Top 10 Creepiest Video Game Worlds
#10: The Forest
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“Darkwood” (2017) Forests are natural settings for creepy stories. But one that is always expanding and brings a plague with it? That’s downright terrifying. “Darkwood” follows The Stranger as he scrounges for resources and searches for a way to escape the mysterious woods. But the game’s roguelike elements change the layout of the forest, which turns its victims into monsters. The ever-evolving nature of the game is enough to make you actually feel like you’re lost in the woods. And you’ll need to summon every ounce of determination if you wish to survive the beasts that come hunting for you in the night.
#9: Mount Massive Asylum
“Outlast” (2013) Another setting that commonly brings tales of horror with it is the psychiatric hospital. And “Outlast’s” Mount Massive Asylum is one for the ages. The survival horror game sees investigative journalist Miles Upshur break into Mount Massive after hearing the staff is performing experiments on their patients. Corpses of the staff litter the building and patients wander its halls, offering plenty of jump scares and other unsettling encounters. Every room features something that will make your skin crawl, which is made even worse by the fact that there’s no way to defend yourself. With gruesome imagery around every corner and a cult that follows something definitely not of this world, Mount Massive Asylum has its fair share of scares.
#8: Wonderland
“American McGee’s Alice” (2000) While Wonderland is again created by Alice in this reimagining, it’s far from the whacky and lovely world presented in the source material. With her family dead from a fire, Alice’s damaged mental state is reflected in the magical land. Which means everything you once thought was charming or whimsical is turned into a twisted, nightmarish version of itself, including the characters. Areas once thought to be bursting with color are now drab and lifeless. And the less said about the Queen of Hearts’ hellish palace, the better. The game’s version of Wonderland is a terrifically vile adaptation, which is both commendable and upsetting.
#7: Lordran
“Dark Souls” (2011) FromSoftware’s “Dark Souls” was not the studio’s first ultra-difficult game, though it did popularize the formula. And a big part of what made the first entry so grueling and stressful was its setting. Lordran is overflowing with deadly creatures that want nothing more than to viciously decimate you. But it’s also shrouded in mystery as the player, a human with an undead curse, must piece together the history of this dark place themselves. Even if you have no interest in lore, Lordran has plenty to make you panic. Claustrophobic castles hide monstrous baddies around every turn and offshoots like the toxic Blighttown and the pitch-black Tomb of the Giants will make you wish you never left the Undead Asylum.
#6: The Maw
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“Little Nightmares” (2017) In this puzzle platformer, players control a young girl as she attempts to escape a mostly submerged vessel called The Maw. Part of what makes this metal structure so insanely creepy is the fact that signs of electricity are few and far between. The player’s only source of light for most of the game is a lighter. And tiptoeing around the dark and dank Maw will make every noise and movement much more sinister. But it's the oversized, misshapen inhabitants that attempt to capture you that really gets under our skin. Art direction can go a long way to defining a world. And the Maw is certainly well-defined.
#5: Rapture
“BioShock” Series (2007-16) The reveal of Rapture was honestly awe-inspiring. But as soon as we got into the city, we wanted nothing more than to leave. Designed as an underwater utopia, Rapture has descended into madness long before you arrive. Civil War, rampant crime, and psychotic citizens addicted to gene-altering ADAM have turned the once prosperous city into a nightmare. The previously mentioned citizens don disturbing animal masks and mumble to themselves before they lash out. Imposing Big Daddies and their genuinely disturbing Little Sisters will make you “nope” out of any room. Every area you come across is more upsetting than the last, from Dr. Steinman’s blood-soaked surgical suite to Fort Frolic with its human art projects. And somehow, the game’s 50s era makes everything creepier.
#4: The Town
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“Pathologic” (2006) It may not have a flashy name, but the town in this cult classic survival horror game deserves some recognition. Players control one of three healers who arrive in a town struck by an otherworldly disease called the Sand Plague. Helping its citizens is much easier said than done as you must also balance your resources to make it through the game’s 12 days. There’s a certain sense of dread and foreboding that hangs over the town, adding to its creep factor tenfold. The citizens know their town is dying. And as you explore the town through the heavy fog, you’ll begin to find your resolve being tested.
#3: Yharnam
“Bloodborne” (2015) Lordran is certainly creepy, but Yharnam is on another level. FromSoftware heavily leaned on Gothic and Victorian architecture for inspiration, and it absolutely shows. The city’s sprawling design could be breathtaking in any other game. But here, all it does is invoke tales of werewolves and Jack the Ripper. Hit by a mysterious plague, the streets of Yharnam are swarming with horrific creatures and mad mobs of citizens attempting to murder anyone or anything that doesn’t belong. And it’s up to you to make it through all of it and find the source of the plague.
#2: Raccoon City
“Resident Evil” Series (1996-) Whether you’re exploring the Spencer Mansion in the first game or surviving the streets in the second game, Raccoon City is sure to put you through the ringer. The city is ground zero for zombie outbreaks and has been scaring the pants off gamers for decades now. And it’s all because of the Umbrella Corporation that began experimenting with the highly contagious T-Virus. Worse than just creating regular human zombies, the T-Virus infects and mutates all walks of life. Horrific death can literally come from anything. The hordes of the undead ravaged the city to the point of destruction while creating one of the most iconic locations in video games.
#1: Silent Hill
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“Silent Hill” Series (1999-14) While “Resident Evil” has proved itself the more enduring franchise, there’s just something special and terrible about “Silent Hill.” The titular town is a masterclass in showcasing dreadful creature design, with disfigured monsters lumbering out of the shadows to perform unspeakable acts on the player. Although the distance fog of the first game is incredibly dated now, the series built that technological limitation into its world. And it was all the better for it. Every spooky aspect of the series is successful because of its world. And its monsters, which are usually revolting mirrors of humanity’s most vile aspects, will forever creep into the minds of players who experienced the franchise’s true terror.
