Top 20 Scariest Moments In Games For Kids
Script written by Johnny Reynolds
These games may have been meant for kids to enjoy, but they also had moments that terrified our young brains. For this list, we’ll be looking at the most disturbing elements found in games that were typically geared towards youngsters or were rated E for Everyone. Our countdown includes the Haunted Piano from “Super Mario 64” (1996), a Creepy Hidden Message in “Sonic CD” (1993), the Enderman from “Minecraft” (2011), the Monster Ock Chase from “Spider-Man” (2000), and more! Did any of these moments permanently scar you? Share your experiences in the comments below.
#20: Bogmire
“Luigi’s Mansion” (2001)
The first entry in Luigi’s spooktacular adventures played things pretty lightly, with most boss ghosts resembling people. However, the one who doesn’t is by far the game's creepiest. Bogmire, who is said to be the manifestation of the haunted mansion’s fear and despair, lives up to his reputation. You’ll find the purple ghoul in the graveyard, where he’ll spring from his grave as lightning strikes it. He’ll summon decolored copies of himself to inch closer towards you, each one arriving with another clash of lightning. It’s enough to make a kid a bit jumpy. While he isn’t that hard to defeat, he did a good job at putting us in Luigi’s trembling shoes.
#19: The Clock Tower
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“Epic Mickey” (2010)
One would expect a game starring Disney’s mascot to be pretty bright and cheerful, but that’s not necessarily the case here. “Epic Mickey” hits the ground running with its first boss, the Clock Tower. Found in Gremlin Village, an already unsettling place that perfectly sets the tone, the Clock Tower will at first appear with a happy, sunshiney face…that quickly morphs into something from our childhood nightmares. Going pale and spreading a wide, sadistic grin across its face, it will start the battle by sprouting arms and trying to smush poor Mickey. Avoiding its attacks isn’t too difficult as long as you don’t keep looking at its terrifying face.
#18: Clanker
“Banjo-Kazooie” (1998)
“Banjo-Kazooie” is a Saturday morning cartoon as a video game with silly humor and even sillier characters. However, one character who is not the least bit silly is Clanker, a massive whale-like mechanical beast whose cavern you explore as the third world. Swimming through a tight tunnel, you’d find his gigantic, sharp teeth greeting you at the other end. We were definitely taken aback when we came across him the first time. Thankfully, Clanker is very friendly and only wants to breathe some fresh air. But his appearance, which is actually partially organic, is certainly disturbing. It’s even worse going inside him as there are plenty of deadly traps waiting for you.
#17: Sinistar
“Sinistar” (1983)
While this arcade game obviously released before the ESRB existed, games of the era were all fairly family friendly. Which means there’s likely a ton of kids that were creeped the hell out whenever its villain appeared on-screen. “Sinistar” is a space shoot ‘em up where you collect crystals by shooting planetoids while enemy ships fly around trying to steal them. The crystals you collect become bombs for the boss, but the crystals your enemies collect are used to build him. Sinistar’s appearance as a demonic skull would have been enough, but he also likes to wail and say things like, “Beware! I Live” and “Run, Coward!” as he barrels your way. Needless to say, it’s pretty intense.
#16: The Fountain
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“Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure” (2007)
Capcom’s delightful, cel-shaded adventure follows the young pirate Zack and his monkey companion Wiki as they search for Captain Barbaros’ lost riches. The duo solve puzzles throughout varied locations, eventually making it to Barbaros’ own castle. Turns out, he likes things pretty spooky. At the top of the Tower of Requiem, the finished puzzle will cause the giant bell to ring out. The statue attached to the fountain underneath will then open its eyes, let out a chilling screech, and cry purple liquid. Good on Zack for reaching into the strange fluid to collect the Moon Stone because if it were us, we’d be running the opposite direction.
#15: Creepy Hidden Message
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“Sonic CD” (1993)
Human faces on animal bodies will always give us the heebie jeebies. In “Sonic CD,” it’s possible to reach a Sound Test screen by entering a button combination on the title screen. Then, upon entering the numbers 46, 12, and 25, you’d find quite the disturbing Easter Egg. A screen full of Sonics with human-like faces wagging their fingers like you did something wrong was accompanied by Japanese text. It loosely translates to, “Fun is infinite with Sega Enterprises” with a sign-off from Majin. In Japanese, “majin” means “demon.” Majin is also the nickname of Masato Nishimura, a landscape designer and the voice of Sonic in the game. But not knowing this, it seemed like a pretty evil thing to stumble upon.
#14: Level 14
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“Lemmings” (1991)
The premise of “Lemmings” is simple enough: you’re responsible for helping a certain percentage of these little critters reach the exit of various environments. While some of the puzzles will certainly make you scratch your head, the 14th level gives you pause for entirely different reasons. I mean, just look at it. It’s basically Hell. There’s blood dripping from the ceiling and a massive snake protruding from the eye of a horned skull. And this was ported to pretty much every platform known to man! We were the ones meant to be in charge of the helpless Lemmings, guiding them to safety. But as kids, how were we meant to do that while surrounded by so much distressing imagery?
#13: Andross
“Star Fox 64” (1997)
In 1997, Nintendo released “Star Fox 64,” showcasing a group of badass anthropomorphic animals and a groundbreaking Rumble feature. At the end, Fox McCloud comes face to face with the man, or monkey, responsible for his father’s death. Andross appears as a giant face with floating hands, trying to smack Fox out of the sky or simply inhale him. If you choose the easy route to his location, the second phase will have him turn robotic. Okay, that’s not so bad. However, if you choose the harder route, you’ll be confronted with the twisted image of a gigantic brain with wide eyes attached. Why? Because screw your peaceful sleep, that’s why.
#12: Enderman
“Minecraft” (2011)
“Minecraft” is a game that encourages creativity and imagination, letting you build and construct to your heart’s content. But you better be careful to not get overwhelmed by its enemies, especially if you come across any Endermen. While the game’s simplistic graphics may make some scoff, there’s still a distinct horror you’ll feel when you’re met by one of these gangly, shadowy figures. If you make eye contact and look away, the Enderman will shriek and give chase. And it won’t stop until you or it is dead. It can even teleport at will, or when it’s hit by a ranged attack, which seems pretty unfair to us.
#11: Mad Jack
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“Donkey Kong 64” (1999)
Jack-in-the-box toys, especially those that take on a clown appearance, are a perfect example of something innocent becoming scary. In “Donkey Kong 64,” players had to fight one of the worst possible outcomes of this childrens toy in Mad Jack. Tiny Kong had to face him at the end of the third world, Frantic Factory. And as soon as he popped his ugly face out of his box, our tiny fragile minds could hardly take it. It’s bad enough that he spends most of the fight hopping after you; narrowly avoiding being flattened by his box was the most stressful moment of the game. But he also maniacally cackles as he pursues you.
#10: Vortex Queen
“Ecco the Dolphin” (1992)
It seems the makers of “Ecco the Dolphin” looked at the Xenomorphs and said, “We should put that in a kids game, right?” Well, wrong. It was horrifying. At first glance, this Sega game seems serene and peaceful like a game about a dolphin should be. In actuality, Ecco has to fight off an alien invasion that culminates with a fight against their leader, the Vortex Queen. The enormous, green alien face sticking out of the shadows may make for a big target. But that doesn’t make looking at it any easier. Luckily for us, staying in the corners of the arena is the best way to avoid taking damage. We would’ve spent the whole fight there anyway.
#9: Zero
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“Kirby’s Dream Land 3” (1997)
You might be wondering how anything in the “Kirby” series could possibly be scary. After all, it’s one of the cutest video game franchises around. But there’s a secret boss at the end of “Dream Land 3” that made us want to switch off our Super Nintendos. Zero is a big, floating eyeball, which doesn’t seem like that disturbing of a boss design…at first. As the fight progresses, gashes will open on Zero’s body to shoot pools of blood at you. After enough hits, the pupil will tear out of its body in disturbingly violent fashion before Kirby causes it to pop. How was this in a “Kirby” game!?
#8: Haunted Piano
“Super Mario 64” (1996)
One of the most famous scenes in “Super Mario 64” still makes us jump, no matter how many times we’ve replayed it. Big Boo’s Haunt is unlike most other worlds in the game that are entered via painting. It’s also unlike any other level as it has some truly bone-chilling music. Featuring the Boo enemies throughout, it’s a pretty great transition into 3D for the classic houses seen in older games. Those also like to toy with you, but the piano jump scare is just plain mean. The piano will spring into action with viciously sharp teeth as soon as Mario gets near it. Our first encounter with it made us want to flee both in-game and in real life.
#7: The SA-X
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“Metroid Fusion” (2002)
Out of all of Nintendo’s franchises, “Metroid” is the one most likely to stress you out. In “Metroid Fusion,” Samus has to contend with the SA-X, a parasite that mimics her appearance and relentlessly hunts her throughout. While it mostly looks like Samus, save for the unnerving blank white eyes, the tension we felt during each encounter was downright terrifying. Most of the time, there’s nothing you can do but run. When you do get to fight against it, it ends up mutating into a nightmare-inducing monstrosity. We’ve taken Samus up against a variety of intimidating aliens over the years. But nothing has been quite as haunting as the SA-X.
#6: Pretty Much Everything
“The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask” (2000)
Truthfully, there are too many unsettling elements in “Majora’s Mask” to pick just one. The plot follows the masked Skull Kid who plans to crash the moon into the land below in just three days. And just look at that moon! Its frightening grin was immediately burned into our memories. Then there’s the nature in which Link transforms by using masks, screaming in agony every single time. The story places a heavy focus on mature themes, and its woeful characters will certainly pull on your heartstrings. It reaches peak creepiness in Ikana Canyon, a land of the dead with unnerving enemies, a song that spawns entirely petrifying statues of yourself, and a cursed half-mummy scientist with an emotionally wrecked daughter.
#5: Monster Ock Chase
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“Spider-Man” (2000)
Ask any kid who their favorite superhero is and chances are good that they’ll say Spider-Man. Even before he came to the big screen, this was true. In the hero’s self-titled PlayStation game, the climax saw him go up against a foe even he didn’t stand a chance against. With Doc Ock taken over by the Carnage symbiote, the game created one of the most horrifying entities we had seen in a Marvel game at that point. All Spidey can do is run and hope Monster Ock doesn’t catch him, which is exactly what we would do in that situation too. We can still feel the tension of that moment years later and we aren’t likely to ever forget its guttural screeches either.
#4: Lavender Town
“Pokémon Red & Blue” (1998)
“Pokémon” enraptured children everywhere through a call of adventure and awesome, sometimes adorable, creatures with powerful abilities. However, that sense of adventure ran into a brick wall when we reached Lavender Town. The chilling nature of the town’s music has been well-documented, though it never fails to send shivers down our spines. Lavender Town’s central area is a tower dedicated to dead Pokémon with grieving trainers seen throughout. Up until that point, we thought Pokémon could only faint. But here were the citizens of Lavender Town telling us that no, they can in fact perish. This dark corner of an otherwise lighthearted world was certainly a rude awakening for kids.
#3: Mimi
“Super Paper Mario” (2007)
Okay, something is seriously wrong with this little girl. While the River Twygz, filled with the tears of sinners, is definite grounds for consideration, Mimi is a Horror that simply will not go away. As one of the main villains, you encounter her several times throughout the game. However, when you first meet her, she just appears as a little girl. It’s only after you annoy her enough that she shows you her true form. Mimi twists her head around in circles, bones cracking, until she transforms into a giant spider. That is some next level, Exorcist-inspired terror right there. At least the art style is cute, but Mimi belongs in the survival horror genre.
#2: Giygas
“Earthbound” (1995)
“Earthbound” follows Ness on an adventure we would have loved to go on as kids. But it ends with something we would give anything to avoid. The final boss Giygas is an evil alien who is the literal embodiment of evil and out to bring endless darkness to humanity. We would’ve been able to deal with that just fine if he didn’t also resemble pure evil. The distorted, red image of a face in pain has been irreversibly seared into the minds of many. As if that wasn’t bad enough, his music, which is composed of unplaceable instruments, strange murmurs, and static, wormed its way into our brains to give us goosebumps whenever we hear it.
#1: Bottom of the Well
“The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” (1998)
We may have grown accustomed to the disturbing imagery throughout “Majora’s Mask,” but the Bottom of the Well came out of nowhere. Here we were, enjoying our magical quest and saving Hyrule, when Nintendo decided to throw a monkey wrench into our happiness. Beneath Kakariko Village is a legit torture chamber, complete with blood-stained racks, false walls and floors, and some of the spookiest enemies the game has to offer. Those enemies pale in comparison (though not literally) to the dungeon’s mini-boss, the Dead Hand. This grotesque figure loves the taste of flesh and will trap Link with its arms to get a bite or two. Never before had we wanted to nope so quickly out of a supposed E for Everyone game.
