A good scary game is often a thrilling experience. And if you are currently a Game Pass subscriber and in the mood to play something terrifying, creepy, or just downright spooky, you already have access to some fantastic horror games for no additional cost. This is nice, because the only thing scarier than deadly monsters are expensive video games you buy, but never finish.
We here at Kotaku enjoy scary and spooky games too. (Well, most of us do…) So here’s a list of the 13 best scary games you can play right now on Xbox Game Pass.
Oh and if you aren’t looking for super gory or scary games, but still want something to play on Halloween night, check out our list of the best spooky but not-scary games. All of these games are available via Game Pass Ultimate on Xbox.
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An evil, haunted card game against a deadly villain who wants you dead is a spooky setup. But things get even creepier and weirder as you progress through Incryption and discover what it’s really about. This is a very meta game that might not be for everyone, but if you can put up with some odd twists and rule changes, you’ll get to experience one of the spookiest card games ever made.
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Bethesda and Tango Gameworks’ semi-open-world horror game was originally launched as a PlayStation exclusive. But eventually, it made its way over to Xbox and thanks to Microsoft buying Bethesda, it’s now a part of Game Pass. And that’s awesome because while Ghostwire: Tokyo is a gorgeous game set in a highly detailed digital Tokyo that is filled with some cool sidequest and spooky enemies, some players might not enjoy the game’s focus on combat. This scary first-person adventure feels like a perfect fit for Game Pass, letting you try it out and see if you enjoy its creepy combat. And if not, Ghostwire didn’t cost $60 to find that out.
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While Telltale eventually drove their The Walking Dead formula into the ground, the first couple of seasons of episode adventures did a fantastic job of capturing the comic book franchise. The world is mostly taken over by zombies, and you are one among a small group of survivors, trying to protect a child called Clementine from the incessant undead threat. With your decisions having significant consequences that played out across entire seasons, it was Telltale’s branching narrative format at its finest.
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If you want to experience (or replay) the original Dead Space trilogy, they are all available on Game Pass. Borrowing heavily from Aliens, the Dead Space games have you struggling to survive on enormous spaceships, overrun by zombie-like necromorphs, while constantly having the shit scared out of you.
While I know many love Dead Space 1 and 2, I’d recommend giving 3 a chance too. It’s not as good as those first two entries, but it’s still a creepy adventure through a snowy hellscape. And you can also check out the Dead Space remake which is probably the best way for a new player in 2024 to experience that first game.
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While I prefer the sequel, both The Evil Within and The Evil Within 2 are scary survival-horror games that will probably remind you of Resident Evil 4. That’s not a random coincidence, either. Shinji Mikami, who was the director of multiple Resident Evil games including RE4, directed the first game and was an executive producer on the sequel. Like RE4, Evil Within mixes third-person action with scary situations, creepy locations, and puzzles.
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I know some folks dislike Doom 3 for valid reasons. But as its own thing, and not a sequel to Doom 2, (which it is, but in name only…) I think first-person shooter Doom 3 is fantastic! Its use of shadows and darkness is excellent, hiding demons and other threats behind the darkness. Doom 3 also has some disturbing (in a good way!) sound design. And if you want to really get scared playing Doom 3, I highly recommend playing the VR port of the game released on PSVR earlier this year.
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Playdead’s follow-up to Limbo proved an even bigger success with their Shadowy Child Stumbles To The Right format. Inside tells the esoteric tale of a child trying to escape from (maybe?) some sort of gruesome facility, while being horrendously murdered by impossible-to-predict attacks. Yes, it’s Rick Dangerous for the new millennium. There are some truly iconic scenes, most especially that one with the yellow chicks, and of course the incredibly divisive ending.
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Amnesia: The Bunker, the most recent entry in the popular spoooky franchise, is a semi-open-world horror game that Kotaku’s Ashley Bardhan called one of 2023’s scariest games. And it’s available now on Game Pass.
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Love horror games and scary movies? Love asymmetrical multiplayer games? Well folks, I got a perfect game for you: Dead by Daylight. Four players take on the role of survivors trying to hide and complete objectives. Meanwhile, one player takes on the role of a killer trying to stop and murder them all. This game has seen frequent updates since it was released back in 2016, adding new characters like Michael Myers from Halloween and Ghostface from Scream.
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Sure, the Zombie Army series is not exactly the most highly esteemed run of games. They’re about shooting zombie Nazis, you see. But the point is, you don’t pick up a new Dean Koontz and expect to read Tolstoy. The bizarre result of a spin-off from the Sniper Elite series by Rebellion, Zombie Army has gone on to become its own thing, and importantly, it does a mighty fine job of it. Zombie Army 4 certainly doesn’t win any prizes for originality, but if you’re looking for a good, daft time shooting at baddies, it delivers.
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When you first think of Prey, it might not immediately strike you as a horror game. That clean, empty space station, the tidy offices and their coffee mugs and whiteboards. But then at a certain point, those exact coffee mugs and whiteboards are suddenly sproinging to life as the twisted Mimics, and you’re jumping out of your skin as you race for safety, heart beating, turrets toppling, and yeah, no, this is definitely a horror game.
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It’s hard to think of a better example of a game that takes the term “psychological horror” more literally. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is a game that explores the terror of psychological illness, and captures a sense of dread that can make it a brutal experience to play.
While horror exists in the world around Senua, it also lives within her, and while you’re playing, in you. This is a truly challenging game, not just in its combat, but in its effects on your psyche as you play. Also on Game Pass is the equally compelling and fantastic Senua’s Saga: Hellbade 2.
Update 10/17/2024: We’ve removed and replaced more games that are no longer on Game Pass.
Update 10/19/2023: We’ve removed and replaced some games that were no longer on Game Pass.
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