Summary
Horror games are beloved by millions of people worldwide. After all, few things can compare to the thrill of playing in the middle of a dark forest oran abandoned buildingwhile a vicious creature approaches slowly from a blind spot. There are many great settings for horror games, but few are as good as a post-apocalyptic world.
More often than not, for a horror game to work, there needs to be solitude, decay of some sort, and a deafening silence to intensify the uncertainty of what liesbehind every corner. What’s better at meeting all these conditions than a doomed world? Throughout the years, many games have taken advantage of the concept, delivering masterpieces that will last through the ages. Here are some of thebest post-apocalyptic games that the horror genre has to offer.
There are many possible scenarios for an apocalypse. It could be nuclear warfare, a scarcity of water, giant tsunamis, and even monstrous earthquakes. However, zombies always seem to be a safe bet, andDays Gone’sdevelopers knew this. The game follows the story of a man named Deacon St. John, living in post-apocalyptic Oregon.
In this merciless world, a large fraction of the population has been turned into zombie-like creatures who hunt down humans and any other prey they can catch. When Deacon St. John discovers that his wife might still be alive, he sets out on a path to find her and reunite with her in a decaying, hopeless world.
Following the story of Kyle Crane, an undercover agent who is sent to the quarantine zone within the fictional Middle-Eastern city of Harran,Dying Lightwill task players with recovering data that could be the answer to ending the apocalypse. The world is ridden with zombie-like creatures which are slow and dull by day, but extremely fast and dangerous at night, similar to those inI Am Legend.
The game has a dynamic day-night cycle and focuses onweapon-based combatas well as world exploration, climbing, and hiding. This allows players to cater to either their fight or flight instincts whenever they face a horde of enemies or must deal with immediate danger.
Set after the events ofMetro: Last NightandMetro 2035,Metro Exodusfollows the adventures of Artyom, an already well-known protagonist of the franchise.Blending stealth and combatwith exploration and survival game mechanics, this title takes advantage of claustrophobic spaces, tight corridors, and open areas to add to the sense of fear present in any post-apocalyptic world.
The storyline goes through the four seasons of the year, each with its own careful design and weather conditions. While riding the steam locomotive Aurora, Artyom and his companions will recruit people along the way in an effort to survive by making the pack stronger. However, there won’t be a happy ending for many of them.
TheResident Evilfranchise has been around for over two decades now, spawning a series of films, TV shows, games, and even arcade entertainment. There’s something fascinating about the world coming to an end due to a mutated virus that makes the dead rise from their graves.Resident Evil 2is a timeless classic that scared more than one veteran player back in its day, which is why the remake is so great.
While it takes a few liberties and reimagines the gameplay and story to fit better with modern audiences, it preserves that feeling of horror and thickness in the air which characterized the original. It might not be fair to call it the bestResident Evilgame to date, but it’s definitely up there.
Ever sinceNaughty DogreleasedThe Last Of Us, it has captivated millions of players worldwide, creating a following that, to this day, still endures. The game was so huge, that there’s even a multi-million dollar budget TV series about it.The Last Of Usintroduces a post-apocalyptic world full of fungus-infected zombies that vary in speed, abilities, and deadliness depending on how long they’ve been infected and how many mutations they’ve undergone.
One of the things that make this title so great, is that it has many layers to it. As they travel through the US,Joel and Elliedo not only have to survive the zombie-like creatures out in the open, but also mercenaries, rebels, and a fascist government organization. The stealth mechanics are great as well, allowing players to strategically navigate dark, damp corridors and subway stations to avoid the deadly Clickers and other perils.
