Hide and seek with immortal stalkers: the best Indie Games similar to Clock Tower [Updated Oct 2023]

Clock Tower was one of the first examples of survival horror, in the format of a point-and-click adventure. Developed in 1995 for the SNES, the game brought, maybe for the first time, horror atmospheres on a Nintendo platform. The game had a gorgeous 2D aesthetic for the time, with an interesting use of colours. It was also partially inspired by the Italian horror movie Suspiria, especially for the model of the main character. Clock Tower was always a game full of original and innovative ideas, merged together in a twisted horror-thriller. Solving puzzles and collecting items was not a simple task, such as in other adventures, because this time a psychotic killer wielding giant scissors was unexpectedly chasing the player. Exploring the mansion while surviving the immortal stalker was one of the key elements of the game.

Many direct or spiritual sequels attempted to recreate that magic, also going into 3D, but the majority to failed. Except for Haunting Grounds and maybe Remothered, other more direct 3D sequels such as Clock Tower 3 or Nightcry failed to reproduce the experience. There are several elements composing the unique atmosphere of Clock Tower, which are very difficult to find in other games. For my personal taste, to consider a game very similar to Clock Tower, several requisites should be satisfied. For example, a nice 2D aesthetic is very important to recreate that old-school magic, so I will avoid adding to the list 3D games. Of course, it would not be a game similar to Clock Tower without an immortal stalker, which will chase relentlessly the player during the game. Clock Tower also got famous for the number of alternative endings: nine in the first game, and even more in the second installment. The majority of the endings was composed by Bad Endings, elaborated and usually brutal Game Over scenes. For this reason, I will also specify if a game has alternative endings. Even if Clock Tower was not really gory or violent, the overall thriller atmosphere and the depressing bad endings could be even more interesting with a bigger amount of blood. The creator of the original game also knew this, and in the spiritual successor Nightcry, he also increased the level of blood, but sadly almost at a parody level. For this reason, I will also consider as a positive thing the amount of blood.

As for other articles “games similar to” (for example here for Hotline Miami: Killers, blood, and intense acid trips: best fast-paced action games like Hotline Miami), I will provide here a  list of indie games that I found more similar to Clock Tower. Maybe they could be similar by chance, or maybe they were built having Clock Tower as a main inspiration. All the games included in the article are available on STEAM.

House of Velez

Intro: House of Velez is a gory adventure released in two parts. The game begins with a woman exploring her father’s mansion, a place that changed with time, now hiding nightmarish secrets. The game begins slowly, but soon enough the horror bursts into the main character’s life. The exploration is in a 2D environment, while the characters are modeled in 3D.

Stalkers: The stalkers in this case are really creepy and disturbing enemies, especially a mannequin-doppelgänger looking for her missing head… but of course on the main character’s body. Different mysterious and grotesque beings are ready to rip every limb from the protagonist. There are stitched skin mannequins, towering abominations, and colossal babies. However, the most “stalker-like” creature is a being in a wheelchair stalking the mansion toward the end. It can appear in every room, killing the protagonist in many ways. With a complex combination of buttons, it is possible to keep the breath, control panic, and avoid a stalker, which will just pass by without noticing the player. This is a quite complex mechanic to master, and a small error will lead to a horrible death.

Death scenes: Being caught by a stalker or a trap will bring to a really complex, inventive, and gory death, which could last for many seconds of graphical and well-executed CGI. Definitively, this is not a game for those weak of stomach! Deaths are long, unique, twisted, and very creative, but they can also get very disturbing, especially in Part 2.

Endings: When playing both Part 1 and 2, it is possible to achieve a Good and a Bad ending, based more on lore discovered than choices. However, the death scenes are so many, different, and complex that could be associated with the Bad Endings of Clock Tower.

If you want to check by yourself some of the most interesting and disturbing deaths, check the following video in the Surreal and Creepy official channel:

Horns of Fear

Intro: This is a game difficult to categorize, but it is an interesting call back to Clock Tower, especially in the first half. There is a huge and creepy mansion to explore, full of complex puzzles, rarely obtuse, and often very satisfying to solve. The mansion can be freely explored, in all its beautiful background, enjoying the many works of art scattered around. The atmosphere is dense and interesting, offering some jump scares and rooms where you will never feel safe inside.

Stalkers: A creepy and grotesque family is also living in the house, and meeting the owners will be always a shocking event. While the family is more there to advance the plot, learn more lore, or for puzzles, there is another aggressive element inside the house. Soon or later, the stalker will make his appearance. A masked horned man wielding weapons, the Caretaker is the only stalker in Horns of Fear. While facing him, more than running and hiding, will be important to quickly execute a combination of buttons. The price of failing will be a really brutal and grotesque death. There will be also a final and satisfying 2D battle against the stalker, a moment of closure that also marks a huge shift in the plot.

Death scenes: As I said before, deaths here a quite brutal. There are only a few of them, but their appearance is always traumatic. This is because death scenes are realized in claymation, with an extra focus on gory details. Having the main character’s head split in half in a close-up scene made in claymation is surely something that will stick in the mind.

Endings: Sadly there are no multiple endings, and the game loses its “Clock Tower-ish” vibes toward the second half. Horns of Fear is not the closer example to Clock Tower, but the presence of the stalker, and the good balance between exploration, puzzle solving, and scary events, make of it a really enjoyable horror experience.

Also in this case, you can check a video on the Surreal and Creepy channel to have an idea about the game. After many puzzles and running around, you can finally face the stalker in a peculiar brawling battle. Or, you can die trying, with a peculiar and brutal death made in claymation.

You can check both the fight, the surreal afterward, and the brutal death in the following video:

Clea

Intro: Clea has a really beautiful art style, especially for characters and enemies. The game is heavily focused on stealth mechanics since the very beginning. The player can hide in the closets, sneak, and peek through keyholes, all to avoid the creepy Chaos Servants wandering around the house. The game can be really difficult and challenging, based on trial and error, and it is divided into levels. Each new level will feature something novel, such as puzzles or enemies, and also challenges to be completed.

Stalkers: The Chaos Servants are the main stalkers inside the game, creepy figures wearing a robe and with creepy smiles on their faces. However, they are not the only enemies inside Clea, since each level can bring new threats. For example, the second level features creepy spiders, which can be avoided only by staring at them in time, before they strike. The sound component is also very important, not only to understand if a Chaos Servant is close but also to attract his attention. In fact, by running but also by interacting with specific objects, the noise produced will surely call the attention of a Chaos Servant.

Death scenes: Clea is more creepy than gory, and being trapped by a stalker leads to a quite standard game over screen.

Endings: The game features multiple endings, at least 3, with different requirements to be achieved. Moreover, Clea is a love letter to classic survival horrors, with good replayability and secrets, including unlockables such as new outfits and extra modes. It is also a really difficult game, where challenging Chaos Servants is driving the gameplay more than exploration and puzzle-solving.

Unknown

Intro: A one-man project which is a clear love letter to Clock Tower. Even the main character is very similar to the one of Clock Tower. Unknown has all the key elements to be a spiritual sequel of Clock Tower. The 2D art style is really beautiful, both in movement and during the static cutscenes. There is a family with a secret and a mansion full of puzzles and mysteries that the player can freely explore and solve.

Stalkers: The stalkers are creepy experiments, which will hunt the player mainly following the sounds. They are a dangerous treat, which can be avoided by hiding, or by outrunning them, hopefully without depleting the stamina bar. The sound system is also very well realized, especially the metallic noise produced by the stalkers.

Death scenes: The game is not gory or violent, and the death scenes are more like simple jump scares.

Endings: According to STEAM achievements, there are also many different endings, in theory at least 6, which for sure help the replayability. The game could be a great spiritual successor of Clock Tower, but sadly at the moment, it is quite buggy and with obtuse puzzles. With a bit more polish and time, maybe it could become a hidden gem.

Coma 2

Intro: Coma 2 is a total improvement of the previous game, and one of the best games developed by a Korean studio. Coma 2 shares similarities with the Clock Tower saga, using a 2D aesthetic to create a relentless hide-and-seek against an immortal stalker. The graphic is really gorgeous, between a manga and a cartoon, well cared in every detail, from the characters to the complex background. The level of detail and polish is incredible, also focusing on rewarding the player. For example, several achievements after being unlocked will reveal a gorgeous concept art or an artwork.

Stalkers: The main stalker is the dark version of a teacher, hunting her students with a knife, helped by another more brutal and deranged version of herself. At some point, other minor stalkers will chase the player, including a deranged butcher inside a market. A stamina bar helps to outrun the devilish teacher, but also other strategies are possible. The main character can hide in bathrooms or closets, but only by completing a quick time event, the player will stay hidden without making any noise. There are several traps and minor monsters along the way, which will generally cause negative effects. Different attacks can bring status alterations, such as poison or bleeding, creating an additional level of threat. Avoiding spoilers, there are also specific events that could lead to the permanent loss of a chunk of the health bar.

Death scenes: The game has very gory deaths that usually involve secondary characters, suddenly stabbed to death by the appearance of a stalker. The main character can also die in different ways against the stalkers, showing brutal Game Over scenes that are different based on the played chapter.

Endings: Coma 2 has a Good and a Bad Ending, based on how many times you lost chunks of the health bar in important events during the game.

Immure

Intro: Another game divided into two parts, Immure is a very nice mix of the style and the system of Clock Tower, together with the creatures and the mysterious environment of Lovecraft. The 2D art-style is really gorgeous and full of details, picturing horrible creatures and huge slasher ghosts with great attention. From the gameplay side, Immure features all the classic Clock Tower mechanics, plus some interesting surprises.

Stalkers: Different immortal creatures are chasing the main character, from a colossal ghost fireman wielding a deadly axe to a grotesque abomination of teeth and tentacles. The main character can run (depleting a stamina bar) and hide in closets, but can also use a gun and a crystal to temporally stun the enemies. The crystal is especially interesting and it can be used both to light the environment, moving as the mouse cursor, and to stun the stalkers if properly charged.

Death scenes: The game is really brutal, with gory comic-style death scenes. Every death is accompanied by its death-ending screen, for example having the head devoured by an eldritch being.

Endings: There is free exploration, with puzzles and moral choices, all this while avoiding the stalkers. Judging from the moral choices already present and the words of the developers, the final version should probably include “at least” two endings.

Sense: A Cyberpunk Ghost Story

Intro: The core of the experience is a combination of cyberpunk and Chinese folkloric elements, where ghosts and exorcism meet with human augments and VR. The beautiful 2D aesthetic is a clear check for this article, from the detailed and haunting environments to the characters and the disturbing spirits. The protagonist will repentantly pass from a lightful world rich of characters to the loneliness of an abandoned building, from a sci-fi environment to a forgotten world of traditions. The game is a love letter to classic survival-horror games, with many secrets and unlockable outfits, achievable in consecutive NG+, where new contents and elements will be unlocked.

Stalkers: Talking about the stalkers, Sense makes a great effort in creating a variegated set of disturbing ghosts, haunting the different rooms and floors of the building. There are ghosts for every taste: a spider-woman setting traps with her long hair, a spirit possessing a horde of seductive dolls, a feral old woman attacking on the four legs, and many more. Each ghost can be avoided or defeated with multiple strategies. For example, some ghosts can follow the player around on all the floor. For this reason, hiding in special rooms protected with a talisman will help to survive. A mini-game will play in these challenging moments, where the player needs to place a moving bar the closest possible to the center. Running away is also the best option, but a stamina bar will quickly empty, making it difficult to run for a long time. Minor entities can be quickly defeated with a holy sword, while other more dangerous being needs to be lured in an empty room and then imprisoned with a talisman. However, almost every spirit needs to be exorcised to being finally able to rest in peace. This is done by following Chinese traditions: finding an altar, a picture of the spirit, rice, and a joss stick to burn. Sometimes, the offering for the deceased is only part of a more complex task, which changes from ghost to ghost.

Death Scenes: The game is brutal, and every ghost features its personal death screen, a violent Game Over where each ghost shows its violent malevolence. Plus, bad choices during the game lead to even more bad endings, usually brutal and lethal.

Endings: Even if the main ending is only one, Sense features many Bad Endings/Game Over screens, portrayed using gorgeous comic-like static scenes. Maybe the player could think to escape from the building by jumping out of the window, or that a group of evil cats can be bypassed without using any item. Those decisions will lead to graphic and violent Game Overs, where the main character will die in horrible ways, for example having her eyes ripped out by the evil cats.

The oppressive atmosphere of the board game “The Night Cage” and new deadly creatures

Night Cage is an atmospheric horror board game. The setting is about pure darkness, a world of shadows where everything exists only if touched by a light. You play as thin and fragile humanoid creatures, called Prisoners, who wake up in this series of tunnels surrounded by pure and engulfing darkness. At least, each prisoner has a candle with them, an old candle made of wax. However, wax candles don’t last forever, and soon the darkness will swallow you. You have to find the exit, and the keys necessary to open its gate. The tunnels are small and tight, only one prisoner fits inside of it. Moreover, prisoners crawl around the small tunnels, keeping the candle in front of them. The light is your only way to move around, and the only mechanism that makes everything exist in this world. Without light, things quickly disappear, making it impossible to find your way back. Because each time you illuminate again the old road, it will only create something new. Which could be new paths… or something worse. Because there are living things hidden in the darkness, things that want to stay shrouded in silence. The Wax Eaters will consume your candle if illuminated by light, shortening your journey.

Night Cage does an amazing job in environmental storytelling and world-building, something not easy to do for a board game. The box is completely black, as the darkness inside the abyss. By looking around the inner side of the box, you will see the skeletal figures of the prisoners crawling around the tunnels with the candles. Nothing inside the manual will explain the context of this maze, and the pawns are only small candles. So only by “exploring” the box, you will understand the context of the world and who you play. Every art piece provides a huge feeling of isolation, being alone in the darkness, with pale figures barely visible in the pitch blackness. Every detail of the Prisoners is simply sketched because the real protagonist is the empty darkness surrounding them. The Prisoners exist only as thin and temporary beings perturbating this immense and eldritch place.

Gameplay-wise, Night Cage is based on tiles. You move, illuminate the surroundings, and place tiles. When you leave a space, crawling out of the tunnels, you discard all the tiles not illuminated. By exploring tiles and opening new ways, you hope to find the 4 keys necessary to open the gate. Oh, and of course the gate must be correctly discovered. However, passages crack, and pits open over a neverending abyss. Tiles can also be discarded, and losing a key or a portal can make the difference between escaping and wandering forever in pure darkness. Because in Night Cage, the remaining tiles are both a mechanism and the overall health before the end approaches. Worth mentioning that Prisoners are not alone in this darkness. Things are breathing inside the darkness, things that want to stay alone and away from light.

Discover a creature with your light, and you are in trouble. The base game has some monsters, mainly the Wax Eaters, but also other beings and even bosses. The monsters are in general twisted monstrosities of tentacles and teeth, or more mysterious beings, such as eyes appearing inside a pit. The Keepers are special Wax Eaters with a Key incorporated in their bodies, while the Pit Fiend is a creature that transforms every tile on its diagonal into a pit. However, the most emblematic example is the Dirge, a colossal being summoned when enough of its Omen are discovered, which will crush a third of the board hurting every player touched and creating a giant abyss. The Dirge is pure eldritch terror playing on its size. For the entire game, you were using small tiles and monsters of the same size. Then, this colossal face appears, with a mad expression and galaxies in its eyes, crashing almost the entire board and mutating the environment, destroying many tiles and creating a gigantic pit.

Because I enjoyed so much the atmosphere of the game, I also created my own monsters, to add more complexity to Night Cage. I tried to be respectful of the game’s atmosphere and setting, creating entities that, at least for me, would fit in this dark world, lonely and mysterious beings existing in pure darkness. The Judge is a disturbing creature ruling the maze, able to directly hit all the prisoners wandering in its darkness if not in its row/column… but only after giving 3 turns to prepare for the attack. The Stalkers are mischievous beings that will not simply disappear when not illuminated. They will continue to stalk the prisoner, appearing in any illuminated hallway. Over and over again. And if you thought that having a key for the final portal was the only insurance to be safe, be aware of the rusty menace known as Key Eater or the luring disgrace of the Mimic Portal.

If you own the game and want to check the complete set of monsters that I created, you can freely access the PDF on Board Game Geek:

https://boardgamegeek.com/filepage/266919/night-cage-new-fanmade-monsters-and-bosses

Weird and silly but still creepy Japanese horror monster movies

Japanese horror movies can be straightly terrifying, weirdly bizarre, or a combination of them. While some horror movies like Ringu or Ju-on focus on the scary side, others like Dead Sushi or Tokyo Gore play more on the comedy and grotesque side. In between these extremes, there is a world of creepy and disturbing movies with somehow a goofy or silly side. A great example is Hausu from 1977, a visually brilliant and pretty weird movie (for which I also wrote an analysis at the very beginning of this blog: Hausu: a pioneer, surreal and weird japanese movie). Personally, this weirdness is especially interesting when referring to creature design. Because if a monster can still generate an uneasy and disturbing atmosphere, even more so because of its weird design, it is a very interesting point for the movie. Many of these movies spend a lot of effort in practical effects, creating a festival of weird abominations and gory effects. There are probably many movies hidden somewhere on the internet behind the language barrier, and I hope to find more in the future.

Recently, I posted on my official Twitter account about Japanese horror movies with weird monsters, asking also an opinion to people. To my surprise, this became my most viral tweet, with 26k likes and 1.4 million views (HERE the link if interested). There were many interesting suggestions there, so I decided to expand that tweet into an article. A special thanks goes to the people who replied and retweeted the original tweet.

So welcome to my analysis about Japanese horror movies with weird monsters, jumping from silly to pretty terrifying. There are also more movies not analyzed in this article, so for those who could be interested, I created also an IMDB list including more titles:

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls521609028/

Death Forest

Based on the indie game with the same name, Death Forest is a saga of 5 movies released in Japan between 2014 and 2016. The first movie features a group of friends taking a detour into a forest infested with weird entities. The following movies are less creepy and almost slasher-like, with a lot of blood and weird killings. The movies have two kinds of entities. The first one is a group of pale and bold humanoid creatures, very thin and disturbing, which moves only when in complete darkness. However, the star of the movie is definitively the giant pale cannibal floating head. This very silly yet creepy villain has a dumb and disturbing expression on its face and tends to float around like a balloon. The monster is not to be underestimated, regardless of the silly look, because it can devour a person with a single bite. The floating head will quickly leave the forest in the following movies, devouring schoolgirls inside a school at night, and even floating above Shibuya 101.

What to expect:

• A giant floating head working as a horror Pacman and devouring everybody;
• Pale old men eating people when not under a light;
• The giant pale head will devour people everywhere in Japan, from schools to Shibuya.

Fuan no Tane (Pet Peeve)

Fuan no Tane is a series of manga by Masaaki Nakayama. They are probably one of the few manga around that can be compared with Junji Ito’s works, especially in portraying inexplicable beings manifesting in rural Japanese towns. Since many stories are practically plotless, solved in a couple of pages, and with a sort of jump scare in the end, making a movie about it was not an uneasy task. At least for me, this was not such a bad result. The movie describes the many inexplicable accidents happening in the fictional town of xxx through the eyes of 3 characters. The story is very convoluted and twisted, with many things happening in different timelines but not told in any chronological order. I will avoid spoilers so I stop here with the plot, I just say that there is really a lot going on. Entities are terrifying and well-represented, sometimes following famous stories from the manga, and other times implementing novel ideas. From grotesque men appearing during blackouts to kids with something very bad going on in their faces, these beings are definitively weird and disturbing. The movie combines CGI with practical effects, and the results are always quite believable, with few exceptions such as the half-man. Moreover, I really appreciate the small details going around, like long shots of the sky with clouds that look “too much” like humans.

What to expect:

• Grotesque beings appearing at any moment;
• Insane mannequins looking for their hand;
• Straw-faced women;
• A good kid with something really twisted on his face;
• A not-so-good kid with something really twisted on his face;
• A procession of eyes crawling on a highway.

Cult

Koji Shiraishi is a weird Japanese director, mostly known for his horror mockumentaries. Noroi is a masterpiece on how to direct a found footage horror movie, with very creepy scenes and a great ending. However, another of his movies is even weirder. Cult explores a house where paranormal phenomena are happening, and apparently, the whole neighborhood could be involved. The protagonists are a group of idols but soon the cringe exorcist Neo (yes, same as that Neo) will be involved. But if you are already imagining the classic poltergeist or ghost, things will go far more into the bizarre. The entities are weird creatures of tentacles and shadows, including deadly thin shadows, and a sort of shadow octopus dog. The monsters are far from being well realized, and the bad CGI cannot hide behind the found footage technique. However, this is part of the homemade feeling of Koji Shiraishi’s movie, so it is a give or take.

What to expect:

• A ghost dog head with shadow tentacles going out from the neck;
• A thin shadow harbinger of death;
• The weirdest exorcism and its bizarre consequences.

Japanese Doll of Terror

If you just see an image of the aforementioned Japanese doll in the movie, you know to be here for a very silly slasher. After all, how many slasher movies have as enemy a humanoid doll with a gigantic head wielding a chainsaw? The movie sees a group of people, apparently not connected, participating in a mysterious party in a secluded camp to win a lot of money. Of course, things will go wrong and blood will quickly start to spill. However, the game is a lot less violent than you could expect, and many killings happen outside camera view. The plot mixes revenge and a cursed doll, but the final revelation is not satisfactory at all. In general, this is not a good movie by any metric, but if you want to see a big-headed doll killing people, this is your movie.

What to expect:

• A doll running through the woods while wielding a chainsaw;
• A doll stabbing people with a big cooking fork;
• A doll smashing people with a hammer;
• Well, you got the idea, a killing doll.

Tomie Unlimited

Tomie Unlimited is somehow the worst and best adaptation of Junji Ito’s work. Because even if the movie can be sometimes more silly than creepy, it goes at full speed regarding grotesque body horror. The movie is a festival of hideous abominations born from Tomie’s hatched body, all packed into this 90-minute movie. The main actress does a good job of portraying the spoiled and selfish behavior typical of Tomie, while some grotesque practical effects, together with a not exceptional CGI, help to shape the body horror. Because there will be blood, and a lot of it. The movie is a roller-coaster of absurd, innovative, and shocking scenes, something that will test your stomach and mind. Seriously, you will see from a collection of small heads combining their tongues in a huge tentacle to a gigantic woman’s head generating centipedes made of hair… and other heads.

What to expect:

• A beheaded body with a small disfigured head inside the neck, running around doing silly sounds and moves while still being quite creepy;
• Several disturbing heads, including trees made of heads;
• And centipedes made of hair and faces;
• To conclude with mini-heads packed inside a lunch-box.

Vampire Clay

Visually insane and unexpectedly gory, Vampire Clay is definitively born in the wrong decade, looking more like an underground 80s masterpiece. Sure, the premise of cursed clay feeding on blood is silly, and the appearance of the main enemy is far from terrifying, and yet, this movie is a hidden gem. The plot revolves around a countryside art class creating clay statues. By accident, they will use the wrong clay. Yes, exactly that clay that was buried in a sealed bag underground. From there, Vampire Clay does everything unexpectedly. Every kill is brilliantly executed, visually elaborated, and totally unnerving. The movie is violent, but the focus on clay allows the creation of memorable practical effects. From clay beings mimicrying people and modifying their bodies into grotesque body horror to colossal worms full of faces of the people devoured, the movie is a rollercoaster of weird but clever ideas. The focus on claymation and practical effects make everything extremely believable, and some scenes are truly brilliant, such as analyzing how the clay monster regenerates and damages from the inside in a feverish and surreal close-up. And what to say about the last 5 minutes of the ending? Simply brilliant and almost kaiju-like.

What to expect:

• Small clay demons hiding inside bodies;
• Every possible body horror involving bodies made of clay;
• The small demons growing a big clay mouth trying to swallow people whole;
• A colossal clay worm.

Unholy Women (segment Hagane)

Unholy Women is a collection of 3 short movies. While all the stories are quite good, with the first segment involving time loops and a stalking monster woman with many arms, I will focus especially on the second story. The movie is called Hagane, and it tells the story of a young man convinced by his boss to hang out with his sister. But she is not as in the picture, and the boy soon realizes it when he sees the boss pumping some food through a tube connected to a woman half hidden in a bag. Because Hagane is a woman from the hips down, and “something else” on the way up, which is always wrapped up in a raw bag. Imagine this movie like a dating simulator with an eldritch being. Everything about Hagane is completely weird, grotesque, and terrifying. She expresses only by painting with her feet and making some weird sounds, clearly not human. She is also fast, strong, and apparently immortal, or at least extremely resilient. Somehow, she is also an empathic creature, and the boy is kind of attracted to her because of her legs. But then, their weird infatuation will become a game of cat a mouse, with grotesque and comedy moments, including Hagan shooting him with a dart gun as if it was a rifle. The movie does a brilliant job of never disclosing what Hagane is or what is hiding under the bag. But you will see weird things going down from it, including insects, raw flesh, and blades. Even if you don’t like the other two movies, the supreme weirdness of Hagane alone is still worth watching Unholy Women.

What to expect:

• A woman hiding under a raw bag acting like an eldritch being;
• She likes to write using people’s blood and her feet;
• She has defensive blades and can shoot with a dart gun;
• She wants so much to have sex with the protagonist. Will she succeed and what will happen then?

Hiruko the Goblin

A movie following the insane formula of the late 70s and early 80s Japanese horror movies, including the masterpiece Hausu. Hiruko the Goblin is a feverish dream mixing horror and comedy, heavily influenced by Evil Dead and The Thing. Hiruko the Goblin is an explosion of bizarre yet disturbing creatures, with a duo of silly protagonists. One of them is an archeologist obsessing about creating weird gadgets, definitively not a brave hero, while the other is a student with burning faces appearing on his back. This movie is stylish and well-realized, with twisted camera movements and close-ups, and a really good balance of horror and comedy without ever falling into the bad taste. Hiruko tries to dig into alternative mythology, with tales about existing gods, forgotten fictional gods, and ancient hidden tombs. The movie mixes occult and folklore to create its grotesque creatures, instead of using alien lifeforms such as in The Thing. And from the creatures’ point, Hiruko is basically the answer to what if the infamous “walking head scene” from The Thing was an entire movie. The main enemies of Hiruko are crawling disembodied human heads, walking on top of grotesque spider-like limbs. The practical result is always grotesque and disturbing, and you will also see variations of this theme, with flying heads or more alien creations. Of course, since decapitation is a main theme of the movie, you can expect a lot of blood.

What to expect:

• Disembodied heads walking on alien spider limbs;
• Tentacles going out from the mouth;
• Songs that convince people into self-decapitation;
• Disgusting folkloric creatures hidden in another dimension;
• Entities moving with crazy cameras like Deadites in Evil Dead.

Horror games based on European and Russian folklore, myths, and traditions [Updated October 2023]

It is not a surprise that I am fascinated by horror games rooted in the folklore of different countries. There is a mysterious feeling in being terrorised by something that people in the past, before the advent of technology or electric lights, believed was real. Previously, I wrote an article about the most interesting horror games based on the myths and traditions of East Asia, from Korea to the Philippines (you can check the article here: Horror games based on traditional Asian folklore [Update Oct 2021]). The article became one of the most visited on Surreal and Creepy, and since its beginning, I am constantly updating it with new and fitting games.

The idea of the following article is to follow a similar direction, but this time taking as example Europe. After all, Europe is the most common territory while thinking of folk-horror, at least in movies, especially classics such as The Wicker Man, or more recent releases including Midsommar. Europe is a land of ancient and disturbing traditions, rooted not only in religion but also in more ancient pagan rites and legends. From the violent lands of Northern Europe, and the complex Viking mythology, to the West with the extreme Spanish celebrations, reaching the further East with the spirits and the shamanism of ancient Russia, there are many countries with a fascinating background to cover.

Strangely, it was more difficult to find pure horror games rooted in European folklore compared to Asia. For this reason, some games in the article are not exactly horror titles, but they still show a horror-themed atmosphere and world-building. My objective here is to cover more countries possible, trying to provide multiple entries for each country, but in some cases this can be a challenge. 

The article will also receive updates if more fitting games will be released, in the same way as for the previous article. Just to remember, the article about Asian folklore started covering eight games, and now it almost doubled with 14 games covered.

Also if you want to keep updated on games based on folklore around the world, not only Europe and horror, have a look at my STEAM Curator page: Games and Folklore.

Check also the map (made in amcharts) highlighting the countries covered in the article, with the associated games (in blank), plus other interesting suggestions not reported in the article.

Saturnalia – Italy

Saturnalia is definitively the surprise of Halloween 2022, an incredible gem of innovation, brilliant ideas, and great attention for details by the Italian team of Santa Ragione. But let’s go one step at the time. Saturnalia is a horror adventure set in Italy, specifically in a small fictional town in Sardinia: Gravoi. The adventure follows multiple characters exploring the mysterious town, from a woman going there to tell about her pregnancy to the future father, to a local kid hiding with her mask from a cult. Each character is not simply there, but they have peculiar abilities, from taking pictures to fit inside small gaps. And after unlocking a character, you can always switch to them by using pay phones around the town. Moreover, each character not only has their own objectives and sub-plots but also the interactions around town will change accordingly to the used character, creating a more deep and re-playable experience.

The exploration and the freedom is where Saturnalia truly stand off. It is a game that will never hold your hand, leaving the player with complete freedom on how or when to explore the different parts of the town, and to understand the many hidden mechanics. The player can explore the gigantic castle, the mysterious ruins, or the dark depths of the mines at any point. Of course, some specific tools are required to progress, including a hammer to break every glass or an electric tool to repair circuits.

The first thing that you will notice is how the art-style of the game is so unique and bizarre, a mix of 3D technology, rotoscope animation, and intense neon-like colors. You could think this style is unfitting for a folklore-inspired game set in a small Italian town, and you couldn’t be more wrong. This aesthetic creates an incredible dreamlike atmosphere, dense and palpable as the mutating changing colors that engulf the small streets, a well-crafted experience inspired by Italian Giallo movies. Because the atmosphere here is everything, and the town of Gravoi is a character itself, with its crooked and claustrophobic streets, the silent buildings, and the sudden sound of closing doors. The atmosphere is so dense and palpable, for example, often you will see random figures moving in the streets and then disappearing. Are they enemies or secondary characters? The choice is yours if following them or hide.

Because the streets are never safe in this long and dark night of ancient rituals and forbidden carnivals. Strange figures in mask, crawling abominations, and other mysterious beings roam the streets, accompanied by rhythmic rattling or creaking sounds. They are easily attracted by noise such as firecrackers or bells… but this also works against the player. And since Saturnalia employs a permanent death system, if a creature reaches one of the characters… well, it will die. There are ways to rescue a dead character, but if you lose all of them, the town will reset and reshuffle, kicking the player out like if it was an infection to get rid off.

Saturnalia does an incredible effort to mix fictional elements with Italian folklore and traditions, especially from Sardinia. While walking around the town, the player can easily see posters of local politicians of the time, or learn lore from pagan celebration or local boogeymen, such as the “Ammutadore.” Sardinia is also a land of many pagan carnivals and celebrations, often including handcrafted masks. And if you do not know about it, just have a look at some images or videos of the human-animal dichotomy of the masks “Su Merdule” and “Su Boe,” or the typical “Mamuthones” and their creepy bells. All these elements are portrayed especially in the masked enemies and the cultist inside the town. The developers of Santa Ragione even crafted an incredible press kit, also including, between the many goods, a limited handcrafted leather mask (and I cannot thanks them enough for sending me a copy). But it is also the sound component to benefit from this inspirations, including the disturbing sound of bells, which will soon become the warning of a creature approaching. The soundtrack is especially beautiful and fitting, with Italian melancholic songs, such as the one in the opening credits, or the terrifying lullaby that will creep you out each time you access the main menu.

Saturnalia is a deep, complex, and innovative game, a surprise and an excellent experiment in how to portray horror without sacrificing colors and aesthetic, together with an original Italian setting.

Blasphemous – Spain

Blasphemous is a metroidvania with gory and satisfying combat. The game is set in the cryptic world of Custodia, a land shaped after Catholicism, where an eldritch force known as the Miracle grants wishes to the worshippers. However, the wishes are a twisted parody of what was asked, creating a world full of horror and grotesque beings. Custodia is an incredible place, like nothing you have ever seen in a video game, extending from amazing church-like structures to the obtuse fanaticism of every character still living in this insane world.

The gameplay is a pure metroidvania, with a huge interconnected map to explore and many abilities to unlock. There is really a lot to do, from secret locations to cryptic secondary quests and collectables, and everything is beneficial to expand the world-building. The combat system is more Souls-like oriented, with tough and challenging boss fights, articulated around balancing the health items and the stamina bar.

The religious symbolism is permeating every detail, in a world shaped by spires, altars, and insane fanatics. Religious images clearly shaped the world of Custodia, from architectures typical of churches to classic religious art (find more in my article on Dark RPGs: https://darkrpgs.home.blog/2020/07/18/catholic-art-and-architecture-in-the-twisted-world-of-blasphemous-how-religious-iconography-can-build-nightmares/). Every creature embodies religious imaginary in their design, for example, it can be created after a classic painting, or a particular depiction of a saint. This is also reflected in the locations around the world, including the tomb of a gigantic archbishop dressed in gold, or a cloistered monastery on top of a cold mountain, where a cult of nuns is obsessed with disfiguring their faces with fire. Collected items are also drastically expanding the lore by providing several details behind their origin, including, for example, relics of saints. But Catholicism and art are not the only references to build this insane world, since also Spanish traditions and folklore are included in this complex pot. Legends and myths are integrated into the background of different secondary characters, while it is also common to see celebrations combined into creatures, such as the bull-like enemies encoding bull-fights. Moreover, a boss designed as a covenant of three witches is instead representing the Holy Week in the South of Spain, a celebration that can get quite creepy considering the hooded costumes of the participants.

Blasphemous built an amazing world, and one of the best examples of extrapolating the most creepy details from classic and religious art in order to create a unique nightmarish world.

Hellblade Senua’s Sacrifice – Norway

Hellblade Senua’s Sacrifice is probably the most known game in this article together with Blasphemous. Developed by Ninja Theory, Hellblade is an action-horror adventure set in a dark fantasy Norway, full of Norse folklore, violence, and death. The atmosphere is dark and intense, with mysterious woods, doomed shrines, and piles of bodies everywhere. The protagonist’s journey will bring her from a secluded island to the depths of Helheim, the legendary underworld of Viking myths.

The gameplay is very action-oriented, with sword fighting and dodging, a dance of death between the protagonist, Senua, and a variety of hellish soldiers. Even if the combat system is quite satisfying, it exists only in service of the plot, since Hellblade is a heavily story-driven game. Some segments also include puzzles to solve, huge boss battles against mythological creatures, and even some stealth or run-for-your-life sequences, creating a more variegated experience.

The story is very deep, moving, and interesting, a dramatic journey between life and death. The game touches some serious topics, especially regarding mental health and disorders, something so delicate and challenging even today, but when contextualized in Vikings’ era become a pure nightmare. Senua is a broken Celtic warrior trapped in a life of regret and sorrow, finding the most complicated way to search for answers: going directly inside Viking hell.

The grim and dark Viking era is amazingly painted in this horror and oppressive world, and legends are also explained and implemented through collectables. Some mythological figures, including Gods and creatures, make their appearance, exhibiting an insane horror appearance. For example, the Goddess of Death, Hel, is the main antagonist of the game, represented as a gigantic bold female figure with half of the body rottening, while the Fire Giant Surtr is a tough boss battle anticipated by an insane hellfire sequence.

Hellblade is an incredibly deep and disturbing game, a journey inside myths and psychological horrors.

Apsulov End of Gods – Sweden

The Swedish team of Angry Demon Studio accepted the challenge of creating an unconventional Viking game, and Apsulov is exactly what you would never expect: a horror sci-fi game based on Norse mythology. And you can trust me, this combination works extremely well, and for this reason, Apsulov deserves to be in this article. The game is set in a gigantic and claustrophobic underground station, a maze of steamy corridors and serpentine cables that will terrify even Alien fans. Of course, something there went terribly wrong, and now the station is a graveyard of dead bodies and insane naked people crying while wearing a skull mask. The atmosphere is dense and oppressive, an unexpected Dead Space connected with Vikings legends.

From the gameplay point of view, Apsulov is a classic stealth-horror game, where hiding in the shadow while waiting for the best opportunity to move is the best chance of surviving the enemies. But there are always unexpected changes to the formula, especially when the enemy is instead a colossal ice giant, and quickly avoiding its view-cone will be the only way of surviving. Because being spotted by an enemy usually means death. Moreover, gadgets collected during the game will help to solve puzzles and to create more dynamic gameplay, including a basic combat system. What instead is available since the early game is a sort of alternative vision, which is crucial to identify hidden runes, codes, and items, but also to better see in the darkness of the station.

The station can be imagined as a giant SCP facility focused on discovering artifacts connected with the Viking Gods. Because in this distant and terrifying future, Gods like Odin or Thor are real, together with creatures and worlds from the Viking universe. Audio files will help you to discover more about the surrounding, connecting old legends and myths with the sci-fi setting, including for example the shields of the Valkyries… which are far bigger than expected.

The Gods here are alien entities, and everything is far more horror than you would expect. For example, the legendary tree connecting the world, the Yggdrasill, here is a sort of eldritch tentacle abomination. And by travelling inside these tentacles, or roots, the main character will be teleported in one of the nine worlds composing the cosmology of the Viking folklore. Exploring the cold world inhabited by the colossal Ice Giants, for example, will offer a quite different change of pace and scenario compared with the underground station.

Apsulov is a brilliant experiment of fusing classic sci-fi horror atmosphere with old legends and folklore, creating a unique world where everything gets twisted together in a novel and interesting equation.

Mundaun – Switzerland

After watching a screenshot of Mundaun, you will already notice how peculiar and innovative it looks. The pencil made art-style is mesmerising and unique, creating a surreal and mysterious world in black and white. Between the beauty and the complete surrealism, the art-style helps to shape this unique experience of a horror game based on Swiss folklore and traditions.

Mundaun is a proper immersive simulation with freedom of exploration and interaction, including a combat system and also driving sessions. Pitchforks with low durability, and later on a rifle, can be used to face the nightmares roaming in the valley, while a truck collecting grass is the main vehicle to explore distant areas. In general, the experience is disseminated by dozens of small details, from the radio station that can be changed in the car, to the beautifully crafted diary where the protagonist will take notes. Another nice example is how the player can also find and prepare coffee, using logs and water in a very ancient way, creating probably one of the most traditional medkits ever in a game. The explorable valley is a place of secrets and impossible places, a surreal environment extending from the village to the skiing peaks submerged by snow. Different phases alternate nights and days, and is exactly when the sun is down that the most hideous beings will roam the valley.

The atmosphere is constantly uneasy and disturbing, every character is a bizarre mask acting in a dreamlike logic. And whatever is happening to the goats in Mundaun’s valley will stick in your head, creating such memorable, surreal, and unexpected characters. Seriously, bringing around in the inventory a talking goat head is not something easy to forget. There are so many David Lynch’s vibes in this game, that every scene will create a similar feeling to the most disturbing movies of the American director. And for a fan like me, this is a great compliment.

The game is a tribute to folk horror in every aspect. Set in the Swiss side of the Alps, Mundaun creates an introspective horror experience in bright light, taking a bucolic Valley and transforming it into a nightmare. Every isolated cabin is a eulogy of hidden lore and details, including posters, paintings, and masks. The game makes also great use of traditional masks from pagan Swiss carnivals, creating innovative enemies based on this design (and you can read more about here: The folkloric creatures inspired by Swiss carnivals in the pencil-made horror game Mundaun). Moreover, Switzerland, with its folklore and traditions, is filling every moment of the experience, not only in the surroundings but even in the language. In fact, Mundaun is narrated in Romansh, the least spoken language in Switzerland and heavily influenced by Italian, providing an even more authentic setting for such refined folk-horror experience.

Mundaun is an immersive adventure with a folk-horror atmosphere that you probably have never experienced before, which offers a disturbing side of the usually calm and peaceful Swiss mountains, and is one of the most fitting games for this article.

Black Book – Russia

Black Book is a very peculiar mix of different genres, including roguelike, RPG, card/deck, and horror. During the game, you will advance in randomly generated paths, facing moral choices and demons, while taking part in turn-based battles where different cards are associated with spells and hexes. Because in Black Book, you are in the 19th century Russia, specifically close to Cherdyn, a region not that far from East Europe and imbued in Slavic folklore, and you are playing as a witch. Or better, you play as a Koldun.

The game has a peculiar and very personal art-style, creating a colorful fairytale environment that knows how to shift toward darker territories. The witch will travel in randomly generated paths inside forests, secluded villages, or haunted mills, facing challenges and decisions along the way. When reaching the main areas, the game will switch toward a more point and click gameplay, including puzzle solving. All the elements combine very well together, creating a complex but satisfying game that will continue to evolve by adding more elements.

Regardless of every possible gameplay element mixed in the game, Black Book can be surely defined as a “witch simulator.” The player will learn how to deal with different dark topics while using her mystique knowledge to help or curse the villagers. There are many decisions related to how the villagers will see you, because if you earn their respect, they will bring you gifts and offerings. And of course, by gaining their fear, the consequences could be far more different. After recruiting familiar demons, for example, the player must decide every day how to keep them under control. On one side, they can be completely ignored, but in this case, they will torment the main character, causing serious negative effects for the next mission. On the other hand, the demons can be deployed to do mischievous missions in the village, such as stealing or tormenting people. This will negate any side effect, but the main character will collect “Sin,” which could affect the ending.

Black Book is one of the best games around for studying and understanding more Slavic folklore. Seriously, the game was developed in association with anthropologists, and it features an in-game encyclopedia cataloging all the lore collected. This feature is not only very interesting for the player to discover new things, but it has also value inside the game. Because in Black Book, arcane knowledge is power, and it is always rewarded. For example, when a villager will knock at the player’s door for a problem, the correct answer will provide a reward, and only by studying the encyclopedia, it will be possible to find the answer. There is a lot to discover about the traditions of rural Russia, for example how the Banya, or bathhouses, were important for the villagers. And everything has always its dark and creepy side here, so learning about a Banya will naturally bring to discover the Bannik, a hairy demon haunting the bathhouses.

Black Book is a complex and satisfying game, featuring strategic card battles and offering the possibility to manage the life and the work of a witch in 19th century Russia. It is also an encyclopedic game, and the best place to learn about Slavic folklore and traditions. Worth also specifying that this is a quite long game, able to offer more than 20 hours of play.

Heidelberg 1693 – Germany

Heidelberg is an action-platformer with strong horror and gory elements. The game is a callback to the root of the genre, with strong vibes from the original Castlevania, but without forgetting of providing also a more modern experience. The gameplay is tough but rewarding, and every scenario needs a strategy to finally succeed. The combat is focused on melee attacks and a slow but extremely powerful firearm, in this case, an old one-bullet musket. The weapons help to keep you rooted in the 17th century, with a lot of attention for details, especially in the complex animation of recharging the musket.

The enemy variety is also great, from gory zombies to very disturbing beings that probably escaped from twisted Hieronymus Bosch’s paintings. Killing the creatures is also very satisfying, considering the brutal and extremely rewarding combat system.

The pixel-art in Heidelberg is glorious, with a lot of details to describe both the brutality around you and the amazing environments. Moreover, the use of colours combined with gore and brutality creates a very peculiar atmosphere, somehow reminding Lucio Fulci’s movies.

Heidelberg also uses and portraits real locations of Germany. Even if the game is set in a fictional horror version of 17th century Europe, it tries to be quite historically accurate. For example, you can have an idea of the importance of these details from the gorgeous world map, showing Heidelberg and the surrounding countryside while shattered in pieces by a brutal demonic war. The beauty is that everything works quite well, and if on one side you have King Louis XIV sending you on a mission for the crown, on the other side such task is to slain a demon lord. Moreover, almost every boss is a grotesquely reanimated version of an existing historical figure of that time, and the boss bar even provides the date of birth and death of those figures… together with the date of their reanimation. The names are also included, so you can easily search them on Wikipedia if you want to know more about who they were.

Heidelberg is a challenging platformer with brutal combat and gorgeous pixel art, which brilliantly create a fictional Europe in the 17th century, especially Germany, by mixing historical characters and places with monsters and horror.

Kobolok – Ukraine

Kobolok is a short and simple game, mainly a walking simulator with a creepy PS1 aesthetic. This is probably not the most refined game on this list for gameplay or quality, but what makes Kobolok an interesting experience are the sources used to create the game. Because Kobolok is entirely set around a Slavic fairytale.

The gameplay puts you in a mysterious and surreal setting, nightmarish environments alternated by repentant jumping of scenes, in a very similar way to the most known Paratopic. Exploring and “feeling” the elements around you is the main reward for the player. There is a small amount of exploration, especially to discover some hidden scenes and elements, but in general, the game is quite linear.

What instead is very interesting about Kobolok is the idea behind it. The plot is focused on a mysterious bread-obsessed cult, with some disturbing hints about cannibalism. This is related to the ancient fairytale Kolobok, in theory quite famous in East Europe, including Ukraine (where also the developer is from). The fairytale tells the story of a living round bread, considered a child by its adoptive parents. One day, the round bread decided to run away from home, stepping into the dangerous outside world. On this journey, different animals tried to devour the sentient bread, which was clever enough to survive. And this is reflected in the game, where you will meet gigantic rabbits or wolves, and the disturbing round face of the smiling Kolobok. Yes, here things are definitively darker.

Kobolok is definitively a simple game, but in its short time, it offers a quite creepy and surreal atmosphere, while you wander around a nightmarish world, always under the spying eyes of gigantic creatures.

Depth of Fear Knossos – Greece

Greek mythology is quite exploited in modern games, especially considering AAA games such as God of War or Assassin Creed Odyssey. However, it is instead scarcely used as source material for horror games. And this is quite strange, considering how some creatures like Medusa can be terrifying, or how some legends have a clearly disturbing background, such as the Minotaur. Depth of Fear Knossos tries to fill this gap by creating a pure horror game directly inspired by Greek mythology. In the game, you are a hero thrown inside the labyrinth with the duty of slaying the Minotaur. However, this is a quite difficult task considering that in the dungeon there are also other eight mythological beasts.

The gameplay is a standard first-person horror focused on stealth, just in this case, the game is also a rogue-like since the labyrinth will change at each play. Hiding in the darkness is the best way to survive, especially early on, while collecting gold will open the possibility of buying new weapons, to then directly face the monsters inside the labyrinth. Every section of the labyrinth is guarded by one of the eight mythological monsters, including Medusa, a Centaur, and Cerberus. During the exploration, hiding from the monster is crucial, but after reaching the end of a specific section, there will be a proper arena boss battle.

A group of mythological characters also make their appearance in the game. To mention some of them, King Minos will welcome you before throwing you in the pit, Daedalus will sell you weapons inside the labyrinth, and Apollo will guide the player with his light toward the next objective.

The game is not the best example in the genre, but surely tries something new with such abused source material, creating one of the few examples of Greek horror games.

Incubus A ghost-hunters Tale – UK

The UK is a place with a rich culture of ghosts and haunted houses. For example, just think of Enfield Poltergeist and The Black Monk of Pontefract. Ghost-hunting is always a fascinating concept, using technology and devices, such as cameras and meters, to capture a glimpse of the paranormal. Playing a proper ghost-hunter in a simulation environment was always something that captured my interest, and Incubus A ghost-hunters Tale is probably one of the best examples of it. Developed by Darkling Room, a prolific studio behind many ghost-based horror adventures, Incubus is an adventure that puts you in the shoes of a rookie ghost-hunter exploring a haunted house in London.

The adventure spans 7 days and nights inside a peculiar haunted house. Every day, you can use different tools, including cameras, an EMF meter, or a thermal scanner, to identify 3 paranormal phenomena and the rooms they are infesting. In the game, there are 16 different ghosts and phenomena to identify, each with a peculiar signature, described inside an in-game manual to provide clues. For example, Touchers and Flamers appear as prints on the thermal scanner, Raspers have an EMF meter of 5 and appear as a disturbing whispering inside your ear, while Clickers like to mess up with electrical devices. Moreover, the gameplay adds a random component to the ghost hunts, where every day has different ghosts. And there are so many of them that even in a complete playthrough, you are not guaranteed to see all of them. This, together with well-thought-out achievements, builds a sort of collect-them-all fever where you want to see and identify all the ghosts. Interestingly, toward the end, when the gameplay starts to get a bit repetitive, Incubus is smart enough to play a huge twist changing everything.

House 6 is a real haunted house set somewhere in the infamous London’s East End. Yes, Incubus is set in a “real” haunted house, portrayed using pictures at 360 degrees. The team made a huge effort to scan the haunted house in every detail, taking every picture during night and day. Moreover, the soundtrack was also recorded in the place, providing an extra layer of creepy authenticity. The realistic setting and the background of the real UK haunted house create a quite frightening atmosphere. And the transition between day and night will only amplify this feeling, with every room and noise getting even creepier. Moreover, the team collected the actual testimony of the people living in this house and used the information to create the different phenomena. And when the eyewitness accounts are like this, you will understand the uneasy feeling of Incubus: “We all witnessed the ‘thing’. Hunched, hairy, snarling. It wasn’t a person, no way, it moved too quick, and it stank, like wet dog. A dead wet dog! No, there was nothing human about it. We all saw it, and then it disappeared. We didn’t wait to see if it came back.” Sarah, 1987 

Feeling inside an existing haunted house was never so believable.