Halloween is just around the corner, I don’t know about any of you, but it’s definitely one of my favorite holidays of the year. Mainly because, unlike Christmas (where I rarely get to relax, let alone start a game), it’s the perfect excuse to relax and unwind with my favorite genre of games, which is horror.
Granted, I’m getting on the Halloween bandwagon later this year. I haven’t decorated my apartment with cardboard bats and fake spider webs, and I haven’t gotten around to buying candy for anyone trick-or-treating.
That said, I recently dived into Xbox Game Pass to get some games ready for Halloween weekend; it looks like the kids knocking on my front door might not get any treats, but I’ve definitely gotten them now with the gems on Game Pass One.
Without further ado, here’s a rundown of some of the great games on Game Pass perfect this Halloween weekend.
Let’s start with Game Pass, which was added in October. In addition to games like Signalis, Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery, and Persona 5 Royal, we’ve also seen some of the best horror games of all time.This includes not only one, but Four Amnesia title. The newly added Amnesia Collection includes Darksiders, The Pig Machine, and Justin. On top of that, Amnesia: Rebirth has also been added to Game Pass.
The Amnesia series from Frictional Games, The Dark Descent and A Machine for Pigs both have a special place in my heart. These games are first-person survival horror games, and honestly, they’re pretty small compared to games like Resident Evil Village. However, by using sanity mechanisms and relying on your senses, amnesia is equally immersive and frightening.
Next up for Game Pass arriving this month is SOMA. Interestingly, SOMA was also developed at Frictional Games by the minds behind Amnesia. Another great survival horror film, SOMA, may be more psychological than Amnesia. It’s a game that most people won’t be as terrifying as amnesia, but it’s sure to find a way to fill you with fear. Frictional Games has since added Safe Mode for those who are more afraid of persistent threats!
Game Pass’s first-day launch was an incredibly visceral contempt. Scorn is a game for players of steel guts and patience. It’s slow and difficult, but developer Ebb Software’s ambient storytelling is near-perfect. If you’re willing to burn slowly and don’t mind the challenge, Scorn is a feast for the eyes.
Moving on to some of the older additions to Game Pass, we still have plenty to choose from! For multi-person panic, there are 7 Days to Die. This is an open world survival game where you and your friends are tasked with surviving hordes of zombies and must collect, craft and build your way to safety. It’s a lot like Rust, except you have zombies instead of toxic players (sorry, Rust fans).
Then there’s Dead by Daylight, an asymmetrical multiplayer game that pits four survivors against a killer (some of them familiar faces like Ghostface and Michael Myers).
For a more sci-fi horror experience, it’s still worth checking out Dead Space. Of course, our remake is coming, but that makes this the perfect time to check out the original game and get your hands on the various Necromorphs.
Failing that, there’s also Alien Isolation, one of the best horror games ever made. Alien stalking you, more interested in scare you than killing you, alien isolation is what it says on the tin: deep isolation. Try playing this alone in the dark, I dare.
Last but not least is Inner Evil and its sequel, which I haven’t played yet. So, visiting both games is on my Halloween weekend to-do list.
There are definitely more games on Game Pass that are great for Halloween, but I didn’t mention them, including a lot of games that aren’t in the horror genre that don’t quite fit the bill — like Hollow Knight. Either way, I felt spoiled this weekend and desperate to relive my amnesia again. Although, there is only so much time in a weekend.
What are your plans for Halloween, do you check out any of the games above? If so, I’d like to hear about it all.
