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1. Poppy Playtime
Poppy Playtime was released in October 2021 by Mob Games and became popular because of its tricky gameplay. Poppy Playtime is like Five Nights at Freddy’s (FNAF), as there are scary toys waiting to devour your character. Poppy Playtime includes unique landscapes, where you’ll solve various puzzles to survive the night at a toy factory. In-game, your goal is to not get caught by Huggy Wuggy and other toys. It seems like Poppy will “control” your player to free her out of the toy box. When she escapes, you’ll be led to the next chapter of the series, which is Poppy Playtime Chapter 2: Fly in a Web. Unfortunately, Chapter 2 isn’t free and is priced at $9.99.
2. Cry of Fear
If you’re looking for a psychological horror game, Cry of Fear is a must-try. Initially, this game was a mod for Half-Life but made its way to being an independent game. Cry of Fear can be played solo or with a group of up to four members. After hitting eight hours of playtime, the game’s environment changes. The unsettling and unpredictable environment becomes harder to navigate, adding to the thrill. As you progress, you’ll chance upon unlockables that can be used when you replay the game. They include five alternate endings, which are achieved based on the decisions you make each time you replay the story. The game features a many unique jump scares and soundtracks, making it highly immersive, whether you’re playing alone or with a team.
3. AfterHours
Developed by Runway Studios, AfterHours is a psychological horror game that you must try. It’s set in a dark, abandoned hospital with only furnished rooms with items you can use. In AfterHours, your in-game survival skills will be tested as you try to avoid being spotted by the mysterious creatures lurking inside the hospital. As you go deeper into the hospital, you’ll meet creatures that could pop out of nowhere. This title can only be played solo, making it even more thrilling.
4. Dark Deception
If you’re a fan of hide-and-seek-themed games, where hiding is key to accomplishment, Dark Deception is the perfect horror game for you. Dark Deception has creepy monkey bellhops and other monsters to waylay you. One of your goals in this game is to collect the pink shards scattered around the area and various landscapes, such as the labyrinth, elementary school, and manor. It’s played as if you’re in a maze, so expect to not find hiding spots where you can hide for a long period. To survive, you’ll have to find multiple hiding spots to avoid getting caught by the game’s antagonists.
5. Alien Swarm
Over a decade since its release, Valve’s multiplayer game Alien Swarm is still one of Steam’s best free horror games. Alien Swarm is a tactical, four-player game, where you’re tasked with eradicating aliens surrounding the area using over 40 weapons and other equipment. You can choose from at least four classes to build your team with friends and eight different characters. Even without jump scares, Alien Swarm is scary because of the panic it can induce due to alien swarms you have to survive. If you finish Alien Swarm, you should try Alien Swarm: Reactive Drop, a free-to-play sequel to the original. Tip: freak out your friends using these scary apps.
6. Dead Frontier 2
Dead Frontier 2, the zombie apocalypse-themed game, was released in 2019 by Creaky Corpse. It’s a multiplayer, open-world game where you can trade your resources with other players. The game’s key to success is teamwork, as you need to survive zombie hordes and attacks. Resources include food, water, weapons, ammo, and gear that your character will need to survive. In-game missions include quests from non-playable characters (NPCs), with rewards in the form of items you can use to upgrade your inventory. If you’re looking for familiarity, Dead Frontier 2 is like the Resident Evil games. The only difference and advantage it has is its player-versus-player feature, which isn’t available in the Resident Evil series.
7. Deceit
If you’re a fan of Among Us, Deceit is a horror title on Steam that you should try. It’s a first-person battle of observation and instinct, as you track down which players in the lobby are infected by the zombie virus. In Deceit, you and your teammates are placed in a room where all of you have designated roles. Some are not infected while others are. Similar to how you play Among Us, you need to find and eliminate the infected players to win. While you try to find the infected players, you need to be aware that they can eliminate you too. If you’re infected, your goal is to attack and kill the uninfected players and win the game.
8. We Went Back
Developed by Dead Thread Games, We Went Back is a time-loop game where you wake up in a space station alone. Your main task is to find an escape route while going in circles, encountering horrors in the space station. As you explore, you’ll also find clues and objects to interact with that may help your goal to escape. We Went Back is a single-player title, and its eerie environment will make for a good horror game night.
9. The Backrooms Game Free Edition
From a thread on Creepy Pasta to an actual game, The Backrooms gives you a detailed picture of what it’s like to be stuck in a backroom. The environment is filled with over 600 million square miles of mono-yellow walls and the deafening sound of flickering fluorescent lights with a maze-like structure. To add spice to the game and make it more immersive, you can turn your lights off and turn up the volume. Similar to the previous games, this is a survival- and escape-room game where you must stay sane and alive while looking for the exit. Make sure to check your in-game watch to remind your character who and where they are. This game also includes a lurking monster that you don’t want to encounter as you play the game. If you’re looking for a more intense version of The Backrooms, you can play Inside the Backrooms on Steam for $4.99.
10. Scream Collector
Scream Collector is a pixel art idle clicker game where your task is to create the scariest haunted house in the neighborhood. This is similar to PewDiePie: Tuber Simulator, as you design your own house with different spooky things that will add to the scary factor of your house. You’ll gain profit depending on how scary your house is. You can use the profit to buy scarier items and upgrade your horror house. In Scream Collector, you need to focus on making a house that’s spooky inside and outside to attract more people to pay and enter. The game also includes minigames, so you will not be bored by just waiting for your haunted house to make money. Scream Collector is perfect for all age groups, as there are no jump scares or scary creatures lurking.
11. Unfortunate Spacemen
Early access to Unfortunate Spacemen was made available in 2016, then the game was officially released in 2020. The game is similar to Among Us, as it contains gameplay that uses deception and lies to win or lose the game. The difference is that it allows guns and other weapons to kill the traitor and the monster who mimics your appearances and those of your teammates. You can use proximity chat in this game for it to be more realistic when talking to someone or use different modes such as solo or co-op story mode and solo or co-op survival mode. If you like Unfortunate Spacemen and want additional content, you can get Unfortunate Spacemen – Death Proof Edition on Steam for $24.99.
12. Spooky’s Jump Scare Mansion
Do you have any idea what it looks like if you add cuteness to horror? Spooky’s Jump Scare Mansion will give you a few. The jump scare mansion in the game contains a thousand rooms full of cute terror, offering jump scares that will give you feelings opposite to fear, as there is no overpowering appearance of horror. The twist in this game is that as you proceed to the next room, it’ll be more difficult to progress, as there will be monsters who will come after you. There’ll also be obstacles that may slow you down and prevent you from proceeding to the next rooms and finishing the game.
13. No More Room in Hell
Released on the same day as Halloween of 2011, No More Room in Hell is one of those usual zombie games that you’ve played. The big difference it makes is the big team you can build, where you can include up to eight players. This co-op game is set in a zombie apocalypse and surviving is one of your main objectives. If you get bit by a zombie, you can choose whether to hold on while looking for a cure or give your teammates a notice to kill you. No More Room in Hell also has a proximity chat, so make sure to tag along with your teammates for better communication. Since you don’t die immediately after getting bit by a zombie in the game, there’s more immersion. You can tag along as an infected player slowing your team down or ask them to eliminate you to be out of the game. This element makes the game more strategic and fun to play. If you enjoy this game, you should try No More Room In Hell 2 when it’s released.
14. Ultimate Custom Night
If you are looking for a free-to-play game but also want to experience the gameplay of FNAF, then Ultimate Custom Night is what you’re looking for. Although it does not give you the exact gameplay of FNAF, you can customize the animatronics that you want to encounter, set their difficulty level, and wait for their attacks or the jump scare that they’ll give you. Ultimate Custom Night offers 50 selectable animatronics to choose from, and you can also customize the office you’ll be trapped in.
15. Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle
Friday the 13th: Killer Puzzle is a game set in a night camp, where your character is Jason Voorhees, a character from the famous Friday the 13th film series. This game will test your puzzle-solving skills, as you need to properly calculate the Jason’s moves. You’ll also be taken to different locations to kill different people at different camps. When killing people, there’ll be a prompt asking if you want to kill the people in the camp in R mode where they will be slain in a gruesome way or in PG mode to keep things family-friendly. The game contains eight different episodes with 100 puzzles scattered in every episode. Look out for the bloodlust meter that acts as a progress bar for your killings. Also, there is downloadable content that starts at $0.99 that you can buy on Steam to play more of the game. Image credit: Pixabay. Most of the games on this list come from small, independent developers. They create games like these to let anyone with any type of computer play, so you don’t have to worry if you’re using a computer with older, low-specification components.
