We’ve already had some good and great horror games in 2023 with Dead Space, Resident Evil 4, Dead Island 2, and more keeping the genre’s flame burning bright. Yet there’s much more on the horizon in the remainder of 2023.
We probably won’t get the Silent Hill 2 remake just yet, but at least two other classics are getting the remake treatment. Licensed horror continues to gain prominence, and the indie space is as exciting and varied as it has ever been.
Find out what Horror Games are releasing in 2023
So we’ve collected a sizeable selection of upcoming horror games on the horizon. There are all sorts of horror experiences to choose from. Whether it be post-apocalyptic survival, moody mansions, tales of the paranormal or the terrors of space. 2023 could yet go down as one of horror gaming’s most successful years.
Here’s our list of the most anticipated horror releases for 2023.
Bramble: The Mountain King (April 27)
Based on Scandinavian folk tales, this puzzle platformer is disarmingly enchanting one minute and then grisly, dark, and sinister the next. Dimfrost Studio looks to infuse the eerie unsettling charms of games such as Limbo and Little Nightmares into its game.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (August 18)
Gun Media had great ideas with Friday the 13th: The Game, but various issues stood in the way of its success. The developer is back with an intriguing multiplayer title baked on Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
Layers of Fear (June)
Before Bloober Team heads to Silent Hill, it’s making a quick stop back at its own Layers of Fear series. This game is part reimagining of the first two games, and part brand new game with a third narrative fusing them all together as one story.
Daymare 1994: Sandcastle (2023)
The Daymare series was born from a Resident Evil 2 fan remake and has flowered into its own thing. Daymare 1994: Sandcastle is the latest. It serves as a prequel to Daymare 1998, and keeps things survival horror-flavored.
Redfall (May 2)
Masters of the immersive sim Arkane return with a more online-focused game. Redfall sees vampires shrouding a New England seaside town in darkness in order to feast. Unfortunately for them there are some pretty handy vampire slayers in town.
Alien: Dark Descent (June 20)
Alien: Isolation was fantastic. FNAF-inspired mobile game Alien: Blackout was good, and Aliens Fireteam Elite scrubbed some of the nasty taste of Colonial Marines out of our mouths and minds. Alien: Dark Descent by Tindalos Interactive looks to continue the good vibes around Alien games with its RTS take on James Cameron’s era of xenomorphs.
The Day Before (November 10)
I have some doubts that the post-apocalyptic survival game The Day Before will be anything like the vision being advertised, but whatever The Day Before turns out to actually be, it’ll be coming out this year…for now.
Atlas Negro: Infernum (Dec 25)
It’ll be interesting to see if developer Night Council Studio commits to the Christmas Day release date for its disturbing psychological horror game. It’d probably be as an unwelcome sight in your living room as the creatures in the game that show up in our world.
Amnesia: The Bunker (May 16)
Frictional Games comes back for another bite of the Amnesia cherry (probably forgot) with the most experimental shift in what Amnesia is yet. Set in an impossible WWI bunker, the protagonist must use their wits and limited resources to battle an unspeakable foe.
The Outlast Trials (May 18)
Red Barrels is attempting to revitalize its Outlast series with a co-op-focused outing that promises to be just as lurid and gruesome as expected. You and your friends need to escape a series of demented and brutal trials by focusing on cooperation.
4 Minutes to the Apocalypse (TBC)
An interesting concept for this one. Atomic Wolf presents a post-nuclear war world where various parties vie to take control of a truly world-ending weapon found aboard a submarine. A race to have power over the fate of what remains of humanity could be in your hands.
The Last Case of Benedict Fox (April 27)
Plot Twist’s cosmic horror Metroidvania takes place in 1920s Boston, and the titular Benedict Fox is in town to solve a murder that unsurprisingly turns surreal and dread-inducing. With the help of a demon, Fox is able to enter the memories of people’s trauma and traverse nightmarish manifestations of them.
Oxenfree II: Lost Signals (July 12)
Night School Studio brings the long-awaited sequel to Oxenfree to us this year. Set five years after the first game, Oxenfree II sees Riley return to her hometown after reports of more mysterious radio signals.
Routine (TBC)
Lunar Software’s retrofuturistic sci-fi horror reemerged last October and excited me all over again. Its aesthetic of the late 70s/early 80s visions of sci-fi technology scratch the kind of itch Alien Isolation was very good at. It’s release date is still a mystery, but can’t rule out a 2023 launch yet!
Post Trauma (TBC)
RED SOUL GAMES looks to bring the best of both worlds to its take on classic survival horror. So we get fixed camera perspectives alongside modern visuals and controls. That’s the sweet spot for me! You can get a taste of this game via a demo on itch.io.
Level Zero (2023)
A sci-fi spin on the popular asymmetrical multiplayer boon sees DogHowl Games’ Level Zero giving four scientists the task of repairing electrical controls to escape a dreadful planet. Only problem is two player-controlled alien creatures lurk in the shadows waiting to mess them up in variety of ways.
Unholy (TBC)
The power of emotions will help you seek out your child as you flit between two realities in Duality Games’ Unholy. They manifest in physical ways to fight or outwit some horrendous creatures. Combat is an option, but stealth and espionage play a part in this dark horror.
The Invincible (2023)
A more subdued sci-fi horror set on the Red Planet. Starward Instudstries’ The Invincibles asks you to uncover the mystery of your missing crew on Mars. Is there something dreadful behind their disappearance? We shall see!
The Greyhill Incident (June 9)
The iconic image of the gray alien isn’t exactly the scariest proposition, but that’s not going to stop Refugium Games from trying to change that with The Greyhill Incident. With limited resources, a conspiracy theorist finds himself trying to survive a personal alien invasion. Tinfoil collection looms large in the game, but seems it might be a bit late for that.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl (2023)
Development of this much-anticipated sequel has been hit by the events in Ukraine, but developer GSC Game World is determined to get on with it. If it’s even half as good as its predecessors, then we’ll still be in for quite the treat.
System Shock Remake (May 30)
It’s probably because we’ve known about it for far longer than the remakes of other recent horror games, but the System Shock Remake has flown under the radar compared to its peers. Still, with a studio as educated in bringing the spirit of old games back to life as Nightdive, we should probably be more excited for this than any of them.
Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game (2023)
An upside of publishers and developers digging into old horror films for inspiration is that you’re going to get some wild cards. Nothing is more wild card than a multiplayer game based on cult sci-fi horror gem Killer Klowns From Outer Space.
If nothing else, it will have that fantastic theme song by Oingo Boingo.
Alone in the Dark (TBC)
Less pressure on this remake/reimagining of the grandaddy of Survival Horror than some notable recent examples (Dead Space and Resident Evil 4), but after a humiliating fall from grace with Alone in the Dark: Illumination, It’d be wonderful to see Alone in the Dark thrive once more.
The remake is ramping up on the oppressive Southern Gothic atmosphere, and will make some fundamental changes to the original story.
Alan Wake 2 (2023)
It still feels slightly unbelievable that Remedy is not only returning to Alan Wake after all these years, but that it’s also not too far off being released. There’s still plenty of mystery shrouding the return of the horror writer, but after what we saw with Remedy’s last game (Control), it’s difficult not to be excited by Alan Wake 2.
Ad Infinitum (September)
Ad Infinitum by developer Hekate gleans horrors from the trenches of World War I. That would be easy if this was just that, but that manifests itself in more imaginative and fantastical ways in this psychological horror game.
Ripout (2023)
3D Realms is publishing this procedurally-generated co-op horror shooter by Pet Project Games. You must team up to fight biomechanical mutants with your living gun. It looks as cool as that sounds, so hopefully it plays just as well as that too.
Varney Lake (April 27)
Mothmen: 1966 was an underappreciated sci-fi horror adventure with a pulp sensibility. Varney Lake looks to keep that going with a somber tale of a trio of teens that find a dying vampire.
Broken Spectre (TBC)
The Meta Quest 2 is getting a dose of cosmic horror in the form of Broken Spectre. It promises a level of immersion only VR can bring plus body horror that takes advantage of that. Color (of Space) me intrigued.
Beneath (TBC)
Aquatic horror fans rejoice. Camel 101 is taking us (a deep sea diver) into the ocean depths to face an unsettling nightmare world. Your body might well be under pressure, but your mind will be pushed further than that.
The Forgotten Tapes: Twisted Forms (TBC)
Horror game anthologies are cool, so getting a second edition of The Forgotten Tapes from publisher Bloody Vulpine is most welcome. Twisted Forms will see eight distinctive short horror games that focus exclusively on body horror.
RetroSpace (TBC)
This retro-futuristic sci-fi game has a very distinctive look. Described as a disco-punk sci-fi shooter, RetroSpace sees you navigating a ship that’s been consumed by a black hole. The consequence of this is mutated humans and some seriously odd reality-defying occurrences.
Tales From Candleforth (October 2023)
This point-and-click escape room horror sees dark fairy tales contained in a book spill out into our world. As nightmarish imagery corrupts our obviously perfect and wonderful world, it’s up to a 16-year-old girl to uncover the secrets of her grandmother’s past and how it connects with this.
The Tartaraus Key (TBC)
Vertical Reach’s mystery thriller game sees protagonist Alex Young trapped inside a strange mansion with several other people. They must both find a way to escape and uncover the truth about their abduction.
Amanda the Adventurer (April 25)
DreadXP is publishing a fully-fledged version of this indie horror short. Don’t be deceived by that low-rent Dora the Explorer look, there’s something sinister afoot in Amanda’s world. You best do what Amanda says then. You wouldn’t want to upset her.
So there you have it. A monumental collection of horror games is due out this year. Naturally, some will fall back, more will be announced, and you can never rule out a shadow drop for those games with vague release dates. GameWatcher will keep you up to date with the highlights on the horizon as the year goes on.
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