Best Horror Games On Steam

Steam is by far one of the best places for PC players to purchase games. There is a wide variety of genres that can be enjoyed through using the system of Steam from the adorable cozy titles that help players to relax to the more intense experiences such as horror games.

Horror has been a popular genre for players for countless years, with many horrifying titles gracing both consoles and the PC. Unlike other platforms, Steam allows for plenty of unheard-of horror games to also have a chance with players and, therefore, these are by far the best horror games that players can enjoy through Steam.

Updated on December 9, 2023, by Megan Smith: Halloween isn’t the only holiday that players can enjoy themselves with a spot of spooky gaming, as horror games are to be enjoyed no matter what the season. Even when players are sheltering from the cold weather, nothing warms the soul more than jumping into a new horror game. Steam is a brilliant place filled with some of the year’s best horror games, though sometimes players are not only looking for well-known titles but also those that could be considered indie. With this in mind, these are by far the best horror games on Steam that are sure to frighten with intense gameplay.

13 Dead By Daylight

Metascore: 64

Another great co-op horror experience players should be willing to try on Steam is Dead By Daylight. In this online multiplayer title, four players are survivors while one player is the killer. It is the goal of the survivors to get generators to work in hopes of escaping the killer. Even with an arguably average Metascore, the fact that the monster is controlled by another player and not the AI makes this game of hide-and-hunt one to remember.

Meanwhile, the player that is the killer must attack and capture the survivors before putting them onto hooks in the hope of sacrificing them to the Entity. With various maps to explore and multiple different killers, those who are playing survivor would be surprised at how easily frightened they can become by the sudden appearance of the killer.

12 Devour

Metascore: TBD (Very Positive Reviews On Steam)

While horror games are commonly something that is experienced alone, in recent years Steam has seen an increase in multiplayer spooky titles such as Devour. In this game, players control cultists as they attempt to complete a ritual to rid themselves of a monster that lurks around every corner.

It’s important for players to work as a team if they hope to beat the possessed cultist who was at the core of a ritual gone wrong. With plenty of maps to choose from, each with a unique mechanic, Devour is a great horror game for those on PC. With more being added to the game regularly, and a VR mode to put players directly into the scares, Devour shows a lot of promise and the chance of moving even higher on the list.

11 Dying Light

Metascore: 74

While players are unable to defend themselves in Outlast, Dying Light is the complete opposite, as players can find various weapons that they can use against the hordes of zombies that infect the city of Harran.

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Players may parkour around the city alone, but they will also be helping other survivors of the city stay safe from the zombies that lurk in the streets. Dying Light also has an unbelievable story that players will enjoy uncovering through the open world filled with intense moments—especially when it’s dark.

10 Scarlet Hollow

Metascore: TBD (Overwhelmingly Positive Reviews On Steam)

Visual novels can be horrifying, as proven by Scarlet Hollow, which features an incredible and eerie art style. Returning to the coal town the player’s family built to take part in the funeral of their aunt, the player will learn that it has plenty of mysteries to uncover.

The player may only need to survive a week in this creepy place, but every dialogue option and choice they make will determine how well that goal plays out. Scarlet Hollow plans to be seven chapters long with the first four already released.

9 Outlast

Metascore: 80

Another staple of the horror genre has to be Outlast. This survival horror game shocked players when it was first released and continues to be played by many players who have a deep love for the genre.

Exploring an asylum that has been taken over by its residents with nothing but a camera to record the horrors makes Outlast a tense, atmospheric title. Players are likely to encounter some gory scenes, as well as the horrifying people that created them while they sneak around the facility to find some answers.

8 Doki Doki Literature Club

Metascore: 81

Don’t be fooled by the externally cutesy style of Doki Doki Literature Club. This adorable game that tricks players into thinking they are just writing poetry reveals a much darker theme underneath. Doki Doki Literature Club might not have players exploring a haunted school, but each part of the dialogue in the visual novel marks its place well as one of the best horror games on Steam.

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The game will start to glitch and horrid things will begin to happen as the player attempts to please the girls that are also part of the club.

7 The Forest

Metascore: 83

There are plenty of survival horror games that force players to test their luck in a forest environment. However, few could ever compete with The Forest originally released on Steam in 2018—players were tasked with finding where their son had been taken all while defending against various cannibals and abominations that live on the island.

Part of the horror factor in The Forest is exploring the island to find out what had happened to the other people who were on the flight that crashed or sitting in the dark hoping that no monsters appear. This is exactly why The Forest is one of the best horror games on Steam.

6 Inscryption

Metascore: 85

Similar to other genres, horror has also been combined with various other genres to create a unique experience. With Inscryption, players are tasked with building the perfect deck of cards in the hope of beating various opponents on a game board while attempting to escape from the game they are forced to play.

The title goes deeper than Leshy’s Cabin as players reveal darker secrets that are trapped both within the cards and the creepy story that is uncovered as they advance deeper into the game. One thing that doesn’t change that seals Inscryption as one of the best horror games is the ability to step away from the game to explore the world around them while still remaining trapped.

5 Lethal Company

Metascore: TBD (Overwhelmingly Positive Reviews)

Lethal Company recently released on Steam in October 2023, and since this release, it has become viral. The game makes the player and their friends members of a company that scavenges for scrap on abandoned moons.

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While this may at first sound simple, while exploring these moons for scrap, players are likely to encounter horrid aliens who are watching their every move. During the day time, this is fine, but all sorts of dangers are sure to merge when the night arrives. The game is still in early access, which means plenty more is likely to be added to this co-op horror adventure.

4 Amnesia: The Dark Descent

Metascore: 85

Released in 2010, Amnesia: The Dark Descent was the first Amnesia title to be released from the horror franchise, and it has continued to impress players over the years. As the name of the survival horror game suggests, players descend into a living nightmare filled with complex puzzles and horrifying monsters.

Many years later, Amnesia: The Dark Descent continues to be a staple horror game players can experience through Steam, with many of the future games also released on PC. While a promising title that has since seen itself as part of a successful franchise, Amnesia: The Dark Descent continues to be a much-loved title.

3 Resident Evil 2

Metascore: 91

Unsurprisingly the Resident Evil franchise also makes its way as one of the best horror games that players can play through Steam. While the entire franchise can be enjoyed on PC, by far the greatest of the bunch must be Resident Evil 2 where players take control of Leon or Claire. Due to this also being the remake of the classic horror, players can expect even better graphics that make for a more horrifying survival horror experience.

With the remake bringing the series’ horror to PC players, it’s the perfect gateway to the rest of the Resident Evil franchise for Steam users.

2 Half-Life: Alyx

Metascore: 93

Half-Life: Alyx is the most recent game in the Half-Life franchise that saw players take part in a sci-fi horror adventure. Half-Life: Alyx took these scares a step further with the game being played strictly in VR. This meant that fans of the franchise got to meet the infamous aliens of the series in front of their very eyes as they steady their aim to defeat them before they get too close.

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Intense combat is combined with interesting puzzles and a phenomenal world that was built for VR, making Half-Life: Alyx one of the most interesting horror experiences on Steam.

1 Phasmophobia

Metascore: TBD (Overwhelmingly Positive Reviews On Steam)

By far one of the greatest horror games that can be played on Steam is Phasmophobia. This is not only a scary experience but also a title that can be enjoyed with a group of friends. It’s the player’s job to venture into various locations to track a ghost and find out which one it is. To figure out what ghost it is, players will need to collect evidence all while experiencing multiple paranormal events.

Players can even increase the difficulty, which will make these ghostly experiences much more dangerous as the ghost will hunt the player. Even with no official Metacritic score, players on Steam have been incredibly impressed with Phasmophobia, and with the game coming to consoles soon, even more players will get to experience the horror in no time.

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