The Medium recently released for Xbox Series X/S and PC, treating fans to a new psychological horror game where they can switch between two worlds, the real world, and the spirit realm. The game is filled with mystery, intrigue, its fair share of jump scares, and still left enough loose ends for a possible sequel.
If you're looking for more horror titles to make you jump, there are some absolute classic titles that have been around for years. Check out these top ten horror games to play if you love being scared.
10 Clock Tower
Clock Tower released in 1995 and blended the survival horror and point-and-click genres together to create a puzzle game with plenty of tension. The player takes on the role of Jennifer, one of four orphans that have been adopted and taken to a mansion named "Clock Tower".
However, the orphans start being murdered by Scissorman, the game's main antagonist. When confronted with Scissorman, Jennifer cannot fight back and instead must run and hide. Clock Tower has multiple endings and items are randomly placed on each playthrough, giving the game plenty of replay value.
9 Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare
The Alone in the Dark series began all the way back in 1992 on PC and had multiple sequels before being rebooted as Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare in 2001. The game follows Edward Carnby and Aline Cedrac as they explore Shadow Island, hoping to discover three ancient tablets and to solve the mystery of the bizarre evil creatures that reside there.
Players are able to choose which protagonist they play as, with Carnby's route offering a more action-packed playthrough with lots of combat, whereas Cedrac's route is more reliant on puzzle-solving skills.
8 Condemned: Criminal Origins
Condemned: Criminal Origins released in 2005 for the Xbox 360, before releasing a year later for PC players too. The game follows Ethan Thomas in his search for Serial Killer X, who is responsible for framing Ethan for the murder of two police officers.
Condemned offers a brilliant mix of combat and puzzle-solving elements, and players must uncover clues and evidence in their surroundings by using Ethan's instincts as a crime scene investigator. Not to mention, this all has to be done while fending off attacks from the local citizens who have become psychotic.
7 Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem
Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem released for the Gamecube in 2002 and was the first M-rated game to be released by Nintendo. Though the game was similar to other survival horror titles of its time, notably Resident Evil, it offered unique elements that made it stand out from the crowd.
The game takes place in four different locations; the Forbidden City temple in Persia, a Khmer temple in Cambodia, Oublie Cathedral in France, and the underground city of Ehn'gha, and each time a location is visited, it is in a different time period. The game chapters are not in chronological order, and the game also featured "Sanity Effects", which can cause reality to become skewed for the characters.
6 Siren: Blood Curse
Siren Blood Curse released as an exclusive for the PlayStation 3 in 2008, and it was the third and final title in the Siren series. Siren Blood Curse was a reimaging of the first title in the series, with many key elements of the first game surviving, but a lot of characters and events being added, as well as borrowing features from the second Siren game too.
This horror survival game follows an American TV crew as they travel to Hanuda in Japan to do a special show on the local urban legend of the vanishing village. Siren Blood Curse also featured a unique Sight-Jack System, which allowed players to switch between the view of the hunted characters and the hunters.
5 F.E.A.R. First Encounter Assault Recon
F.E.A.R. released in 2005 for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC and offered players a survival horror FPS experience. The game follows the F.E.A.R. (First Encounter Assault Recon) team as they investigate a new paranormal threat, all of which seems to revolve around a strange girl by the name of Alma.
The game has a "reflex time" feature that allows players to slow time down for the world, while the player is still able to move about freely. This ability is actually used to simulate the protagonist's superhuman reflexes and speed.
4 Parasite Eve
Parasite Eve released in 1998 and while it's more commonly referred to as an action RPG, it has plenty of survival horror elements to it. The game serves as a prequel to the novel of the same name by Hideaki Sena.
The game follows Aya Brea of the NYPD and takes place over six days, with Aya fighting to stop a strange woman who calls herself Eve from destroying the human race by making humans spontaneously combust.
3 Dead Space
Dead Space is a horror survival game that released for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC in 2008, and was successful enough to have two sequels and more than one spin-off game. Players take on the role of Isaac Clarke, an engineer aboard a mining spaceship that has become overrun by creatures known as Necromorphs.
Players must solve puzzles, fight off attacking Necromorphs, and find equipment to stay alive — all while Isaac struggles to hold onto his own sanity. New Game+ offers extra replay value as Isaac can discover new video and audio logs that add more lore.
2 Resident Evil
The first Resident Evil title released in 1996 and was a critical and commercial success, resulting in a massively popular franchise being born that continues to this day. This survival horror game follows a special task force who are trapped within a mansion with horrifying, mutated creatures.
Players must uncover the mystery behind the mansion and the strange abominations within, while also looking to escape and save themselves. Clues can be found in the form of notes and documents, and players also have to solve puzzles while surviving zombie attacks.
1 Silent Hill
Silent Hill released for the PlayStation in 1999 and was the first of what would go on to become a hit survival horror series with multiple sequels. The game follows Harry Mason as he searches for his missing adopted daughter, but ends up uncovering the dark secret behind the town of Silent Hill.
The game used a lot of fog to cover up the technological limitations of the console at the time, but fans didn't mind, as this all added to the eerie and creepy environment.