CREDIT: DARKWORKS
Cold Fear's deadliest catch isn't crab, but it's definitely got angry claws.

Yes, you’ve played and been terrified by the demons of Silent Hill, and we’re all very proud of you for it. But good horror games do exist outside of Resident Evil and even Amnesia. And boy will these scare your pants off.

Five Nights At Freddie’s (2014, PC)

As if Chuck E. Cheese wasn’t terrifying enough, with ugly mascot characters and ball-pits with unidentifiable, undesirable liquids dredging the bottom, Five Nights At Freddie’s takes things to the next level, by having those animatronic mascots stalk you and snuff your lights out for good. Gameplaywise, it’s similar to games like Night Trap and The Experiment (eXperience 112), but far more compelling. At $5 and ignoring its reputation for being idiot YouTube gamer bait, it’s definitely better than renting out Dead Space for the nth time again.

The Suffering (2004, Xbox, PS2, PC)

I’ve never quite had the chance to talk about The Suffering. Good horror games with an original premise are far and difficult to find, but that quest ends with The Suffering. A haunted house is scary enough, but when those unrested souls wandering are those of murderous psychopaths wandering the hallways of Abbott State Penitentiary, you’ve really got to take on the role of protagonist Torque, to hack-and-slash your way out of this prison hellhole. The game’s nightmarish creatures, designed by Stan Winston (of Jurassic Park and Terminator 2 fame), will haunt your dreams forever, where no shiv or revolver can protect you.

The Blair Witch Project Volumes (1999, PC)

You either love or hate The Blair Witch Project for good reason. You were likely drawn into the mythos and left disappointed or thirsty for more. If you aren’t a fan of “less is more” and really want to dive into the myths behind the creepy town of Burkitsville, the Blair Witch game trilogy is your best bet, set a good 60 years before the films (remember the sequel, guys?). Be warned, while the story will draw you in, the gameplay is iffy and best, and painfully annoying at worst, adopting the fixed camera angle style of Resident Evil to lesser effect.

Cold Fear (2005, Xbox, PS2, PC)

Cold Fear definitely isn’t the best horror game you’ll ever play. But the cold shoulder it received from the gaming public, with less than 70,000 copies sold, is unfair. Not a lot of games allow you to play a special agent investigating a Russian tanker caught in one of the worst storms imaginable, but Cold Fear lets you take on the role of Tom Hansen, blowing up the heads of mutant mercenaries, with a competence that gives you a solid eight hours of entertainment.