Each horror game takes a different approach regarding its presentation. Some are slow-paced and atmospheric, while others focus onthrilling action and combat. Still, both schools of thought generally employ jump scares to some extent. The degree to which they are utilized greatly differentiates one game from the next.
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Although jump scares can certainly be executed well, they are by no means mandatory for a horror game to be successful. Many attempt to double down on the atmosphere, building tension, or the plot itself. In these examples, jump scares are only a single spoke in the wheel, employed sparingly without being completely overdone.
Updated Jun 25, 2025 by Mark Hospodar:Horror games are perfect for getting the blood pumping. The genre itself is huge and every game takes a slightly different approach to how it conveys horror tropes. Unsurprisingly, jump scares tend to feature heavily.
Despite its common usage in the industry, not every game decides to rely on jump scares exclusively. Some games trust their atmosphere to do the heavy lifting. When pulled off well, the result is often a memorable horror experience that strikes the player to their core. This list has been expanded to include a few more excellent entries that fans shouldn’t ignore.
13The Closing Shift
Games developed by the Chilla’s Art team tend to be creepy, goosebump-inducing experiences. One of their more recent releases,The Closing Shift, is a great example of why jump scares aren’t always needed in a horror game. The realistic premise of the game also hits close to home.
Fans play as a coffee shop employee who must serve late-night customers by brewing drinks. However, an aggressive stalker quietly waits in the wings. Overall,The Closing Shiftis pretty tense. Players are lulled into a false sense of security through the mundane repetition of their routine. That security is shattered once things start taking a darker turn.
12Fears To Fathom
The title for this one is very apt.Fears to Fathomis an episodic horror series that is currently comprised of two entries:Home AloneandNorwood Hitchhike. These games drip with a low-burning intensity that sets players on the edge of their seats. Once again, the realistic nature of each game’s premise only serves to heighten the level of anxiety.
Home Alonedeals with a young boy who experiences a home invasion while his parents are out of the house.Norwood Hitchhikecenters around a dodgy motel with some rather strange residents. Bothepisodes are shortand don’t overstay their welcome. Because of this, the episodes ofFears to Fathomare incredibly effective at letting the player’s imagination run wild…until real danger strikes.
11Iron Lung
Like the previous entry,Iron Lungis a horror game that uses every minute of its short runtime to maximum effect.Iron Lungis a claustrophobic affair that takes place in a submarine exploring the depths of a huge sea of blood. Players only have a limited supply of oxygen to complete their objective of documenting what lies beneath the blood sea.
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Many of the best horror games allow players ample opportunities to scare themselves through their own imaginations.Iron Lungaccomplishes this feat through the clever use of sound and the grainy use of photographs. It’s a neat game that relies on its atmosphere to the fullest, resulting in a truly disturbing adventure.
10SOMA
Frictional Gamespossesses a well-deserved positive reputation when it comes to delivering satisfying horror titles. LikeAmnesia: The Dark Descentbefore it,SOMAis great at building tension. Terrifying players with unseen terrors lurking around the corner is what the developers do best.
One ofSOMA’s other measurable strengths is its storytelling. The game doesn’t shy away from asking genuinely thought-provoking questions about people’s identities and humanity. All of this and much more are accomplished beautifully while keeping the jump scares to a minimum.
9Bioshock
When talking about building atmosphere, it’s hard to ignore the originalBioshock. The story takes place in Rapture, an underwater city where most inhabitants have lost their minds due to constant infighting, a breakdown of authority, and rampant plasmid addiction.
Each section of Rapture possesses its own identity, along with its own set of dangers. The Medical Pavilion, for example, is a macabre spectacle of body horror, overseen by a homicidal plastic surgeon. Withsupplies never consistently plentiful, players are forced to be ever vigilant against the threat of wandering maniacs roaming the halls. The inability to let one’s guard down even for a moment is palpable.
8Little Nightmares 1 & 2
Horror platformers can be just as intense as any first-person experience. One of the more notable examples is the two-partLittle Nightmaresseries. Both entries deliversatisfying platforming gameplay, but it’s their clever use of disturbing imagery that really makes them memorable.
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The monsters in these games are best characterized as twisted caricatures of real people. Escaping from them can be stressful, especially since they often make sudden, unwanted appearances. Everything is presented skilfully in all its gloomy ugliness. Very few “cheap” scares populateLittle Nightmares.
7World Of Horror
World of Horroris a very apt name for this game. Its artistic style is striking, making use of a black-and-white hand-drawn aesthetic. Fans are tasked with halting the impending end of the world by battling otherworldly monsters in turn-based combat.
A lot of the imagery in this game is genuinely unnerving. The old-school adventure game mechanicsWorld of Horrorutilizes don’t lend themselves well to constant jump scares. Rather, it’s the inevitable buildup of unease a player experiences while confronting a new threat that makes this game so tense.
6Visage
To say that there are manyP.T.-inspired derivatives would be an understatement. However,Visageperhaps came the closest to realizing the kind of horror thatP.T.promised. As such, the game is primarily a psychological horror piece, one where the protagonist’s reality is regularly called into question.
Visagedoes incorporate jump scares throughout its presentation; however, they don’t form an overwhelming aspect of the gameplay.Visageis meant to be more of a slow burn, letting the player’simagination run wilda bit first before unleashing its full bag of tricks.
5Silent Hill 2
Admittedly, none of theSilent Hillgames overly rely on jump scares.Silent Hill 2, like most other titles in the franchise, blends elements of both supernatural and psychological horror. Thesecond entry is widely regarded as the bestin the series for pulling off this fusion so well.
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Silent Hill 2witnesses some of James Sunderland’s worst fears and regrets come to life. The result is one chilling encounter after another, along with enough grisly imagery that fans won’t soon forget. Who needs jump scares when you have Pyramid Head?
4Stories Untold
Stories Untoldis an episodic collection of unsettling tales. The object of the game as a whole is to solve a series of puzzles, during which there is a conspicuous escalation of tension. That feeling of growing dread is arguably most effective in the first episode, “The House Abandon.”
In “The House Abandon,” the protagonist begins playing a text-based computer game. Eerily, the environment in the “real world” begins to mimic the actions taken in the computer game. The proceedings hit a climax when the protagonist starts to hear footsteps ascending the staircase. It’s remarkably well done, scaring players by getting inside their own heads.
