There’s something about horror games that makes it more compelling to play than your usual adventure or shooting games. Maybe it’s the simple elements like the excitement of opening mystery doors in a creepy hallway or shooting the brains out of anyone who jump scares you (even allies). Even if you don’t admit it, there's certainly been a horror game that kept you awake all night, not just in the sense of playing it, but also by the fact that it got into your head and now… you can’t sleep. Don’t lie.

As scary as the horror games already are, the myths about them all over the internet are even scarier. It’s like hearing voices in your head like “Oh you finished the game…? Well, this is what really happened.” These mind blowing myths will make you want to relive your deepest fears in-game just to get closer to the truth.

Just a quick heads up, there’s going be a lot of spoilers here, so if you haven’t played some of the games on the list, run to your nearest video game store, pick up a copy and play it first. And once you’re done, come back and read this article.

15 Silent Hill Is Based On The Real Life Story Of Centralia, Pennsylvania

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Centralia is a ghost town in Pennsylvania that’s been burning for half a century. There were more buried people in Centralia than there are residents when it was populated. Until now, it has mine fires that heats underground water to a boiling point, which causes toxic gas and smoke to come out above the ground. This happened because the town burnt garbage every year on Memorial Day in order to clean up the landfill. A legend among locals in Centralia told that a priest cursed the land, saying that there would be a day when a Church would be the only structure remaining in Centralia.

The truth is that The Silent Hill movie is based on Centralia, but the game is not. In any case, I suggest you stay far away from this place.

14 There Is More Than One Silent Hill

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Remember exploring a room in Silent Hill and suddenly entering the “Other world?” where you would see a hellish mirror image of what you have been exploring? This caused many Silent Hill fans to theorize that these changes are due to the town of Silent Hill existing in several parallel universes or overlapping realities. Fans have been more attached to this theory with the release of P.T. for Silent Hills for the PlayStation 4.

The Book of Lost Memories proves that this is indeed not true, as there's a passage which says; “The town is centered around Toluca lake, from which a thick fog perpetually enshrouds the area and make vague the reality and dreams of those that visits the town.” To sum it up, there’s just one Silent Hill and a different “nightmare” for every character.

But perhaps the most chilling part about Silent Hills is that… it got cancelled.

13 James Sunderland Becomes Pyramid Head

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There are theories that the protagonist we knew in Silent Hills 2 ultimately becomes Pyramid Head. We have seen what happened to the other protagonists in the game after they conquered their own Silent Hills adventure, except for James. Only James didn’t make it out alive and many players believed the water ending is canon, where he chooses to drown himself, giving up on everything. Drawing upon the power of Silent Hill, James becomes the true physical embodiment of Pyramid Head.

Jame’s very own “nightmare” is Pyramid Head, thus it should not be in anyone else’s nightmare. Even though it's a common myth that he's the new "Pyramid Head," it's not really the case.

12 Slender Man Compelled Two Girls To Stab A Friend

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Back in 2014, Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier lured their classmate Payton Leutner into a park, then stabbed her 19 times, with the intent to kill her for Slender Man. The two girls believed a myth that the only way to become a follower of Slender Man was to murder someone. If they succeeded with the murder, they would become Slender Man’s servants and live in his mansion. Thankfully, Leutner survived and her attackers were arrested and charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide.

Gamers may have met Slender Man in Slender: The Eight Pages, but the very tall and thin faceless man in a black suit was made through a thread on a forum. It asked users to edit every day photographs to appear paranormal. We're not 100% sure where the girls got this idea, but it's a myth that definitely went a little bit too far.

11 Racoon City Is Springfield, Missouri

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The industrialized city in Resident Evil located in the Midwestern United States, largely dominated by the Umbrella Corporation, is very similar to Springfield, Missouri. It has over 100,000 residents and is on the edge of a mountain range. Starting from 2010, residents of Springfield have had an annual zombie walk in the streets of the city.

Although this is very interesting, if you live in Springfield, don’t go asking around the neighborhood if they work for the Umbrella Corporation. This is just a widely supported fan theory because of certain similarities. The exact location of Raccoon City within the U.S has never been clarified, other than that it is somewhere in the Midwest.

As for the zombie walk, they are relatively common in large cities, especially in North America and some cities like Springfield made it an annual tradition.

10 Joel Is Dead In The Last Of Us Part II

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After watching the trailer for The Last of Us Part II, fans began theorizing that Ellie is talking to the ghost of Joel, who is already dead. In the conversation, they seem very distant and it's as if they were not in the same room. Joel is walking out of the light and appears out of nowhere, similar to a usual 'life after death' scene. While The Last of Us is about a father dealing with the loss of his daughter, fans think The Last of Us Part II will be Ellie dealing with the loss of Joel, who is the closest thing she has to a father figure.

This shows how many different theories can be come to just by a trailer, but until the game comes out, we will just have to wait and see for ourselves.

9 The Umbrella Corporation From Resident Evil Is Real

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"The Umbrella Corporation is one of the world's leading providers and largest growing commercial entities in business solutions, technology development, telecommunications and pharmaceutical development. With operations around the globe, Umbrella Corporation aims at creating a better world for everyone."

That's The Umbrella Company description, taken straight from their official website. However, it's not the same company as the one from Resident Evil and I doubt they’ll be brewing something like the progenitor or T virus anytime soon. The Umbrella Corporation in Resident Evil was founded based on the discovery of both viruses which can turn its host into a super powered mutated monster. This headline is all over the internet and is being used mainly as click bait, so the next time you see it, don’t be fooled.

8 Sebastian Castellanos Never Left The STEM Machine

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At the end of The Evil Within, we see Sebastian Castellanos waking up in the lab room. After exiting through the familiar hallway greeted by the sunlight from the outside world, Sebastian sees Leslie. In the distance, Leslie was walking out of the hospital ground with a posture similar to Ruvik’s. A headache interrupted Sebastian and, when he looked again, Leslie was gone. Fans seem to think this headache was because Sebastian never left STEM and was still in Ruvik’s world.

While it’s true that Ruvik entered Leslie’s body, Sebastian not leaving the STEM machine is just another myth. While it's a cool theory and would be an interesting layer to the story, it's still just a chilling myth that's not been proven.

7 Layers Of Fear Was Set In Hell

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According to this myth, the painter you play as in the 19th century, who explores his own house trying to complete his “magnum opus,” is not actually home, but is in hell. He experiences paranormal events and flashbacks after he adds the first layer to his painting, thus providing clues about his relationship with his wife and child. Layers Of Fears is about unraveling the mystery of his wife’s disappearance, the nature of the painter’s hallucinations and what will occur when the masterpiece is complete.

Though the house can be portrayed as the painter’s personal hell, the actual house exists in the game’s DLC – Layers Of Fear: Inheritance. This DLC expands the plot further as it lets you play as the painter’s daughter, who comes back to her childhood home to face her past, so while this myth is interesting, it's ultimately not true.

6 Dr. Hill Is The True Villain Of Until Dawn

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Until Dawn is an interesting game, where the true monster is a psychological disorder. Dr. Hill wrongfully diagnosed Josh and didn’t care enough to give Josh the proper help that he desperately needed. Josh is a masked madman, setting up elaborately sadistic traps for his friends to make them pay for the deaths of both his sisters. But Josh is also somewhat of a sympathetic character with schizophrenia, who is crying out for help. Josh had behavioral issues at the age of 11. Since then, he had been treated for severe depression for nine years. He was being also handled by his psychiatrist Dr. Hill, who was giving him the wrong medicine, which explains Josh’s unusual behaviors.

According to The Game Theoriest, this was the true meaning of Until Dawn. In a game where the characters have choices, Josh had no choice. Josh was doomed from the start, as no character could save him from dying or becoming a Wendigo.

5  Wendigos In Until Dawn Is Linked To Psychology

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Wendigo Psychosis is a mental condition where you have an uncontrollable craving for human flesh. This cultural bound condition is known within the North Eastern American tribes and developed during the deepest winter — the time of famine. Over time, the isolation and food shortage would slowly drive one to break the taboo against eating human flesh. Eventually, the 'afflicted' would even look at their families and neighbors as food, becoming Wendigos. Theorists have linked this to the the origin of Wendigos in Until Dawn.

In the game, we learn that Wendigos are in fact made through curses and they possess people. This is shown when a Wendigo soul possessed Hannah and drove her to eat Beth, thus turning her into a Wendigo. All this information can be found both in the Stranger's Notebook and the video that shows after you find all the totems.

4 Scissorman Is Based On A Children's Book

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As a kid growing up with a PlayStation 1, Clock Tower made my heart race. In this terrifying game, you could only run and hide as you hear nothing but Scissorman moving closer and closer. The myth is that the origin of Scissorman is from a 1840s children story - The Story of Little Suck-a-Thumb. The story tells of Conrad having his thumb cut off by the great tall tailor who comes to little boys that suck their thumbs. Conrad and Scissorman have almost identical hair and clothing. Both of them are also said to symbolize terror amongst the youngsters.

This is another point made by The Game Theorist. What we know is that according to Clock Tower director Hifumi Kono, the idea of Scissorman came from 1981 slasher film: The Burning.

3 Five Nights At Freddy’s Is Based On A True Story

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The Game Theorist on YouTube pointed out evidences that made Five Nights at Freddy’s seem similar to the shooting in December if 1993 at Chucky Cheese in Aurora, Colorado. 19 year old Nathan Dunlap was frustrated about being fired from the restaurant as a cook. He sought revenge by shooting five employees of Chucky Cheese one by one with a caliber handgun. He fled the scene of the shooting with stolen cash and restaurant items. Four of the employees were killed and the fifth was seriously injured.

From the five victims representing the five animatronic animals to the alliterative naming of the characters, the Chucky Cheese incident became the myth of how Five Nights at Freddy’s was born.

2 Boogey Man Is The Killer In Five Nights At Freddy’s

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The Game Theorist also presented some evidence that Boogey Man may be the killer in Five Nights At Freddy’s. Work at Five Nights At Freddy’s starts at midnight when the animatronics come aliveOn other hand, the Boogey Man is a nocturnal monster only coming out after midnight. This is known as the “Witching Hour” where Black Magic is at its strongest. It’s also the time where all monsters, witches and ghosts roam the earth.

The flashlight you wield is also The Boogey Man’s weakness. A quick flash of light will send the Boogey Man running back to the closet, while a night light will keep him away. If you get caught by an animatronic, you’ll get stuffed into an empty suit; similar to how the Boogey Man sacks children, taking them home to either kill or eat.

1 Hello Neighbor Has A Satanic Plot

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Hello Neighbor is a stealth horror game about sneaking into your neighbor's house and it's currently available for an alpha demo upload.

The theory is that your neighbor had a deal with the devil. This can be derived from the number “666” in his shoes, his golden calf mug, and his book “Faust.” Much like in Johann Wolfgang von Gothe’s “Faust,” the neighbor sold his soul to the devil to obtain joy and success in his life. Also similar to the real life Winchester Mystery House, the neighbor has different traps in his house for the sole purpose of keeping the demon’s representative away. With the deal he made, the demon is likely to collect his debt with the destruction of his family.

Even if the game is still on alpha, this theory shows how dedicated gamers are at The Game Theorists and forums. Keep the chills coming.