Halloween is near. The spirits are ready to rise from their graves and so it’s time to take a look at the scariest games as chosen by the staff here at Gamers Daily News. Instead of just giving you some subjective list, we’ve chosen to relate personal experiences with games that just freaked us out.
Shane Dickson (Oregon Slacker) US Lead Hardware Reviewer/Game Reviewer
It’s a toss up, either "D" for Playstation or some of the dream sequences from Max Payne.
For D, the scariest moments were late night gameplay. I played in college, midnight sessions to keep me entertained, maybe it’s the memories, or possibly lack there of, from the days of experimenting with intoxicants in college, but I just remember the game being quite scary, like an acid trip gone very wrong. From the moment Laura is taking her first footsteps you get a dark foreboding feeling, even the music was entrancing, and would often increase in both tempo and volume to make your heart race. Another thing that made this scary in my mind were the flashes she would have with "D" in the background, it was sort of like a badly induced acid trip you couldn’t pull yourself away from. The same goes with the dream scenes from Max Payne, especially Level 10, The Bad Dream. I don’t think I can ever forget the screams and sobbing going on in the background as you’re navigating your way through the nightmarish locations in your own mind. the combination of the screams, heartbeat type music and footsteps will forever be etched into my memory, I mean what’s more creepy than following a trail of blood with the baby screaming and woman’s voice sobbing in the background, especially as you’re hearing "Max , please, no why, I didn’t mean to, I’m sorry.....Max No"
Thomas DuBois (InsanityPlee) US Game Reviewer
The scariest game I ever played is a well known one, the first in the Bioshock series. When I think back on all the games I have played in my life that one stands out above all others. It built up the suspense with dark corridors, lunatic enemies, and a storyline that placed you in between warring factions. Never knowing when, not if, but when, I would be betrayed or when I would walk right into a group of angry slicers. All of these effects made the game memorable just by themselves but then I remember being in that dark room as I approach one of those horrible little girls for the first time, and hear that cry for "Mr. Bubbles". I remember that panic-driven sprint as I heard and saw the monstrosity that is called Big Daddy come charging in and smash even the glimmer of life from my overconfident gamer self. I walked on egg-shells in that game for a while after that, still afraid that a Big Daddy will come out and grab me when I play a dark game with a lot of shadows. [smiles]
Jordan Rivas - Indie Game Reviewer/Interviewer
Alan Wake
I’ve been infamous amongst my friends for claiming no movie or video game has ever "scared" me. I’ve got a pretty solid logic built around this: if it’s images and sounds on a screen, then my brain just won’t let me be afraid of it.
So why did I choose Alan Wake? Because while I hold to my assertion of never being scared by a video game, I was thoroughly psyched out by Alan Wake multiple times. It met a hallmark of suspense and horror by introducing mystery and then letting your own suspicions run wild, often creeping yourself out.
