October is in full swing, and you know what that means: spooky, scary shenanigans all over the dang place. As Halloween approaches, you need to build up your spooky tolerance in preparation for the inevitable horror movie marathon or haunted house bar crawl or whatever it is you plan on doing. To that end, here are five of the best horror games on Game Pass for October 2022.
Best Horror Games on Game Pass
For all your spooky scary needs, we recommend these five games, available now on Game Pass:
- Dead Space series
- Alien: Isolation
- The Evil Within series
- The Walking Dead
- Dead By Daylight
Dead Space Series
The baseline formula for any good horror setting starts with an isolated setting, and there are few settings as isolated as a derelict space station. Limited oxygen, lots of vents for beasties to crawl through, constantly-failing lights; it’s perfect. Few games exemplify this setting like Dead Space, pitting handyman Isaac Clarke against a ravenous horde of mutant space zombies. All three games in the original Dead Space trilogy are available on Game Pass thanks to Microsoft’s partnership with EA.
Alien: Isolation
Speaking of isolation and space, we’d be remiss not to mention one of the progenitors of that very concept, the Alien franchise. It’s bad enough when you’re trapped with a horde of shambling monsters, but try being trapped with a gaggle of highly-evolved Xenomorph predators. Unlike in Dead Space, Alien: Isolation doesn’t give you much in the way of combat options. Your only choices are to run, hide, and hold your breath.
Related: Best Horror Games on Nintendo Switch
The Evil Within Series
Perhaps you prefer your horror a little more abstract, though. Well, it doesn’t get much more abstract than the human psyche, and the Evil Within games have the gaming equivalent of psychology degrees. Comb through the depths of human depravity with gunplay reminiscent of the over-the-shoulder Resident Evil games, making extensive use of traps and tripwires to hold your own. Both The Evil Within and The Evil Within II are available on Game Pass.
The Walking Dead
As much fun as old-fashioned splatter is, though, some of the best horror is a little more subtle. Telltale’s Walking Dead games, all of which are available on Game Pass, are less about the zombies of a zombie apocalypse, and more about what living through that kind of setting does to someone. It’s less of a “boo and splatter” kind of scary, and more of an “existential dread at the downfall of man” kind of scary. Fun!
Dead By Daylight
Perhaps you’ve grown tired of being scared. Maybe you’d rather be the one doing the scaring? In Dead By Daylight, a team of four Survivors takes on a powerful Killer in the world’s deadliest game of hide-and-seek. The base game is free to play on Game Pass, and your Game Pass membership also grants you evergreen discounts on its various expansion packs. Try playing as Albert Wesker from Resident Evil!
These games are guaranteed to curl your toes with fright and excitement, making them perfect for either a Halloween pregame or Hollow’s Eve itself! Just remember to order your pizza while it’s still light out, lest you incur the wrath of your local serial killer.
