Scary Fun: The Best Horror Games to Play This Autumn
Scary Fun: The Best Horror Games to Play This Autumn [Updated for 2025]
I first wrote this post years ago on a Friday the 13th, which felt like the perfect time to dive into spooky gaming.
Now it feels right to give it a refresh because horror games just keep evolving and my list of favourites has grown.
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The Best Horror Games You Need to Play!
Autumn is the best season to sink into them anyway!
The nights are darker, the air feels crisp, and the atmosphere is just right for all the scares.
So, grab yourself a blanket, turn off the lights, and let’s dive into the horror games that will keep you glued to the screen this season.
Silent Hill: A Timeless Classic
I absolutely adore Silent Hill!
It’s my ultimate favourite series of horror games and honestly, I can never pick just one title.
Silent Hill 2 and Silent Hill 4: The Room constantly fight for the top spot in my heart. I grew up with this franchise and I’ve played every single game in it.
This series is extra special though because it’s the one that brought my other half and me together.
Silent Hill was the very first horror game we played as a couple, and from there on we made it our mission to play them all on their original consoles. Think PS1, PlayStation, Xbox, and even PC.
We wanted the full nostalgic experience from our childhoods, and it’s been such a joy reliving those moments together.
My favourite thing about the game though is the monsters.
All the monsters in Silent Hill are so rich with meaning that I often find myself deep diving into their lore.
At this point, I’m 100% convinced my other half and I are walking encyclopedias of the franchise and the developers’ work haha.
There’s just something super fascinating about the world of Silent Hill.
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That love carried right into the release of the Silent Hill 2 Remake in October 2024.
My health had me bed bound at the time, but we made the best of it and set up a full themed night in the bedroom. We played for seven uninterrupted hours while the kids stayed with their aunty and honestly, it was one of my favourite gaming nights ever.
Silent Hill is the one horror game series I could always go back to and never get bored.
It’s atmospheric, haunting, and so deeply part of my life that I’ll treasure it forever.
The Evil Within: Scares with Heart
Back in 2014, when The Evil Within released, my partner and I snapped it up straight away!
At the time little bear was just a baby, and we would wait until he fell asleep before diving into this twisted world together.
It became one of those games that really stuck with us, not just because of the scares, but because of the memories we built while playing it.
What makes The Evil Within so good though is the way it mixes gore, strategy, and atmosphere.
You can experiment with different playstyles each time, ranking up different abilities and testing how they affect gameplay.
That keeps it fresh and exciting even after multiple completions!
I’ve honestly lost count of how many times we’ve played it.
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Side note: The Evil Within 2 deserves a shout out too! It took everything from the first game and dialled it up with more emotional depth and even creepier moments.
If you haven’t played it yet, add it to your list of horror games for autumn nights.
Outlast 1 & 2: Run or Die
Outlast is a horror game that splits opinions, and mine is… somewhere in the middle.
On one hand, I love the terrifying mechanic where you can’t fight back. You either run, hide, or die, which ramps up the tension in ways most games can’t match.
On the other hand, the first game’s story felt rushed, almost as if the developers ran out of steam and just wrapped it up.
That said, Outlast 2 is a big improvement!
The storyline digs deeper, the antagonists feel more threatening, and the overall gameplay flows better.
It still leans heavily on the run or die mechanic, but this time it feels more purposeful.
If you’re after horror games that leave you sweaty palmed and stressed in the best way, then Outlast 2 is worth every second.
Alien: Isolation – Suspense Perfected
Not all horror games need gore to scare the life out of you.
Alien: Isolation proves that in droves.
This masterpiece throws you onto a space station with an Alien that hunts you relentlessly.
And here’s the best part, it doesn’t follow a set path!!
The AI is free roaming in this game, which means each encounter is unpredictable.
That unpredictability makes it one of the most suspenseful horror games ever created in my humble opinion.
You can’t memorise where the Alien will appear and it’s tense.
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You have to think on your feet, use your environment, and sometimes just pray it doesn’t hear you breathe.
The graphics are stunning, the atmosphere is dripping with dread, and the story ties beautifully into the Alien universe.
Even now I find myself itching to play it again.
It’s less about jump scares and more about constant, gnawing fear, which is exactly why it works.
Left 4 Dead: A Game That Stole My Heart
I can’t talk about my favourite horror games without shouting about Left 4 Dead.
This one has such a special place in my heart because it’s more than just a game, it’s part of my lifes story.
It was one of the first games that really brought my other half and I together, and we spent SOOOOO many nights playing it side by side.
When I was pregnant with Little Bear, it was still one of our go to games, and once he was old enough, he joined the crew too.
Suddenly Left 4 Dead became a family tradition, which makes it 10x more meaningful to me.
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I love that you never quite know exactly what’s waiting around the corner with this one.
Whether it’s a swarm of infected or the dreaded Tank that can wipe you out in seconds.
I spent hours perfecting my gameplay for Left 4 Dead. Pushing through challenges, racing through speed runs and getting as much play time as possible just to beat personal bests.
It’s chaotic, fun, and endlessly replayable.
Resident Evil 4: Family Favourite Horror Games
Another favourite in our house is Resident Evil, but for me it’s specifically Resident Evil 4.
This one means a lot because it isn’t just my favourite, it’s actually my other half’s all time favourite horror game.
He even streams it on Twitch pretty often (if you’re curious, his channel is Papabear_SM).
To be honest, it took me a while to warm up to Resident Evil. I didn’t click with it straight away, but because it’s his favourite, I gave it another chance,and I’m so glad I did!
We started with Resident Evil 4 and once I got into it, I realised just how good it is.
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The atmosphere is so intense at points, the gameplay feels smooth and exciting, and the story really does pull you in.
I especially loved Ramón as a villain! He’s unsettling, totally bizarre, and adds such a creepy flair to the game.
On top of that, it was also the first Resident Evil title S and I played together, which makes it extra special for me.
Playing it side by side made me appreciate why so many people call it one of the best horror games ever made.
Horror Games Honourable Mentions
There are so many other horror games that deserve love, even if they aren’t my all time favourites.
Dead Space is a must if you like sci-fi scares, with its grotesque necromorphs and claustrophobic spaceship setting.
Alan Wake brings a more psychological angle, mixing mystery, suspense, and eerie small-town vibes that feel perfect for long autumn nights.
If you want something cinematic, Until Dawn plays out like a slasher film where your choices decide who survives. Ps, I’ve only just started getting into this and I LOVE it so far.
Dead Island adds a fun, chaotic spin with its tropical zombie apocalypse setting, and Dead by Daylight lets you experience horror from both sides, whether you’re running from a killer or hunting survivors.
These games might not make my personal top tier, but they’re still incredible options if you want to pack your autumn with different styles of horror gaming.
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Final Thoughts
Horror games aren’t just about scares, they’re about atmosphere, story, and the thrill of surviving impossible odds!
They can drop you into cursed towns, space stations filled with monsters, or haunted villages where every shadow feels like a threat.
This autumn feels like the perfect time to dive back into them.
Silent Hill delivers timeless chills, The Evil Within mixes gore and strategy with heart, Outlast 2 keeps your nerves on edge, and Alien: Isolation proves suspense can be just as terrifying as blood.
Then you have Resident Evil 4, which blends survival horror with action so brilliantly that it’s become a must play classic.
Especially in our house.
So grab your controller and let these horror games carry you through the darker evenings ahead.
Just be warned though, you might find yourself checking the shadows a little more often…
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Outlast was so freaky, I couldn’t play it by myself, so I made my husband play it while I sat with a walkthrough! 🙂
I really need to play some of these! I've never really been much of a gamer but when I do play I can spend hours and hours on something! Great recommendations, going to have a look into some of these x Tiffany
I must admit that I'm not the world's biggest gamer, unless playing The Sims for hoursssss as a teenager counts haha? Alien Isolation sounds like the most fun to me, anything that's challenging and makes you use your head is much better at keeping my attention!Abbey 😘
Haha I love looking at all your games, especially now we know there's a cat in your newest one! Apart from The Sims and Burnout, I'm not much of a gamer to be honest. But I've loved reading a little more about the games you like to play!
Horror games are definitely not on my list! I've played some of these before and when you get sucked in, there's a lot of scary moments!! I loved The Evil Within, it was such a great game and I am soo excited for the second one to be released. I have loved reading about your favourite games.Gemma