Much scare-centric entertainment is consumed on larger screens. People flock to movie theaters to watch the latest slasher flick or turn off all the lights to play a survival horror game on the TV. But there’s plenty of spooky stuff available on your phone or tablet; all you need to do is plug in some headphones to steer yourself to a fright. Some of these games overtly focus on terror, delivering jump scares and gruesome twists. Others offer more of an ominous, unsettling vibe as you explore darkened buildings or solve puzzles. All 15 games are worth a look if you’re planning on scaring up some eerie, portable thrills as Halloween nears.
LIMBO
Limbo is a fantastic game, an atmospheric puzzle platformer that instills a real sense of wonder as you guide a small boy through uncertain terrain. It also instills just as much dread, thanks to the monochromatic aesthetic heavy use of shadows. You don’t know what’s ahead. And sometimes, you’ll wish you hadn’t found out so quickly. Sometimes, it might be an enormous spider or a large animal trap that quickly crushes your frail body. Unlike many games on this list, Limbo isn’t explicitly designed to be scary, but there’s real tension in your explorations. It’s undoubtedly one of the most memorable games found on this list.
Limbo ($2)
The Walking Dead
Like the comics TV series, which share the premise but focus on different characters, Telltale’s The Walking Dead episodic game series can be downright horrific. Graphic, gut-wrenching violence comes in the early moments of the five-part first season; better yet, there’s a young kid involved. But that’s what happens when the undead rise, right? While it’s true that The Walking Dead has gruesome moments, not to mention some in which an enemy will jump out at you. The adventure has a compelling story, rich characters, and an outstanding balance between watching and playing. And the actions and decisions you make help shape the direction of the tale, which then leads into an entire second season.
The Walking Dead: Season One (Episode One free; $15 for full season)
Dark Meadow: The Pact
Released in the wake of iOS smash Infinity Blade, Dark Meadow: The Pact takes a similar first-person, swipe-centric fighting design and builds a creepy little adventure around it. You wake up in the bed of a long-abandoned hospital with no clue what’s happening, only an old, seemingly delirious man in a wheelchair there to guide you. And then the monsters show up. Wondering the halls, you’ll encounter aggressive creatures that you’ll need to battle back with your blade, bow and arrows, and items. As you explore the grounds, you’ll find all manner of bizarre sights and start piecing together a storyline, which proves as unsettling as the initial premise itself.
Dark Meadow: The Pact (Free)
Into the Dead
As the title suggests, running right into the Dead is not a very good idea. Running around the dead, making sure their decayed mitts never touch you? That’s a much better plan. Into the Dead puts a fun, atmospheric twist on the endless runner by tossing you into a field at night, challenging you to stay alive by dodging the zombies creeping all around. The further you run, the more the undead walkers bunch up and swipe at you, but you’ve got some potential tools to grab unlock, firearms, and power-ups. The first-person perspective of foggy terrain gives Into the Dead a nicely eerie aesthetic; it’s always startling when you finally eat dirt and get eaten naturally.
Into the Dead (Free)
Temple Run 2
It’s been out for a few years now, but it’s nice to see that Temple Run 2 can still put on an excellent show to bring back lapsed players for some Halloween fun. The behind-the-back runner has been decked out with an array of timely visual tweaks, which make for a spirited sprint. The new Spooky Summit environment is decked with pumpkins, ghost icons, and eerie sights. Plus, all the characters have been given new skins, turning your usually-generic lead into a skeleton, monster, or werewolf. You’ll also swim through slime and ride into a haunted mine shaft. While these visual enhancements don’t really change the gameplay, it’s a fun reason to revisit this freemium great.
Temple Run 2 (Free)
Five Nights at Freddy’s
The animatronic characters get a bit quirky at night, says the voicemail you hear in the opening moments of Five Nights at Freddy’s. Left by a previous worker at the fictional Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. Talk about an understatement. You’ve just begun an overnight security guard job at the family eatery, only to find that the fuzzy friends are left to roam freely at night and are homicidal. Your job? Stay alive by swapping between various camera feeds coming into the security office and using the facility’s limited power supply to turn on lights and close doors. It’s simple in design but surprisingly effective in its sudden scares. The lo-fi franchise has become a sensation, with three sequels, millions of downloads, and a movie adaptation planned.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies
Call of Duty: Black Ops
When night falls, the famous military shooter series becomes a cooperative zombie zapper? Yup. While it’s a side mode on consoles, Call of Duty Black Ops Zombies gets its standalone Android release. Tasking you with defending a location from the aggressive, undead shamblers trying to bust through the barriers. You’ll consistently rebuild those barriers in the three levels and mow down any zombies that smash through or come too close. It’s a survival-centric affair, best enjoyed with up to three online players in tow, but you can play it solo too. While action-oriented, Black Ops Zombies contains many tenses and briefly terrifying moments. Particularly when you turn around and suddenly find a half-dozen bloodthirsty monsters about to pounce.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies ($7)
Subway Surfers
Subway Surfers is always a reliable pick for seasonal themes. This enduringly fun endless runner has been decked out for Halloween. Now, the young, graffiti-tagging hooligan you control, is trying to evade a Frankenstein monster, while sprinting through a Transylvania-themed course. As ever, the goal is to dodge obstacles on the train tracks by leaping, changing lanes, and rolling. While trying to collect as many coins, power-ups, and items as possible. Besides the new pursuer, the entire setting is loaded with spooky sights and pumpkins. There are Halloween-themed costumes and other goodies to unlock.
Subway Surfers (Free)
Hidden City
Object-find games thrive on smartphones and tablets. One of the most popular entries today has been given a Halloween makeover. Hidden City, Mystery of Shadows is already an atmospheric game set in a mystical metropolis filled with monsters’ magic. So the addition of Halloween scenery fits in nicely. The world map is now decorated with pumpkin ghosts amidst the darkened streets. But there’s more than that, the biggest is Lock’s, a new scene added for the occasion. You can also unlock Halloween-themed avatar items by completing events during the month. The added perks help make this a seasonal treat for hidden-object fans.
Hidden City: Mystery of Shadows (Free)
The Room Two
The Room belongs in the pantheon of great, original touch games. Delivering intricate puzzle boxes to solve as you unravel the plot. It looks sharp, plays well on a phone or tablet, and creates an expert sense of atmosphere mystery. While the original is an ideal starting point. Room Two makes more effort to make its rooms feel ominous and genuinely eerie. For example, the chapter that takes place within a séance room? That’s undoubtedly designed to give you the heebie-jeebies as you explore the surroundings and sort out solutions. Like the original, Room Two creates a quiet sense of unease amidst the engaging puzzles.
The Room Two ($2)
Five Nights at Freddy’s 4
We won’t list every Freddy’s game here. The second game is much like the first. While the third changes the setting to a horror attraction based on the pizzeria. But they’re all very similar in approach. However, Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 is a major shake-up to the series design. Moving the action to a child’s bedroom and twisting the themes. Although now a tyke, you’ll play much the same role. Keeping an eye and ear out for incoming fuzzy threats. In the shadows by looking at doors and peering into the closet. Surviving through all of the nights remains the big draw, with numerous jolting scares found along the way. Like all previous versions, it has a free demo version to try first.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 4 ($3)
Sisters
It’s already unsettling to disconnect yourself from the real world by peering into a virtual reality headset. That’s especially true when the digital world you enter is designed to freak you out. Sisters are one of the best examples of VR scares with Cardboard. Even at a running time of just a few minutes. The VR experience starts in a small room with a couple of eerie-looking dolls on the mantle. Still, as the rain patters against the windows, you look all around the surroundings, and things happen. A door opens. The dolls disappear. We’ll leave the rest to you to discover, but while not significantly interactive, Sisters is an essential Cardboard scare showcase.
Sisters (Free)
Hellraid: The Escape
Designed as a companion to a big console game that was eventually put on hold, Hellraid, The Escape is a first-person adventure that is seriously unsettling sometimes. Think about starting the quest; you’re decapitated by an armor-clad warrior. But after waking up in a coffin and pushing aside the lid. You find that you can send your soul out into an alternate version of the world. To find clues and solve puzzles. That produces some eerie moments. One stage has you floating through almost-completely pitch dark rooms as horrifying screams echo in the distance. Eventually, something will jump out at you. Good luck holding in that scream. The great atmosphere really carries Hellraid.
Hellraid: The Escape ($3)
Eyes
Eyes aren’t all that different from Slender-Man in design, as you’re wandering around accumulating items. At the same time, an ominous threat pops up occasionally. Only here, you’re trapped within a black-and-white mansion with randomly shaking objects and walls adorned with creepy eyeball icons. Oh, the enemy is a horrifying, flying serpent lady. It’s freaky. It’s super freaky. The approach is familiar, but Eyes deserves credit for riffing on the Slender-Man course without copying it. And unlike the guy in the suit, you’ll know to run as soon as you see the enemy here. Simply wandering the dark rooms might make you uneasy, given what could be around the next corner.
Eyes (Free)
The 7th Guest: Remastered
A legend of the horror game genre. The 7th Guest debuted in 1993 and helped establish the use of full-motion video pre-rendered 3D graphics. The CD-ROM classic has been remixed for Android, with refreshed animations, touch-centric controls, and an interface design that is less frustrating. As ever, The 7th Guest puts your amnesiac protagonist into the abandoned mansion of an eccentric toymaker. Where at least six previous guests perished. You’ll explore the building room by room and solve an array of puzzles, all while encountering creepy visions. And there’s a wealth of bonus content for old fans to dig into.
