Freeware Horror Games

I made a thread about RPG Maker games some time ago and most of them just happened to be horror titles (you can find that thread [here]) so I thought I'd share some more creepy horror titles. Like the title says these games are completely free and download links are provided for each. I am missing a couple but I will be updating this as soon as I find them.

Most of us here are propably avid horror fans so some of these might already be familiar to you but if I manage to introduce you to something new that's all the better, right? The graphical style and the gameplay, even the style of horror will vary a lot between titles so there should be something for everyone. Let's get to the games, shall we?



That is the title of the first game on the list. It's based on the Slenderman myth and is propably one of the scariest of the bunch. Well, yet again, depending on which kind of horror you're used to. The game is reeeeal slow paced and you have a fairly low stamina for running. The objective is to find 8 pages randomly hidden on the map while being pursued by Slenderman in the woods. There's also a previous game to this called Slender Man but I couldn't find a link to it :/ Even the only piece of footage I found was Pewdiepie's Let's Play of it, which you can find below in the spoiler tags. I'll also leave a trailer for Slender in there.

EDIT: There's now a third game in the series called Sanatorium. Download link added.

EDIT/EDIT: Fourth Slender game appears! It's called Hospice and can be downloaded [here] and [here].

Spoiler:

http://slendergame.com/

Sanatorium Download


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Ever played Dino Crisis or Turok? 1916 is a first person horror game where you try to survive in the trenches during WWI while being stalked by bloodthirsty dinosaurs. There's not much more to this game but the idea sure hasn't been used too many times. Weaponry is really scarce and most of the time you have to rely on distracting your foes to get through. You can find more info and a download link on the website.

http://1916.dadiugames.dk/


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"Blackwell is a game created by BlackPipe studios. The game takes place in 1887 and is inspired by the story of woman journalist Nellie Bly, who faked mental insanity in order to report the brutalities of the Woman’s Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell Island. The protagonist is a woman under heavy influence by narcotics, which make things difficult as you hallucinate twisting hallways and deal with tunnel vision, temporary blindness, and extreme dizziness."
-Bloody Disgusting

So. Anyone wanna visit a lunatic asylum? You can do that in your browser on the game's own website or download it so you can play it from your hard drive.

[Browser Version]

[Zip File]


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Hide

The next game on our list is an experimental horror title. There's no actual story to the game, aside from the fact that you are being chased and have to hide. You need to search for notes to get the good ending. The graphics are quite unique, too.

You can read a small article on it at Frictional Games' blog. You know, the company that made Amnesia and Penumbra. Article: [link]

[Download Site]




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L͇̱̻̹ͬ͋̔ͤͧ͑̎Ú͓̻͔̘̟͎̮̲ͭ̿͛̓̔̈́ͨN̫̝̰̰̠̣̫ͭͥ͒̾̏̽Ả͍̿̓

Anyone up for a cute and cuddly pony platformer? I didn't think so. Well, even if you were, I would suggest staying away from these. The series originated from a creepypasta and has thus far spawned 6 games. Turn out your lights, put your earphones on and prepare for some wonderful mindrape.

For a quick rundown, they're platformers. That's all you need to know. The games from 0 to 4 are from the same author and 5 is an "unofficial" sequel.

On the site, under the "Games" section you will find all the "official" games, including the demo build of 0. For the 5th game I'll leave a seperate download link.


http://www.lunagame.net/

Luna Game 5


Fanmade trailer:



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Now bear with me for a little longer as we're still keeping the pony theme for one more game. This time it's the unholy mixture of cute'n'cuddly ponies and the demented world of Silent Hill. The game itself is still in development but you can play the demo version which was released sometime last Christmas, available at the developer's site. After getting finished, the final game will also be free.

Also on the site is images and demo videos of the game. If you like Silent Hill, try this one out.

http://silentponyville.blogspot.com


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These games have actually spawned from certain artefacts documented on a site called http://www.scp-wiki.net/

Some say they are the most horrifying games to exist. I say that at least SCP-087 is merely a stairway simulator, in which I managed to get to the 200th or so floor.

SCP-087-B certainly has more elements to it that some might call "scary". There's also variation in level design, something that can't be said about the first game.

Lastly, there's SCP: Containment Breach that actually has more gameplay elements to it and a sort of a story.

I have heard that there are at LEAST four of these games but even after all my searching I have only found these three. Containment Breach and 087-B can be downloaded on the same, official site while I will provide a seperate download for the original game.

http://scpcb.wordpress.com/

[SCP-087]


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Which



This short game is reminiscent of the room escape genre with the added horror element. Your mission is to find a way to escape from the house you are in. I actually saw this in a Finnish gaming magazine where they recommended some indie horror games.

EDIT: The game is also available in 3D, if you're into that kind of stuff.

[Download Site]


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Certainly inspired by the Paranormal activity movies, this game lets you experience the hauntings of a house first hand (so to speak). Keeping the handheld camera style of the movies you are locked in your own house, trying to figure out what's going on. Certainly an interesting experience.

On the site you can either buy the game, thus receiving all future updates when they are released, or download one of the Beta versions in the "downloads" section.

http://www.indiedb.com/games/paranormal/


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Made with the Source Engine, Nightmare House 2 is a truly horrifying game. Somehow reminds me of F.E.A.R, actually. Played from first person view with the mission of survival. Survival horror at it's finest.

Note: Prepare for jumpscares and absolute mindfuck.

http://nh2.wecreatestuff.com/




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Originally created as a mod for Half Life 2, Dear Esther became so popular that it got remade into a standalone game with it's own engine 4 years after it's initial release. The mod is still available on the site for free but I'd suggest going for the remade version to get the best out of the game and to support the team.

The game was developed by thechineseroom, more known now for it's work on the upcoming Amnesia game, Machine for Pigs, with Frictional Games. They also have an upcoming game of their own called Everybody's Gone to the Rapture.




You can see the difference between the versions. While the original looks fantastic in itself, the remake is gorgeous.




The company's website, including all their new titles: http://www.thechineseroom.co.uk/

Straight link to the Dear Esther page: http://dear-esther.com/

The team's second free to play game, Korsakovia: http://www.moddb.com/mods/korsakovia


To elaborate on Korsakovia, it's an experimental horror game with twisted worlds and the habit of confusing the player, Eternal Darkness style. It runs on Half Life 2: Episode 2.




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Ghoul's Forest is a series of WADs, Doom mods, that feature a character only known as the "Hunter" fighting against Ghouls. Ghoul's Forest started as a joke "scare 'em up" but after getting a lot of attention it spawned two sequels and a multiplayer spinoff.

• Ghoul's Forest is a simple game. There's one overpowered monster (Choke), a couple of weapons and very limited ammo. Beat the monster to unlock the exit. As it was originally intended to be just a joke it's a bit buggy.
  
• Ghoul's Forest 2 has a little more umph to it. Armed with the double barreled shotgun from Doom you are to take on the ghoul named Sjas. More ammo can be found but generally the game is harder than the first one.
  
• Ghoul's Forest 3 is the biggest one of them all. It has a small backstory to it and is actually an homage to a 1983 Commodore/Atari game called "Forbidden Forest". In addition to Sjas from the second game, you are pitted against Choke's brother Jitterskull and the Creeper. Each of the monsters act differently and will need different tactics to be defeated. After killing them all there's one final boss battle before the trilogy ends.

There's also Ghouls vs Humans, the multiplayer game, and Ghoul's Forest 3D, which is basically the third game with updated graphics.

[the full series]

[Ghoul's Forest 3D]

[Author's Website]


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Yes, I'm well aware that none of the games in the Penumbra trilogy are free. BUT! There was one game in the series before Requiem and Black Plague, even before Overture. It was the original Penumbra, a tech demo made in 2006, a year before Overture and the initial start of the trilogy. I actually have the game on disc, as I received it with a computer magazine I used to get. Years after I had gotten it I decided to try out the demo to see if the series would be worth the investment. Well, a couple hours later, it turns out that the "demo" is a bit longer than expected. As far as I know, it's all different from any of the other games. Even better, it's totally free and available on Frictional Games' site. Just took a bit of digging.

[Tech Demo]


You can also play demo versions of Overture and Black Plague on the series' official site: http://www.penumbragame.com/index.php





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Haunted Investigations is constantly updated with new content and new investigations. The investigations themselves range from a fairly laid back ghost hunt to a completely ridiculous world ending scenario. There's... not really much else to say.

Have a trailer.



http://hauntedinvestigationsgame.com/


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This one's a really short, browser game-ish escape game. Note how I said "ish", meaning this one is actually download only.

House is cursed. Escape or die. This game has taken some influences from "The House" games.

Almost forgot: In a familiar "The House" fashion, click everything a trillion times to make things happen.


[Download]


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Browser Horror

I already mentioned "The House" in my description of the previous game so here are some of my recommendations for browser games that will make you not sleep tonight.

• The House: Is there an echo in here? Hm. Well these games, like most of the other games on this browser game list, are escape games. You are trapped in a house of evil and must fondle everything until it bleeds. Literally. The House and The House 2, in addition to a Halloween special, can be found at http://www.sinthaistudio.com/thehouse/
  
• Exmortis: This game used to scare the living crap out of me and my friend. It still disturbs me, to be honest. We somehow managed to make something happen in the first game that hasn't happened ever since so I'm kinda weary on these. These games are quite story driven so if you want to indulge yourself in evil passages, please, sit back and... don't dare to relax. I actually found out there was a third game in the series only just now, while making this thread. Gotta check that out myself. All the games and more can be found on LefflerWebDesign's Newgrounds page: http://lefflerwebdesign.newgrounds.com/games/
  
• Hotel/Asylum 626: Realistic horror. Both of these games were kind of like online haunted houses. Apparently part of some marketing campaign, I can't find the games online anymore. If you manage to find either of these, playable, I'd suggest you give them a try. Hinting me about it wouldn't hurt either
  
• The Lost Souls: Once promoted by Pewdiepie, this indie horror game got some name for itself, however it's still pretty unknown outside of his fanbase. But hey, now's your chance to try it out! Complete with 3D modeled graphics and free movement, this is unlike any of the other browser horror games I have listed. Now, start cracking some puzzles! [Download Link]
  

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I certainly saved the best for the last. I present to you...



The Chzo Mythos (also known as the John DeFoe series) by Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw consists of several games, all connected to each other in some way. The games in the series are listed below. While the chronological order might seem like a good idea it will only get frustrating and confusing, so playing the games in the actual order, presented here, is recommended.

• 5 Days a Stranger The first game in the series traps you in a secluded mansion while you were trying to rob the place. Soon you will find out there are more people trapped in and that things are not going the way you planned. At all.
  
  
• 7 Days a Sceptic Taking place 400 years after the first game, you are travelling on a futuristic spaceship when you pick up something drifting in space. After collecting the item things start taking a strange turn.
  
  
• Trilby's Notes Linking the first and second game, you once again take the role of Trilby who has gone through a little change of professions. The gameplay in this game is a bit different from the previous games but it still ended up being my favorite in the series.
  
  
• 6 Days a Sacrifice Taking place right in between 5 Days/Trilby's Notes and 7 Days a Sceptic you are to investigate the headquarters of a newly found cult. Bringing all the pieces finally together and concluding the fantastic series, you should never ever even think about playing this game before the other three.
  
  
• Trilby: The Art of Theft More of a spinoff than an actual sequel, the game takes place two years before the first game where you learn more of Trilby's criminal background. Changes the gameplay and genre from adventure/horror to stealth/platformer. Very smooth and fun.

This is one of my favorite game series ever and one of the most suspenseful and interesting horror games ever made. Oldschool graphics combined with great horror and Monkey Island style adventuring, you can't go wrong. Easily the best games on this whole list.

Funny how I started this list with Slenderman and now I'm ending it with a series that features one of the best incarnations of the creature.

Title Screens:

There's also a similar game made by the same person called 1213 that pretty much combines the gameplay style of The Art of Theft with the overall style of the Chzo Mythos. If you liked the previous games in this section, I suggest you try this out.


All the games, including 1213, are available on the "games" page of FullyRamblomatic.com

http://www.fullyramblomatic.com/games.htm


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That concludes my list of all the free horror games I can think of. If you can think some more, please post them here

I'll leave you with a couple of curiosity titles. They're not really horror but they will send you on a nice little nostalgia trip. Click the images for the download sites.

Slender? Check- been trying to play it on my own. But as soon as you get the first page, some creepy music starts. That's my cue to panic esc.

I've always wanted to try out the Luna games, but seeing as Mass suffered a good deal. Hell no. I'll just continue to watch him play it. We scream at the same spots of the bloody nightmare of a game, anyway

I really want to play SCP, and Silent Ponyville. But I'm sure they'll just lag.

Most of the browse horror you mentioned, I've played. (Feels boss) Yet I am still scarred from those ;_;

Ooo, I see Crouching monk, you joker you.

Despite lag, I will try SCP.

Nice list of horror must, I will keep coming back to this- after completing another. Just a question, would you update this thread once you've found another freeware horror game?

Methsia wrote:

Just a question, would you update this thread once you've found another freeware horror game?

Definitely. Hopefully this list last for a while, though It's all the games I have downloaded previously.

Here's a few I've been playing

The Corridor

A russian horror game where you are wondering through a hotel, I won't give too much away but this one really did make me jump. It's also in Beta so there will be updates.

Download

Grey
A mod which requires Half Life 2 and Episode 2, a very similar feel to those of you who have played Cry Of Fear. At the time of this posting I have only played a few minutes and I've already shouted at my computer hehe.

Download

Biohazardtaylor wrote:

Cry Of Fear

Oh yeah, wasn't that game free too? I was actually supposed to showcase that game in my original post but as I knew nothing of it I decided against it.

tl:dr

Wow, thanks alot. These all look great.

PAULSAMSON wrote:

tl:dr

You suck.

Also, I'm still trying to beat SCP Containment Breach.

I've found a few cool places that I haven't seen on youtube before, I think.

Now these are available as a series of blogs on ScrewAttack! Thanks to Mcghie for featuring in one of them! http://www.screwattack.com/user/mass-distraction/blog

There's also a few games featured that weren't touched on this thread. Check them out if you're interested.