There are times of feast and famine when it comes to new horror games, and last year we binged until our bellies were bloated and our mouths were dripping with terrible fat. 2024 brings us a wealth of dark experiences from solo creators, indie teams, AAA developers, and AAA studios across a wide range of genres and visual styles. It was fantastic there Silent Hill 2 remakes and powerful updates of modern classics such as Phasmophobia, Alan Wake 2 And Outlast Challengesand brand new horror franchises were constantly emerging, expanding the genre in unexpected ways.
First, let's take a moment to celebrate this year's selection of fresh horror universes. In 2024 we have the following new titles:
This isn't a comprehensive list of new horror franchises in 2024, but it's a fitting showcase of just how broad and varied the offerings were this year. Indie studios lead the way when it comes to fresh ideas and original mechanics. from wellbut this list also has plenty of references to early 2000s graphics and survival horror from the PS1 or PS2 era. The combination of innovation and nostalgia is especially strong in games like Fear the attention, Crow Country, Mouth rinse And Hollow body. These games imbue blocky 3D worlds with modern sensibilities and fluid animations, resulting in an experience that illuminates static memories of resident Evil And silent Hill what lurks in our heads. This is exactly how we wanted these games to feel, fixed camera angles be damned – or in the case of Hollow bodyhugged with love.
It should also be noted that Fear the attention marks the debut of acclaimed horror filmmaker Blumhouse as a video game publisher. Fear the attention is the first release in the Blumhouse line, which includes future games from EYESHalf Mermaid, Perfect Garbage, Playmestudio and Vermila Studios and this is a great exploration of low quality teen drama and angst. The horror gaming revolution is upon us, and Blumhouse is sure to get a piece of it.
The least horror-like game on the list above might be Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddessand it is also the only game from a AAA studio. I included it because, as a die-hard horror game fan, I think that Marten-Gami ticks a lot of boxes: it features huge, hideous demons and a deadly disease that envelops entire cities in skeletal but strangely lush organic material. The monster designs feature colorful displays of depravity and body horror, and there's comfort to be found in the intense gameplay loop of strategy and action. Marten-Gami It's not marketed as a horror film, and it certainly contains as many scenes of stunning beauty as it does grotesqueries, but I wholeheartedly recommend it to any horror fan. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
INDICATE This is another entry that combines the genres of horror, camp, and religious satire, but it definitely has some scenes of bone-chilling horror. Plus, the real devil is your friendly companion throughout the game, and that means something. Among scenes of grief, inhumanity and devastation, INDICATE it's a laugh, and it's an outstanding example of mature themes well executed in video game form. Another standout genre achievement of 2024 is the film Simogo. Lorelei and laser eyes. It features incredibly entertaining logic puzzles in a hotel filled with mysteries, but ghosts roam the corridors, a corpse lies in the back garden, and every scene is imbued with palpable unease. Lorelei and laser eyes is one of the best and most disturbing games of the year.
Still awakens the depthMeanwhile, it offers a familiar and beautiful genre of monster-chasing horror on an oil rig in the middle of an angry North Sea. This is a must-play for any horror fan, serving as a vessel for The Chinese Room to showcase its skills in building authentic worlds and cultivating ongoing tension with a paranormal twist. Plus, it's one of the best-looking games I've played on PS5 all year. Slitterhead This is another game for action-horror fans, presenting a supernatural mystery in a version of Hong Kong overrun by body-snatching demons, buckets of blood, and frantic close-quarters combat.
The year began with the release Home Security Hotlinea 1990s call center simulation where players help diagnose and treat household pests, including otherworldly threats such as Bed Teeth, Fae Flu, The Horde, Laundry Gnome, Mirror Nymph, Toilet Hobb, Unicorn Mushrooms and more. Home Security Hotline really was a fun bunch of 2024 horror games – and Mouth rinse this is dessert.
All horrors, children they're playing today Mouth rinseA polygonal first-person game of a stranded spaceship filled with doomed crew members slowly going mad, watched over by a crippled captain with a maniacal, bandaged smile. Mouth rinse weird and claustrophobic, and it's a terrific way to end the year in horror games.
But we haven't even talked about existing franchises yet. Silent Hill 2 remake from Bloober Team, Polish studio behind layers of fear and Blair Witchwas a resounding success, even in the face of strict standards from longtime fans of the series. The remake looks and feels like the game players remember, just polished and smoothed out. Silent Hill 2 in 2024 remains as terrifying as in 2001. Maybe even more scary. Bloober Team had a lot to prove with this game, and they made us older millennial horror gamers proud.
Alan Wake 2 was one of the best games 2023, horror or not, and this year it received two significant batches of DLC: Night springs landed in June and House by the lake aired in October. Each piece of content not only keeps Alan Wake's hellish world alive, but also adds depth to the cross-franchise universe Remedy is building between Control and Alan Wake. Personally, I always want more Alan Wake, and 2024 doesn't disappoint in that regard.
Two indie games with live service, Outlast Challenges And Phasmophobiaalso saw important updates over the last 12 months. After entering Early Access in May 2023 Outlast Challenges Red Barrels has been working to create a consistent cadence of new content releases, and this year they've really gotten into the swing of things. Outlast Challenges fully launched in March 2024 and has since received several updates, including new enemies, maps, game modes, and time-limited events for players trapped in the Murkoff Corporation's secret Signal facility. The amount of work that Red Barrels invests in Outlast Challenges is endlessly impressive, especially considering that the studio only has about 65 developers.
Phasmophobia They have an even smaller team than Red Barrels, but they are making big strides. The team of the British studio Kinetic Games has retained Phasmophobia has been alive since its launch on Steam in September 2020, and this year they finally brought the ghost hunting game to consoles. Phasmophobia hit PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S October 29, and it also appeared on PS VR2. Kinetic Games has ambitious plans for further support and expansion. Phasmophobia in 2025 and beyond, so while the console's release comes four years after launch, it's really just the beginning.
Here it is, our humble ode to the horror games of 2024. It's been a dozen months of indie novelties and great gore, as well as stunning remakes and significant updates. Some new horror games push the boundaries of the genre, expanding our understanding of what is scary and why, while others find new ways to dissect classic tropes. It's an example of modern cuisine and comfort food, and there's plenty of room on my plate for both.