Games can be stressful at times, but for good reasons. A genre that embodies that stress and turns it into fun gameplay is survival horror games. This type of game puts players into terrifying situations that they'll need to figure out how to get through alive. Either way, the thrill of succeeding in these scenarios goes unmatched.
In 2020, there haven't been too many games in the genre. Many of the games that perfectly fit under the survival horror umbrella haven't garnered too much attention. Some of the bigger names toe the line between a regular survival game and survival horror. Either way, there's a decent enough collection out this year for any survival horror lover.
10 Pulang: Insanity
Based on real-life events that occurred on Borneo Island in Indonesia, Pulang: Insanity is a survival horror game that involves collecting objects in order to get through this terrifying experience. The player is Rudy, a man who dealt with poverty until he turned his life around. He was able to earn riches through a ritual called "Pesugihan." Performing the ritual results in Rudy earning a ton of money, but it costs him a human soul every three months. There are some reviews of the game that compare it to Silent Hill.
9 Hide Or Die
A survival horror game alone can be fun, but it doesn't match playing a game like that with friends. Hide Or Die is a multiplayer experience in which players can either be a hunter or a survivor. Set in a dark world, players compete in a deadly game of "Hide and Seek." As survivors, players must get themselves prepared by getting gear, activating extractors, and escaping the area. Hunters are on the side of the darkness as their job is to hunt survivors and end their escape before they succeed.
8 DreadOut 2
Another game based on the Indonesian supernatural culture, DreadOut 2 is a third-person action-adventure survival horror game where players are Linda, who is on a journey to stop these evil spirits from destroying mankind. The main gimmick of this game is the combat with a smartphone.
Taking a photo of an enemy can stun them, which allows players to take shots at them to end their existence. The game also has underlying plotlines such as satirical commentary and typical issues people deal with in high school.
7 Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing In Disguise
The original Deadly Premonition was a cult classic despite its meme-worthy weirdness. Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise is not as good as the first, but it scratches the itch for fans of the series. FBI agent Francis York Morgan is back to solve a murder in the fictional town of Le Carré, Louisiana. However, the twist in this game is that players also assume the role of another FBI agent, Aaliyah Davis. She is interrogating Morgan fourteen years after he investigates this case to find out how he handled it.
6 Maid Of Sker
Set in 1898, Maid of Sker is a first-person survival horror game set in a hotel owned by a family empire. Inspired heavily by British folklore, players are summoned to the hotel by Elizabeth, who is part of this family. The hotel, with its gory history, is overcome with a supernatural presence. Meanwhile, the player is armed with only a "defensive sound device." The goal of the game is to be as stealthy as possible and navigate the building without being overwhelmed with enemies known as the "Quiet Ones."
5 Someday You'll Return
A survival horror game without combat can still be fun if done the right way. Someday You'll Return zeroes in on other ways to progress through the game such as interacting with the environment. The game follows Daniel, a father looking for his lost daughter in the Moravian forests using GPS tracking. Along with other gameplay elements like crafting and herbalism, players must also be able to avoid danger through stealth sequences. The ending is determined depending on what the player chooses to do in the game.
4 Resident Evil: Resistance
An asymmetrical-multiplayer game set in Raccoon City. What more could one ask for? The online survival horror experience Resident Evil: Resistance, packaged in with the Resident Evil 3 remake, pits one player against four others in the world of Resident Evil.
The solo player is the Mastermind, whose goal is to capture young people for data gathering. They must prevent the other players from escaping through obstacles such as placing traps and unleashing vicious creatures. The others, called Survivors, must escape using each of their special skills.
3 The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
Virtual reality and survival horror go together well and The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners is another game that puts the VR set to good use. Set in New Orleans during an apocalyptic zombie invasion, the player must choose how they want to go about surviving in the town while also attempting to unravel a mystery that could stop the war between the citizens of the area. Each decisions players make affects the outcomes. Players can sneak around or attack head-on. They can kill civilians or attempt to save them. It's up to the player on how they get through it.
2 Resident Evil 3
Capcom has been unloading remakes of its classic survival horror series Resident Evil. Its latest game is Resident Evil 3, which is obviously a remake of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. The 21-year-old game was brought back to life by taking away the tank controls and fixed camera angles and making it more of a loose third-person shooter. The game keeps the same story. Players take on the role of Jill Valentine as she and the Special Tactics And Rescue Service (S.T.A.R.S.) must deal with a creature created by the Umbrella Corporation called Nemesis.
1 The Last Of Us Part II
The Last Of Us is arguably one of the greatest video games of all-time, and its sequel was one of the highly-anticipated games of 2020. The Last Of Us Part II was controversial, but it is still considered one of the best games of the year. This time around, the game focuses on two playable characters. The first is Ellie, who is seeking revenge for the death of Joel, the protagonist from the first game. The second character is Abby, the individual who beat Joel to death. The game switches between these characters with similar gameplay to the first.