Due to the interactivity of the medium, video games have arguably produced some of the most creative, scariest and at times, heartbreaking moments in all thehorrorgenre. Horror series likeResident Evil,Doomand evenThe Last of Ushave not only carved out a name for themselves in horror gaming, but within our cultural consciousness as well.
Whether through a horrifically designed monster in a terrifyingly rendered location, a perfectly executed jump scare, or a devastating and/or gory death scene, these moments have become ingrained in the brains of players around the world and have haunted them ever since.
10Jump Scare Deaths - Five Nights At Freddy’s
Five Nights At Freddy’shas quickly become a powerhouse horror series amassing numerous sequels, as well as, comics, books and even a film. Although the game boasts distinctive character design, the series wouldn’t have found the success it has if it wasn’t for its jump scares.
As many gamers and YouTubers know all too well, whilst unsuccessfully watching over Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza at night, one of the manycreepy animatronics will suddenly leap right at youwhilst letting out a frightening screech. These scares are so abrupt in nature they never fail and have made Five Nights At Freddy’s the phenomenon it is today.
Silent Hill 2is universally regarded as the best game in the iconic survival horror series. The legendary game has been praised for its monster design, atmosphere, and its character driven plot, but arguably the most unforgettable element of the game is the bizarre and deeply unsettling debut of the series’ most iconic antagonist, Pyramid Head.
Playing as protagonist, James Sunderland, you’ll first spot Pyramid Head down a narrow corridor, staring ominously at you. Moments later, the infamous Cutscene will trigger in which the humanoid creature is seen violating two headless mannequins. Equally absurd as it is unnerving, this is a moment scared into the minds of gamers the world over and thus a horror icon was born.
Most horror moments are memorable for being incredibly scary; however this isn’t the case withTellTale’s The Walking Deadseries. The series does have its fair share of effectively scary moments, such as the Cannibal reveal in Starved For Help, but in a game focused on delivering players difficult choices, the best and most profound is left for last.
You control Lee as he ensures Clementine survives in the apocalypse, so when it’s revealed that Lee has been bitten, many players were stunned. To make matters even worse, the series ends with player control shifting to Clementine as you’re given the choice to mercy kill Lee or leave him to turn into the undead.
7The Mind Games - Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem
Some horror games make you jump; some can make you cry, whilst others can creatively mess with your head like in the case of Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem. This horror game may have a great jump scare with the bathtub scene, but, what people remember about this game is how it plays on your sanity in an incredibly meta way.
The game features a ‘Sanity meter’ which, if it gets too low, will trigger ‘Sanity Effects’ that can range from strange noises and skewed camera angles, to faked error messages making you believe the game just crashed. This effect is so innovative and perfectly places you in the mind of the playable character, that it’s puzzling we haven’t seen more of this since.
Throughout theDead Spaceseries, there have been numerous spine-chilling moments that have cemented it as a classic series in horror gaming, but its defining moment from doesn’t feature the series’ plethora of space aged monstrosities, but instead focuses on a true wince inducing form of surgery.
In this scene, you must carefully lower a needle directly into Issac Clarke’s pupil to activate critical information in his brain. The sound of Issac’s heart rate, as well as his constantly jolting eyeballs, ramp up the tension to excruciating levels. Also, should you miss the pupil, the needle will plunge into Issac’s skull in an extremely gruesome animation.
5The Whole Game - P.T.
Possibly the most famous game that never was,Hideo Kojima’splayable teaser for Silent Hills blew everyone away and its loss is still felt by gamers to this day. The moreish first-person teaser sees you solving puzzles around a house whilst stalked bya ghostly apparition of a woman named Lisa.
Lisa’s sinister design, twitchy animation, as well as the revelation that she’s always behind you chilled fans to the bone. Complete with a fetus in a bathroom sink and a heart attack inducing jumpscare should Lisa kill you,P.Tmade a lasting impression so good it sadly was too good to be true.
4Game Over - Slender: The Eight Pages
The notorious creepypasta made its gaming debut in 2012 with this first person survival title. The white faceless being dressed in a black suit carved its name into horror history with its simple yet effective design, but more importantly, with its death screen.
Should the Slender Man draw near and catch you, static gradually engulfs the screen, accompanied by audio distortion until eventually the Slender Man appears in close up and the screen cuts to black. Uniquely spooky, this death screen would play a large part in the birth of a classic indie horror series.
3The Kaernk - Amnesia: The Dark Descent
The survival horror seriesAmnesiadebuted in 2010 with The Dark Descent and featured many monstrosities for you to avoid. Despite largely encountering the Gatherers, the Kaernk’s sections leave a more lasting impression in this milestone title.
This invisible creature can only be seen through splashes in the shallow water it occupies and can only attack should you step foot in these waters. The creature’s lack of visibility makes these ‘the floor is lava’ sections incredibly nerve wrecking and the strategy needed to bypass the creature brought an interesting change of pace to this landmark horror game.
2The Zombie Dog Jumpscare - Resident Evil
No list of iconic horror moments in gaming is complete without Resident Evil. The series has plenty of industry leading antagonists such asResident Evil 3’sNemesis andVillage’sLady Dimitrescu, but the series most renowned moment has to be the zombie dog jumpscare from the original game.
You run down a hallway, only for a zombified canine to suddenly jump through a nearby window and attack you. Unsuspecting players will either run away or quickly dispose of the dog; however you’ll be met with yet another dog pouncing through a different window. Although dated today, in 1996, this moment scared gamers silly and has earned it the accolade of the most iconic jump scare in all of gaming.
1Abby Gets Her Revenge - The Last Of Us Part 2
There is no denying that Joel’s brutal demise early intoThe Last of Us Part 2has instantly become a definitive moment, not only in horror gaming, but in the history of gaming itself. Gamers knew Joel would one day face consequences for his actions, but, this being said, no one expected it to come as soon or as brutally as it did.
Having finally hunted down Joel, after he killed her father at the close of the first game, Abby and her gang restrain him and Ellie as Abby proceeds to bludgeon Joel to death with a golf club, whilst Ellie helplessly watches on. Causing considerable backlash due to the beloved nature ofTroy Baker’s character, Joel’s death was a genuine shock to everyone and a bitter pill many struggled to swallow.
