Introduction: This year’s Halloween period comes around with a huge PlayStation video game sale. This offer covers a wide range of games, but among them are some of the old-time classic horror games, mixed in with new and exciting releases from the same genre. Because of that, any and all horror gaming fans from the PlayStation niche should take notice, being that they can use the same sale to stock up on horror gaming for the better part of the coming year.
Article: The spooky season is in full swing, with only days to go until Halloween 2024. But, before the night of horror and terror comes around, many companies across the world are using this opportunity to promote their goods and services. For the gaming industry, that opportunity is even more valuable, being that Halloween perfectly aligns buyers for the even bigger spending period of the winter holiday period. Halloween does not come with the same potential but it does offer a great niche for horror video games. Historically, this is the period when horror developers both big and small try to reach their audiences and even expand that player base.
After all, what time of the year is better for some horror gaming than All Hallows’ Day? This year, one of the biggest events from the video game business comes from none other than PlayStation. The company decided to hold a huge Halloween sale that began mid-October and which will last until November 1, 2024. It is taking place on the official PlayStation.Store online shop and offers an incredible 1078 items. That includes discounts that go as high as 85 percent off, but more importantly for this period, comes some incredible horror games. Among them are big classics that have shaped the horror genre, but also a few excellent contemporary games that promise a different kind of gameplay experience. Here are the best horror games on offer at the PlayStation 2024 Halloween sale.
The Quarry (86 percent off)
The Supermassive Games development team wanted to create The Quarry in the tradition of the 1980s B movie horrors. In the game, players, either alone or with friends in the co-op multiplayer, take on the role of summer camp counselors who have to fight to stay alive after an attack by mysterious creatures. The game is ideal for horror film fans, especially because of its potential to become incredibly bloody and gory, which in turn works perfectly with the game’s inspirational source material.
Resident Evil 2 Remake (75 percent off)
This title asks for no introduction. That applies to the original game, as well as its 2019 remake from Capcom. For many games and critics, this version of the game in many ways beats the original and surpasses it in terms of production quality and delivery of frights. On the basis of that success is a finely tuned blend of original features and a modern design that the creators introduced in the late 2010s. Today, it’s one of the shiny gems in Capcom’s Resident Evil franchise.
Alien: Isolation (75 percent off)
Probably the most famous video game set in the Alien universe, this title is a true masterpiece of both horror and sci-fi gaming. The title takes place on a space station that finds itself under the assault of a single Alien being, but which gradually kills off nearly everyone there. As the protagonists, players must use a range of devices and gadgets to try to first survive and then find a way to kill the enigmatic space monster. Using great game design and excellent retro-futuristic aesthetics, the game is beloved by many and remains nearly perfect in its execution of the abandoned space station science-fiction concept.
The Evil Within (75 percent off)
Back in 2014, the team around Shinji Mikami, the director of the Resident Evil series launched The Evil Within. In it, players take on the role of Sebastian Castellanos, a man pulled into a hellish world of nightmares and horrid monsters. Here, Sebastian has to use a huge range of both melee and ranged weapons as he tries desperately to escape that cursed place. The game in the meantime became a cult classic and is still cherished by fans of horror and gunplay titles in equal measure.
Dead by Daylight (60 percent off)
This title by Behaviour Interactive and 505 Games remains the staple of horror multiplayer gaming. In the game, the players are broken into asymmetric teams, where a group of survivors has to overcome the attack and stalking by a single powerful monster, also played by a real gamer. The gameplay is vastly different depending on the role, with the survivors needing to play stealthily and cooperatively, while the monster simply hunts as fast and as effectively as possible. The concept is very elegant and simple to understand, but also has a strong appeal to horror fans, being that it allows for the immersion in both hunter and hunted roles. Many great works of gaming set in the horror space tried to explore both sides of that coin, but none did it so well as Dead by Daylight.
Killer Frequency (50 percent off)
This game was considered a breakout indie hit back in 2023. It offers a slightly different setup than most horror games – instead of having the frenetic energy or espacing monsters (or playing them), Killer Frequency places the player in the shoes of a radio DJ, located in a small recording and broadcasting studio. There, the players get calls from people being hunted by a deranged serial killer and have to help them through a range of puzzle challenges. Throughout all of that, the game includes a range of 1980s horror tropes, which form a great backdrop to this unusual but very engaging game.
Lies of P (40 percent off)
While Lies of P is not decisively a horror game, it still offers recognizable gothic elements and the right kind of spooky atmosphere and grotesque characters. Besides, the game and its core mechanics are excellent, allowing it to become a hit in its own right. That combination managed to thrill many players, especially when the game’s dark fairytale-like story is taken into consideration.
With one or more of these titles, buyers can be assured that they are getting the very best of the horror gaming offer. If you are among those gaming horror fans, be sure to use the PlayStation Halloween sale and get some of these excellent games of fright for yourself.
Author: Ivica Milaric, game designer and assistant professor of game design at the Novi Sada Academy of Arts, Republic of Serbia