has gotten regular updates since its 2016 release, including amazing DLC that pays homage to vintage horror movies.
Players may now access packs that let them experience the worlds of popular modern shows like Stranger Things and Friday the 13th classics.
Alien: Isolation
Alien: Isolation is the apex of the horror video game genre thanks to the Xenomorph’s AI’s ingenuity. The game’s titular Alien stalks players through Sevastopol Station’s hallways with every hiss and thudding step, heightening the tension. Sweaty hands and a beating heart are frequent companions when playing Alien: Isolation. When compared to other horror games offered by Xbox Game Pass, this one honors the franchise.
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