Stephen King is the master of horror for a reason. His books, and the movies based on his books, have been consistently unsettling us since the 1970s. Yet, in spite of that horror dominance in most creative mediums, King's work has never effectively broken into the gaming world.
It's a shame that this has never happened, because there is more than enough material to draw from for creative worlds and stories. Whether it's video games or tabletop gaming, there are several Stephen King stories we'll hopefully get adaptations for in the future.
10 Cell
Cell is Stephen King's one foray into the zombie-horror genre. But not zombies in the "brain-eating" sense, this zombie apocalypse comes from cellphones. Yes, that sounds a little like something a boomer would come up with, but there is a legitimately interesting world here to make a game with.
In other zombie-horror games, the zombies act like mindless individuals. In Cell, the zombies are all a part of a larger hive mind. Having to deal with a horde that can coordinate attacks is a thrilling idea for a challenge.
9 The Stand
The Stand is one of the stories on this list that has a lot of potential for a tabletop RPG. The story is about a post-apocalyptic world divided into clearly good and evil factions. The two sides do whatever they can to prepare for what seems like an inevitable final battle.
Doing the post-apocalyptic setting in modern America, and giving the players the choice of siding with the protagonists or antagonists that they want to survive with seems like a wild setup for a tabletop game. One with just as much of a chance for spooky and divine elements as a D&D game.
8 Rainy Season
This is one of the lesser-known King short stories that has never been successfully adapted off the page. It's a story about a couple who goes on a trip to a cabin in rural Maine, only to be devoured by monstrous black toads that rain from the sky. They're devoured as part of a sacrifice that grants the local town prosperity.
If the toads could be properly visualized as terrifying, human-consuming monsters, this could be an interesting survival horror game about uncovering the dark side of an otherwise friendly-looking town.
7 The Dark Tower
The Dark Tower is the main Stephen King world that absolutely needs a tabletop adaptation. It's a fantasy world like no other with its mixture of horror, western elements, and so many other unique influences.
It also serves as a link between all of Stephen King's creatively horrific worlds. Meaning, a Dark Tower tabletop game opens up the possibility of creatures and characters from King's entire bibliography. How exactly the mechanics would be approached is an interesting question, but out of everything on this list, this one really needs to happen at some point.
6 The Running Man
The Running Man isn't really a horror story. It's not so action-oriented as the Schwarzenegger film would have you believe, either. It's a dystopian thriller that's as bleak as any of the stories King penned under his Richard Bachman pseudonym.
A video game version of The Running Man could go either way, leaning more into the survival horror genre as the main character constantly attempts to hide and escape their fate, or it could have more action like the well-known movie. Either way, it could make for a solid game.
5 Salem's Lot
There aren't too many horror video games in the vampire genre. Vampyr is one of the most recent notable examples, and in that game, you're the vampire. Salem's Lot is an opportunity for a game about humans facing off against vampires.
The thing about Salem's Lot is, the humans kind of suck at killing vampires. The vampires are stealthy, quick, and manipulative, and the numbers of the main characters quickly start to dwindle as things escalate. The idea of being completely helpless as your town is dismantled around you is perfect for survival horror.
4 Later
Later is one of the more recent Stephen King stories that is absolutely bursting with potential. It's about a kid who can see the recently deceased, and any question the kid asks, the soul has to answer. This is utilized in a detective-like way in the book.
Detective games are sorely missed in the community with each year that we get farther from the release of L.A. Noire. Considering how big of a hit that game was, it's surprising how little else has come around trying to ride its success. This could be a chance to mix elements of that game with supernatural horror.
3 Misery
A video game adaptation of King's Misery would land squarely in the survival horror genre. Although, some significant changes from the original story would likely have to be made in order for the game to have the excitement and movement that most games require.
In the novel, the main character Paul Sheldon is bed-bound essentially the entire time. In a video game, there probably needs to be more of a sense of pursuit between Sheldon and the crazed Annie Wilkes, with severe consequences anytime he's caught. Plus it's a rare case of a horror story with kind of a happy ending.
2 Under The Dome
Under The Dome is a great chance for a developer to finally make good use of the old "invisible walls" video game trope. Whereas in older video games those invisible walls were a consequence of limited technology that the developers generally tried to make subtle, an Under The Dome video game could use those same walls to claustrophobic ends.
It's rare that there are survival horror games where the sole threat is fellow humanity, but King's story accomplishes that in spades, and maybe an adaptation could do that as well.
1 The Mist
If there was ever a terrifying monster survival horror game a-la-classic Resident Evil that needs to be made, it's The Mist. There would definitely be an early Silent Hill vibe to a game with this much obscured vision and nightmare-inducing creatures.
Following the group in the supermarket from the story could be a little boring since it would be a very limited space with things only happening occasionally. But following a different group around as they attempt to navigate through the mist with limited supplies could be a great experience. Many of the adapted monsters in this game could definitely be contenders for the scariest video game monsters of all time.