5 Games to Play This Spooky Season If You Want the Vibes Without the Nightmares
Get unlimited access to everything VICE has to offer.
Turn off all ads on VICE.com
Exclusive New VICE Documentaries
Member Exclusive Features & Columns
Turn off all ads on VICE.com
Exclusive New VICE Documentaries
Member Exclusive Features & Columns
Turn off all ads on VICE.com
Exclusive New VICE Documentaries
Member Exclusive Features & Columns
4 Magazines Delivered to Your Door
5 Games to Play This Spooky Season If You Want the Vibes Without the Nightmares
These games strike the right spooky tone without getting too scary.
Share on X (Opens in new window)X
Share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Facebook
Share using Native toolsShareCopied to clipboard
When the temperatures finally drop, the leaves start to turn on the trees, and the full moon takes on an orange glow, everyone knows “spooky season” has arrived.
Spooky Games That Bring the Fun Without the Fright
For gamers who find jumpscares, gore, and things that go bump in the night a little too extreme, there are still plenty of options to get in on the fun. Here are five games that strike the right eerie tone without getting too scary.
Available on: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch
Bioshock Remastered follows Jack, whose plane goes down in the middle of the ocean, a lighthouse rising out of the depths. Entering the lighthouse brings Jack to the underwater city of Rapture, which is falling apart, its citizens fleeing like rats from a sinking submarine. But Jack isn’t completely alone – there’s Atlas, his friendly guide who speaks to him via radio; the Little Sisters, wide-eyed children who aren’t quite what they seem; and certain citizens who aren’t exactly thrilled Jack is here.
While Bioshock Remastered is classed as an action-shooter, the atmosphere (or lack thereof) of the submerged city, half-lit by ghostly green light and rife with enemies who love nothing more than to spring out of the shadows, it ticks plenty of the spooky season boxes. Jack is armed with several weapons, along with powers called Plasmids, so the player is able to defend themselves against whatever comes their way. And the story, along with the characters, are more than compelling enough to drive Jack and the player forward into the sinister shadows.
Available on: PC (Steam and Epic), Playstation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, iOS
Gone Home has everything a scary story needs – a rambling, creaky house whose odd noises might…or might not…be........
